It can be difficult finding a camping spot during school holidays, but Tannum Sands caravan park was spacious, green and very clean. No internet or phone signal but each site had an antenna point for free to air TV.
The beach was beautiful and the foreshore has either been recently redeveloped or is just immaculately maintained. There is a great bike/walking path and lots of BBQ facilities, picnic tables, amenities freshly painted in light blue and aqua, new play equipment and numerous beach access paths with outdoor showers scattered along the foreshore as well as a Surf Life Saving club with a patrolled beach area. They have bottles of vinegar in posts along the beach for stinger attacks. It was lovely riding our bikes and exploring the area starting at the Wild Cattle Creek. Cyclone Marcia damaged some of the access points to the creek and beach but it was still a beautiful place. Their speed bumps are rows of turtles, really cute, but unsettling. The twilight foreshore market was fabulous, lots of home made art and crafts, clothing, food, as well as buskers.
Agnes Water and the town of Seventeen Seventy, about an hour’s drive south, is the site of Captain Cook’s second landing, although at the time he was only a Lieutenant . The town was known as Round Hill until 1970 when it was changed to Seventeen Seventy to commemorate the bicentenial of Captain Cook’s landing. Very popular with holiday makers with boats as the caravan park is right on the very sheltered Bustards Bay and boats can be left on the beach. Lady Musgrave Island is not far off shore from there.
Half an hour inland from Tannum Sands is Lake Awoonga. The Fisheries Board keeps it regularly stocked with Baramundi, Mangrove Jack, Saratonga and Sea Mullet. EVERYONE can catch a fish at Lake Awoonga. With high expectations and great excitment we hired a little boat and headed for the area recommended by the locals called New Zealand Inlet, ready to catch our dinner. Seeing them jumping out of the water all around us was encouraging, one jumped so close to the boat I could have reached out and grabbed it……. It was a lovely day, Tim caught a very big ugly cat fish, but it fell off the hook before I got a photo. We had chicken for dinner.
We are now in Rockhampton.
Until next time. Helen and Tim