The Jewel of the South Coast

A bank holiday weekend means our bags are packed and we are hitting the road. This time we headed south to Jervis Bay. An undiscovered treasure, this destination was recommended by a few Sydneysiders who deemed we were worthy of being in-the-know. Several locals call it their favorite place in all of Australia. Greg's colleague said that Jervis Bay is a "magical place." Clearly, we were more than intrigued and excited to see it for ourselves. With magnificent national parks, a charming little town, divine restaurants, hidden creeks and coves, natural unspoilt bays and beaches, crystal waters, rugged cliffs, a laid-back attitude, and ultra friendly locals Jervis Bay easily lived up to its reputation, despite the unfortunate weather we faced.

Carey wishing it was a sun umbrella she was holding...

We stayed at a delightful B&B owned and hosted by a couple who paid great attention to interior design and healthy breakfast preparation, much to Carey's pleasure. On Saturday morning we rose early to enjoy some brekky and then hit the bushwalking trails for the day. As we walked out of our room to the dining terrace, we stopped to take in the monsoon downpour falling from the sky. While it did dampen our clothes, it didn't dampen our spirits....at least not Greg's. He happily drove to all the sights and hiked a short distance to the viewpoints with an umbrella, which replaced the original plan of a full day's hike.

We discovered how uncooperative whales are for photograph taking.
While they gave us a fantastic acrobatic performance, their antics were impossible to catch with the camera.

Jervis Bay is a resting place for mother whales and their calves en route south after birthing in the warmer northern waters. So, we were off on a whale watching cruise Sunday morning. To keep in stride with all of our other boat trips, the waters were insanely rough. And, in order to stay consistent with all of our other boat trips, Greg fed the fish his breakfast the entire trip. We are looking at a perfect record of five for five. He did manage to lift his head long enough to see an acrobatic whale perform in front of him. After the trip Greg hugged dry land and said, "Boy for not being a boat guy, we sure manage to get on a boat every trip we go on." It was then he wisened up and sadly canceled our wild dolphin swimming trip in New Zealand that we had already scheduled in December.

Open water+middle of the ocean+warning of rough waters+several hours = Bad Idea.Greg looking nice and slim after the whale watching cruise.

He took advantage of the opportunity to exercise his signature diet regime.

Greg happily on dry land, which happens to be on the sand on one of the whitest beaches in the world.

In looking ahead, we have started the countdown for Fiji! Five weeks and we will be kicking back and exploring the South Pacific. Followed by a quick trip back to the States for Alison's wedding! Three weeks later, we will be heading to New Zealand for ten days and then up to the Great Barrier Reef to finish off our first year Down Under.

Carey somehow manages to get attacked by this spider, instead of the giant ants from our Pittwater trip. This may have been a bit scarier since so many of Australia's eight legged creatures are extremely poisonous and some deadly.