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Destinations > Arakoon State Conservation Area, NSW
Arakoon State Conservation Area, NSW
Issue: March 2006
Words and photos by Barry Hayes
Tales & Whales
Colourful yarns of missing ships and escaped convicts, mixed with great 4WDing and top whale watching all await you at Arakoon State Conservation Area.
When convicts stole a ship from Sydney Harbour in 1816 they had no idea of their fate. Thirteen convicts seized the vessel 'Trial', its passengers and crew, and sailed north. Bad weather forced the ship into an unnamed deep bay, 75km north of Port Macquarie. The 'Trial' was wrecked and the bay earned itself a name - Trial Bay, which would become synonymous with great Australian shipwrecks.
If you had been there in 1816 you could have seen the drama unfold from a park now known as the Arakoon State Conservation Area, just east of Trial Bay. Arakoon is 6445 hectares of great camping; top swimming, fishing, windsurfing and whale watching; fabulous 4WDing and spectacular scenery all steeped in a rich history, like the dramatic stories of Trial Bay.
Rarely do so many interesting and unexpected attractions come together the way it does at Arakoon and the surrounding area. With so much on offer and being roughly halfway between Sydney and Brisbane it's not surprising that holiday periods often find the campground booked solid. Try visiting during the off-peak times though and you could have the place to yourself.
read on below advertisement
The campground in Arakoon is located on the bay side of Laggers Point, on the strip between the beach and the historic Trial Bay Gaol. The jail and trees along the sea front protect the camping area from the worst of the weather blowing in off the ocean. Although not powered, the campsites along the beachfront are generous, grassed and level. Powered sites are available further around and just a bit back from the beach. At the end of the day there is nothing that comes close to the pleasure of sitting in front of your tent while the sun sets over the bay, a coldie in your hand, watching whales breaching just offshore.
The best time to see humpbacks around Trial Bay is during early spring as they follow the coast south to their summer feeding grounds and again at the end of summer as they return to their breeding grounds in the tropics. It's a moving experience seeing these huge but gentle creatures frolicking with their young as close as a couple of hundred metres from shore.
The waters of Trial Bay are also on the migration route for the Australian salmon that pass through about the same time as the whales. Huge schools of these fish can often be seen just metres from the beach and although they may not be prized for their eating qualities they are magnificent fighting fish and a real challenge to land. My family and friends were fortunate enough to be there one year when a group of professional fishers, working with a net and a small row boat, pulled in part of a school they estimated contained around 100 tonnes of fish.
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Words and photos by Barry Hayes
Tales & Whales
Colourful yarns of missing ships and escaped convicts, mixed with great 4WDing and top whale watching all await you at Arakoon State Conservation Area.
When convicts stole a ship from Sydney Harbour in 1816 they had no idea of their fate. Thirteen convicts seized the vessel 'Trial', its passengers and crew, and sailed north. Bad weather forced the ship into an unnamed deep bay, 75km north of Port Macquarie. The 'Trial' was wrecked and the bay earned itself a name - Trial Bay, which would become synonymous with great Australian shipwrecks.
If you had been there in 1816 you could have seen the drama unfold from a park now known as the Arakoon State Conservation Area, just east of Trial Bay. Arakoon is 6445 hectares of great camping; top swimming, fishing, windsurfing and whale watching; fabulous 4WDing and spectacular scenery all steeped in a rich history, like the dramatic stories of Trial Bay.
Rarely do so many interesting and unexpected attractions come together the way it does at Arakoon and the surrounding area. With so much on offer and being roughly halfway between Sydney and Brisbane it's not surprising that holiday periods often find the campground booked solid. Try visiting during the off-peak times though and you could have the place to yourself.
read on below advertisement
The campground in Arakoon is located on the bay side of Laggers Point, on the strip between the beach and the historic Trial Bay Gaol. The jail and trees along the sea front protect the camping area from the worst of the weather blowing in off the ocean. Although not powered, the campsites along the beachfront are generous, grassed and level. Powered sites are available further around and just a bit back from the beach. At the end of the day there is nothing that comes close to the pleasure of sitting in front of your tent while the sun sets over the bay, a coldie in your hand, watching whales breaching just offshore.
The best time to see humpbacks around Trial Bay is during early spring as they follow the coast south to their summer feeding grounds and again at the end of summer as they return to their breeding grounds in the tropics. It's a moving experience seeing these huge but gentle creatures frolicking with their young as close as a couple of hundred metres from shore.
The waters of Trial Bay are also on the migration route for the Australian salmon that pass through about the same time as the whales. Huge schools of these fish can often be seen just metres from the beach and although they may not be prized for their eating qualities they are magnificent fighting fish and a real challenge to land. My family and friends were fortunate enough to be there one year when a group of professional fishers, working with a net and a small row boat, pulled in part of a school they estimated contained around 100 tonnes of fish.
next page »
