I also like the details on the beach: pumice and paw prints.
Sea grass flowers.
Best of all, tiny sea shells in the basalt.
Two days of sunshine gave way to overcast skies.
High seas made for some spectacular wave action.
Those rocks were made of basalt, meaning that there was a bit of volcanic action some time in the past.
They have been weathered in a honeycomb-like way that is similar to the sandstone around Sydney.
It was a brilliant day, and the combination of sky, sand and water made the whole scene brilliantly bright.
Even though there was a sizeable lake, the flow from the lake to the sea was a mere trickle. Like much of New South Wales, it’s obviously been some time since it’s rained.
There were only a few beach-goers, but the number of caravan parks in the area told us that this place must be packed in the summer holidays. Personally, I infinitely prefer visiting out of season.
We walked to the other end of Manyana Beach to Green Island. This view is from the top of the hill.
But back on sea-level – the island is connected to the mainland via a sandbar. It’s popular with those who live and holiday at Cunjurong Point, on this end of the beach.
Inland is Lake Conjola and Berringer Lake, both holiday and fishing meccas, but out of school holidays it was very serene.
On the other side is the wild beach of Conjola, and bush beyond, with the very distinctive Pigeon House Mountain in the distance.
Farther along the beach there were some rock platforms.
The pools were clear, but since the tides here are strong, I didn’t see any notable creatures in them.
What we did find though were fossils from the time when this platform was at the bottom of the sea. There were leaves,
And a stem from a crinoid,
As well as shells and corals.
Goes to show that life in these parts go way back.
We took a longer long weekend down by the sea, heading south past Kiama, Nowra, Jervis Bay, to the north-side of Lake Conjola. The village of Manyana, to be exact. It really is just a village of beach houses – it doesn’t even have a general store. What it does have are beaches. Manyana beach is a mile length of sand, with Green Island connected by a sand bar.
Despite all the beach houses, the village was surrounded by bush and water. Bridie Beagle, a great lover of beaches, was ecstatic to be roaming again by the sea. And so were we.