Grafton

Grafton show ground 28th November - 13th December

Grafton is a great place for a visit, situated on the mighty Clarence River. It is notable for its fantastic Jacaranda trees. Unfortunately the trees were not in bloom on our visit and the pictures were taken from the Internet.

Grafton is only a 50 minute drive to the mouth of the Clarence River at Yamba, it is well worth the drive to see the rock formations and the power of the surf at Yamba.

 

We took a drive up the Gwydir highway (World heritage way) for a view of the Gibralter ranges. They are spectacular to say the least and although the drive up the mountain is a bit grueling was well worth the effort.

Raspberry lookout was absolutely amazing.

Driving down the mountain we stopped off for a photo shoot at the magnificent scenery. A Davey Crocket wannabe paddled past in his canoe, we don’t know where he came from? We don’t know where he was going?

Maybe he’s still paddling? Maybe he’s lost? Maybe? Maybe? Maybe?

We had a visit from my good mate Dave who had bought himself some new camping gear. It was great to do a couple of days fishing with my ole mate. I had previously tested the water in one spot a few days earlier and had a fantastic day fishing and generally finding the best spot to drown a worm. Sods law stated that the best spot would be taken when we arrived! On we drove till we came to a quaint town called McLean. 

We fished from the moorings till we were invaded by younger anglers!
The fishing was okay (we both caught) and the bacon and egg sarnies, cooked at the side of the Clarence River were exquisite, I offered Dave a beer whilst I cooked and he fished. 

Dave reminded me about the sign!

However I decided to show him one of my own!

We had a great couple of days. Great beer, great food and great company, It was just not long enough. We will have to do it again real son Bro.

In recent times McLean council has been promoting  the town as ‘Australia’s first Scottish town’ – in recognition of the large number of Scottish settlers amongst the early selectors.

They have succeeded up to a point as many of the street names are now in both English and Gaelic. They have even put tartan on the telegraph poles around the town.

My clan name is Forbes whilst Andrea’s is Cameron.

The village was laid out in 1862. The surveyor named it after the surveyor – general Alexander McLean. Many of the initial settlers were farmers who were born in the Highlands of Scotland and who were branching out from the Hunter Valley, although there were also many of Irish and German origin.
I managed to get hold of some Lorne sausage from the local butcher who also sold white and black pudding! My dinner was sorted and very yummy! 

I have great affection for Scotland and have visited on numerous occasions. One day I shall return!

We nipped down to the Clarence River for a quick picnic and to allow Casper a chance to swim. We had just finished our grub when the rain started. 

Now I have seen heavy rain before but there was something different about this. We got in the car as fast as we could and got the hell outta there. We hadn’t gone a kilometre when the storm hit! 

Decent sized hail now pounded down! I was sure that we would have some serious damage and took cover under a tree. 

The storm lasted a good 30 minutes before we were able to break cover. The weather in Australia is really strange at times!

Hull Heads recreational reserve

Latitude -29 68 56S   Longitude 152 94 07E

Dump-point - No Toilets - Yes Water - Yes Pets - Yes Shower - Yes 

Length - 11 Mtrs Level - Yes Noise - No Grassed - Yes Cost - $15 per night Time Limit - 2 Weeks?