On our way back to the start. Wow! What a three hour ride! Are we ever glad we decided to do this. I would have hated to miss it. BUT, the day is only half over and we have to find a place to stay. We chose to try Maitland, about 40 klicks, in the heart of the Hunter Valley and Australia's wine country. :) ;) Wouldn't you know it, but we found a motel immediately. Yippee. We're going to spend the afternoon touring winerys.

Grammi and I in front of what is left of a coal carrier that was blown aground in a gale in the seventies. In the background on the right is the City of Newcastle where they ship millions of tons of coal to Asia each year.

This is tin can village where four families still live, about half way down the beach. Tin can village started with the depression in the 30's, when people had no place to live they moved here. There is plenty of good fishing and the fresh water table is only five meters below ground. New regulations say that if a tin can blows down, it cannot be repaired or replaced. There are about six left from what was once a village of hundreds of these.

This mate was proud of the fish he just caught. We just happened on him just as he was landing it. I know you can't see it in the pictures, but just about 50 meters offshore where the surf was breaking we watched the dolphins playing in it. There were about a dozen or so and they were lined up across the wave just like surfers. It was truly amazing to watch.

We came across these people horseback riding on the beach.