Sydney to Rockhampton in early September

[rexboggs5]

My sister is flying into Sydney from the US on 28 August and flying back to Brisbane and then home from Rockhampton two weeks later. In between we will be driving slowly from Sydney to Rocky - mainly along the coast but probably inland at times (eg the Blue Mountains).

She and I are both keen photographers, so I would appreciate any advice on must see / must stop locations between Sydney and the Queensland border. We are eclectic - landscapes, seascapes, birds, macro, fungi, people, though maybe not weddings :-).

TIA for whatever info you can share.

Cheers

Rex

[ameerat42]

Hmm! - That's a big cut of continent. Perhaps you could set a few "highlights"* to visit,
and make it a series of mini-trips to your destination, though hanging around Rocky should
be a go. Will put on thinking headgear.

* A relative tern, I know.

[rexboggs5]

Thanks for the reply. Yes, it is a lot to cover in just a few weeks. So hoping to get some suggestions for the "must visit" sites around and north of Sydney.

[MarkChap]

Hi Rex,
If you spend a few days around Lake Macquarie/Swansea area, there is Catherine Hill Bay, Caves Beach, just for a couple of highlights we saw last year.
A little further north South West Rocks and Trial Bay Gaol are worth a look for sure

[rexboggs5]

Thanks Mark, your advice is much appreciated.

Cheers, Rex

[Hawthy]

Wow! Big Question. You probably already know Rocky to Brisbane, or at least Bundy, better than me.

The Sunshine Coast and Gold Coast and associated hinterlands provide plenty of scope. The Glasshouse mountains taken from Maleny or Wild Horse Mountain can be spectacular. Any number of National Parks are likewise great. Maybe take a trip to the top of Q1 at Surfers for a great shot of the Gold Coast. A boat trip would provide a different perspective.

Most eastern point on the continent is Cape Byron so a shot of the Byron Bay Lighthouse at dawn appears to be a no brainer. Alternatively, climb Mount Warning in the pre-dawn and catch the sun as it hits the first place in Australia could also be a goer.

Also in Northern NSW, you can drive the Lions Road between Beaudesert and Kyogle. Plenty of scenic spots but if you time it right you could take a photo of a train coming up the spiral pass where it crosses over itself. Not sure if the train actually doubles on itself but that is nothing that Photoshop can't fix.

Depending on how much time you have, and which way you want to come, you may want to consider this.

I once did a beautiful drive from Goondiwindi to Grafton. This was imposed on me by a bastard of a boss who wanted to make my life as difficult as possible. I was heading to southern NSW for Christmas and planned a route that took in visits on my last working day to Tweed Heads, Murwillumbah, Ballina and overnighting in Grafton before heading south.

Instead, he insisted that I drive to Goondiwindi and then to Grafton two days before my holidays and return to Brisbane and then visit the Sunshine Coast on Christmas Eve. Talk about being deliberately difficult.

Anyway, the unusual route from Goondiwindi to Grafton was one of the most scenic drives and one of the unexpected pleasures of my life. The Goondiwindi trip was usually part of a loop that was Brisbane > Warwick > Goondiwindi> St George> Roma > Chinchilla > Dalby > Oakey > Toowoomba > Brisbane. All flat and generally uninteresting farming land.

The altered route took me from Goondiwindi to Texas, through the Dumeresq Valley (a beautiful clear river), through Tenterfield to the Gibraltar Range National Park (beautiful rivers and rainforest) down into Grafton. It is one of the most memorable trips of my life and I know that it burned a small, hopefully still smoking, hole in my ex-boss's tic-tac sized heart when I told him about my wonderful trip. Highly recommended.