It was all very quiet at Umina Beach, even on Queen’s Birthday weekend.
There weren’t any swimmers this time, just a few walkers.
I’m guessing that the crowds have headed for the mountains, but winter at a seaside town has its own delights, I think.
Tag Archives: central coast
Autumn Beach Walk – Part 3
The sun sets fast in autumn, so it wasn’t long until we got a glimpse of a lovely sunset over Umina Beach.
Soon it will be winter solstice, and perhaps a wet patch, so let’s enjoy the beach-going weather while it lasts.
Autumn Beach Walk – Part 2
I can’t quite believe that Bridie the Beagle is now at the ripe old age of 13. She’s well into pensioner age now and much of the time is content to lounge about.
Unless she senses another dog ‘invading’ her territory.
Or when there’s a beach walk on the cards.
That’s when she gets really active, behaving more like a disobedient pup (do beagles ever grow out of this stage?)
Sprinting, jogging, and all the while sniffing out the many scents on the beach. She particularly likes seaweed!
Strange dog…
Cruising the Hawkesbury – Part 6
After a light lunch on-board, we arrived at the waterside hamlet of Marlow, on the northern side of the Hawkesbury.
Once again, it’s a community with boat-only access – which means no town water or sewerage, although they do have power and garbage collection. Unlike Dangar Island though, it takes a bit more effort to reach this place, the nearest road access being via a track from the M1.
Nevertheless, there are some nice houses – some look quite historic.
There’s mail to be delivered and collected here, and the local dog to treat. Boots the dog (named because of his white paws) expects a biscuit every day.
And all too soon we are cruising back downstream to Brooklyn. A nice way to discover the Hawkesbury.
Cruising the Hawkesbury – Part 5
Pretty soon we were cruising past long stretches of bush and mangroves. With national parks on both sides of the river on this stretch, there was nary a house in sight. The landscape here has probably changed little in 200 years.
Being mid-week, there weren’t even many boats on this stretch of river, except for this fishing boat. Fishing and oyster farming used to be the mainstays of the lower Hawkesbury. These days it’s almost impossible to make a living from these industries. The oyster industry has been particularly hit hard in recent years due to disease.
Hot Days
We are going through a long hot patch in Sydney at the moment. It’s been 30C or more everyday for almost a month (with only one or two exceptions), and the forecast is for more right into April.
The fan, and more often than I like, the air-con, has been on constantly, day and night.
At least some of the plants seem to be liking the weather. Our roses are actually flourishing, with practically no additional watering.
Our old girl
It’s been awhile since I’ve done an update on our beagle, Bridie. She is a senior citizen now, almost reaching the ripe old age of 13.
She looks very different now to when I first saw her, 6 years ago. Except for the cheeky look in her eyes, which hasn’t changed.
Now she’s more inclined to rest during the day, preferably in her favourite seat. After kicking us off, of course.
But there’s still plenty of life left in them old legs, particularly if a beach walk is on the cards. That’s when she reverts back to puppydom, dashing, splashing, and sniffing like there’s no tomorrow.
Happy New Year
Well, that was a really long blog break! It’s three weeks into 2015 and I hope you have been enjoying these very warm days. We’ve been on the Central Coast post-Christmas, but frankly I haven’t taken out my camera a whole lot. The only photos I have for you are these from a brief visit to the village of Patonga.
The Hawkesbury was a good place to be if you were a fisherman as there was a really warm current for a week or so after New Year’s Day.
Although Umina Beach was packed, there weren’t too many people swimming here. Probably a good thing since we heard through the grapevine that someone caught a bull shark just off the wharf!
I’ll be starting a photography course next week, so there will hopefully be more photos to post in the near future.
Going Home
For Bridie Beagle, a car ride is almost as good as a walk as one of her favourite things. She particularly likes car rides, so she was raring to go on the trip back to Sydney from Somersby.
She liked the smells of the bush.
And going around corners.
She wasn’t too happy when we closed her window on the freeway.
And so was ecstatic when we came back into Sydney.
Even the traffic and skyscrapers didn’t faze her, as long as her window was open.
Ah, to be a beagle…
A Bit of Autumn Colour
I did see a bit of autumn colour on the Central Coast, courtesy of a short drive up to the hinterland village of Somersby. There were a few trees turning by the roadside that warranted a few shots.
It has been a strange autumn and even though it’s still warm enough to wear shorts and t-shirt during the middle of the day, I dearly want to be able to break out the winter coats soon. I’ll just have to look at more of these photos and dream on.
Somersby was also a prime spot for Gymea lilies. Unfortunately, it seemed to be the end of the flowering season, but I found one that still had its bloom. At four or so metres tall, they’re truly spectacular flowers.
Static and Silence 