Crookhaven Lighthouse to Callala Bay
26 km (1310 km) 9 hr
A windy, misty start to the day at Crookhaven Heads across the river from Comerong. The rain made for slippery walk around the Crookhaven rockshelf with its intermittent little sandy coves, before heading to the 4km stretch of Culburra Beach. A few friendly dog walkers and a couple of fisherfolk were braving the weather along with me.
The rain and mist lifted temporarily by the time I reached the southern end of the beach and I made my way out to Penguin Head (named for shape rather than habitat).
It's an outstanding rockshelf from Culburra via quaint, sheltered Tilbury Cove and all the way around the headland.The odd slightly tricky bit but IMHO one of the best I've walked so far.
A part of me knows it's a trifle silly, but I still experience a real thrilling burst of dopamine joy when I round the tip of an unknown headland via a longish rockshelf and see that the way to the next beach is achievable - no need to engage reverse. "Well done Gregory," I congratulated myself, "all your decisions have proven wise once again" .
Once around Penguin Head it was along the sand past the Nowra-Culburra SLSC to outstanding Lake Wollumboola. The sandy berm today provided a dry crossing so I then had a long sticky beak of this amazing lake. Apparently 1% of the world's black swans live here, along with thousands of black ducks (that are a totem of the southern songline).
The land surrounding the lake is privately owned, but is in the process of being returned to public ownership. Note that if you're following the Great South Coast Walk website (excellent source of info for the 'southern way') the land is currently undergoing bushland regeneration so you must stick to the beach (no problem for me) until at least Kinghorn Point.
I continued down the sand past Hammerhead Picnic Area and the wreck of the Plutus to Currarong and Abrahams Bosom Beach (named after the place of waiting for the righteous dead) before making my way back to Currarong Road.
It was then a longish, somewhat tedious roadhop in pouring rain to skirt around Carama Creek to the trail down to Hare Bay and Red Point.
Around rocky Red Point and then 'at the end of a storm' there's a perfect place to swim! Oh the sheer unadulterated bliss of that swim and that beach. Like the rockshelf earlier, all the micro decisions that led up to that moment, all the tiny choices, enduring the soaking road walk, agreeing with myself to deal with the Wowly Creek crossing later', etc. etc. all led to that perfect, perfect swim on that perfect, perfect beach in a little pocket of warmth, with the lapping waters of Jervis Bay and the impossibly white sand... the stillness, the peace, the calm, the beauty... oh frabjous joy!
And then a post-bliss barefoot stroll along the beach and across Wowly Creek (an easy wade) to pretty Callala Bay where I'm staying tonight. Magnifice diem!
Walk on, walk on, with hope in your heart!