Red Rose Speedway (Lord Howe Island)

Welcome to day 2 and the traffic, cars everywhere ...

Weatherwise, Sunday proved to be similar to Saturday, warm, light winds and cloud.  It wasn't going to stop us doing anything but it's not the best weather for snorkelling, sunlight really lights up the coral. So we decided today would be Dora the Explorer day.

The birdlife woke us well before sunrise but it was a nice change from the trains at Redfern station. Sleeping with the door open and having the breeze and fresh air all night was an absolute luxury we haven't enjoyed since we left Woodbine for the city.  After finally struggling out of bed we headed back to The Anchorage where we had dinner last night, to have a coffee and buy some sourdough. The coffee was good and we decided to have breakfast there as well.

A white tern baby

Post breakfast we headed north to check out the menus at the lodges down that end of the island.  It is important to have dinner planned, different lodges are open to the public on different nights.  We then walked down to north bay, the place we hope to snorkel with some turtles.  There were a couple of groups out snorkelling even though it was a little windy.  Soon the sound of excited voices carried across the water, "I saw one.  Did you see it?"  I gather they spotted a turtle.  We also walked past the spot that is familar to David.  Do you recognise this fence and paddock?  I have photo of it from years ago with you in the frame.

We wandered back towards the Treehouse checking out the coral cruises and snorkelling trips along the way, when Jayne remembered the community markets.  We arrived right on opening time 10:30am and were, well, underwhelmed by the number of stalls.  There were some homemade jewellery, cakes, biscuits, second hand books, some bad tie-dye gear and someone making coffee.  A quick circuit, a discussion around our relative merits as the principal of the local school on whose campus the markets were being conducted and we once again made for our home in the trees.

The walk up the hill was every bit as steep as it was last night after dinner, but easier to navigate in the daylight.  The wind had dropped a little which meant we felt the humidity.  Once home it was hydration time then onto the verandah to enjoy the view, read a bit and fall asleep.

Batteries recharged we discussed whether we would go snorkelling in the afternoon or continue our walking tour.  Walking it was, but after we'd booked dinner at the Golf Club (gourmet pizza tonight) and a fishing expedition for Tuesday afternoon.

Looking at the map I had decided that I had never been to Middle Beach, so that became our first destination.  The beginning of the track was about 100m from our accommodation.  Off the road straight into rain forest.  The light dimmed and the smell of decaying humus was as strong as the sound of cicadas/crickets and the waves pounding on the shore.  The track was quite obvious and well marked and traversed areas pock marked with mutton bird nests.  It looked like the place had been bombed.  Mutton birds, or shearwaters as they are more correctly known, dig a burrow in which to lay their egg.  About 350m later we reach the headland and the sign stating that the Middle Beach is not accessible during high tide.  This probably explains why I hadn't been here before.  The sign was true. The tide was in and the beach could not be accessed without going into the water and around some rock formations.  

Middle Beach - not offering the sand or surf of Blinky's

Back the way we came and back onto the road we headed north towards a spot on the map marked 'view'.  An electric fence precluded the best aspect, but as it was cloudy it wasn't worth the attempt to get out closer to the cliff edge, I'll save that for another day.

We passed the 'top shop' so named because it is on top of the island.  Closed.  It is Sunday afternoon. Ned's Beach was the next stop, the scene of great snorkelling exploits not to mention the fish feeding. Stale bread carefully placed between the legs of an unsuspecting spectator can cause a flurry of excitement as the fish dive between the person's legs to get a feed.  Dad was a great exponent.  Never turn your back.  The fish that came into feed were of various species but there were some quite sizeable trevally that I would have been happy to see on my plate.  Today however, the wind was coming from the wrong direction for a quiet swim and a snorkel and the boards were more dominant than snorkellers.  We won't be back there until the wind changes direction, or maybe early in the morning before the wind gets too strong.

Red necks exist everywhere, think this means 'no cattle beyond this point'.

From Ned's we walked back down past Somerset, the lodge we stayed at the last two times we visited the island.  Then into Thompson's Store for an ice cream.  The choice was rather limited so it must be close to the supply ship arriving. No chocolate!  Not enough passionfruit to fill a cone so I settled for Mango and Jayne, ever trend-conscious tried the salted caramel.  Admittedly the girl behind the counter kept us waiting as she cleaned the coffee machine, but 4 scoops of ice cream in a single cone. OMG!  It was massive.  Pity it wasn't chocolate.  Yes, another first world problem.

Walking back past the lagoon cruises, turtle watching and snorkelling cruises we decided to book an outing.  Coral cruising in the glass bottom boat with 4 snorkelling stops.  After a discussion about the weather and what it may or may not do, we decided that tomorrow was the better option and booked for 9am.  Enough for one day, we headed back up the hill to the Treehouse to catch our breath, read and snooze the couple of hours away before dinner.

(Narrator change to Jayne)  Last night the dinner options were limited due to our late arrival. We decided on recommendation to go to the Anchorage which offered both seafood and charcuterie.  I had the former while Brad had the latter - all good and a pleasant way to start the island retreat but far more up market than when we last visited.  We would not have been able to afford to dine here with our kids even if it had existed back then.

The dinner option for tonight, given we cannot possibly cook for ourselves, was the bowling club for the gourmet pizza night.  We would not have considered this on any other night unless the fare was gourmet but we booked and rolled up there to find a glorified pie warmer in operation that delivered the gourmet food to the sizeable numbers of island dwellers, both dine-in and take-away.  We were glad we booked even so as we were told to sit where ever as the place quickly filled up.  We discussed the honour board that has been suspended for what ever reason since the year 2000 and the statte of the greens, given my father's passion for lawn bowls - would not have passed muster. Rating - pizzas were ok but not gourmet. Service was friendly and fast.  Got out before torches were needed to light the way home - bonus.

General observations today: blackbirds are everywhere (bloody ferals) and so are cars.  Both have increased significantly since our first trip.