The deck of the Tathra Pub is a lovely place for a coffee, with its sweeping views to the north and south of the coastline. However, we were here to walk, so our group of eight set off to join the recently opened Wharf to Wharf Walk, which follows existing tracks southwards to Merimbula. The meandering track on the south-east side of Tathra Headland led us past some beautiful cliff-lined coves along its shore, to reach the clear green waters of Kianinny Bay and the start of the old Kangarutha Track.

Climbing up into the tall heathland, still scarred by the bushfires of 2020, we began a long meander down the rocky shoreline. At times we tunnelled through the paperbark heath, as it wound its way up and down to cross a series of dry creek beds or emerge onto the stony beaches at Wild Horse Bay and Boulder Bay. The goannas were out in force on this section, basking in the sun or feasting on dead mutton bird.

The air was still and the temperature hot in the shelter of the heath and it was pleasant to break out onto the cliff line to take in the breeze and the glorious views of this rugged coastline. A short detour to White Rock provided the most impressive views of all.

After lunch in a small breezeway ravine at the end of narrow inlet, we crossed sandy Games Beach and climbed upwards and more inland into the old dune system and its taller coastal forest.

Crossing theses densely vegetated dunes, we descended again, with glimpses inland over the calm waters of Wallagoot Lake and the hinterland beyond. This brought us out at Wallagoot Gap, an impressive break in the cliff line with the ocean beyond and a shallow green pool on its inland side. It was a good place to rest in the shade and wait for the other half of our group, who had made an even longer detour to see a slot canyon cutting into the cliffs. This is a spectaular coast-line.

A wide sand bar blocked the lake from the sea, so we set out to cross it and wander down the fine squeaking sand of the beach for another kilometre before finding a path that led us over the low frontal dunes and through the tall heath to the lake shore. We were on the edge of Hobart Beach Campground and, from here, it was only a short walk to our campsite - a pleasant spot surrounded by tall eucalypts and coastal shrubbery, not far from the cooking shelter and hot showers (yes - an unexpected bonus in a National Park camground).

Evening light at Lake Wallagoot

The fair Nello had arrived and all was ready to pitch tents and relax. It was a pleasant spot to spend the late afternoon, accompanied by the steady "plinking" of bellbirds in the canopy above and the occasional visit by the resident kangaroos or swamp wallaby.

Despite being a bit on the hot and sweaty side, it had been a great first day's walk on Stage 6.

The sunny warm weather continued as we headed out from Hobart Beach and through the coastal forest to reach Bondi Lake. The lake itself lay mostly hidden, offering a few glimpses through the paperbark thicket that lined its shore as we skirted it. Climbing over a small dune, we arrived at Bournda Lagoon, a sweeping stretch of water locked from the ocean by a wide sandbar, that disappeared into the forest beyond .... picturesque.

We crossed the bar to climb onto and over Bournda Head and follow a track along the vegetated dune system above the long sandy stretch of North Tura Beach. After two kilometres, we dropped back onto the beach for a short sandy stroll to Dolphin Cove and a set of steps leading off the beach. As we were walking the wind began to pick up and whip up whitecaps out on the ocean.

At a wooden platform just above the beach exit, we were in for a pleasant surprise. Jan has a friend who lives at Tura and she had come down to meet us, bearing freshly baked biscuits .... yum!! Thanks, Lyn. Lyn then led us up a grassy track over the top of Tura Head and down to Tura Beach, another long stretch of pale golden sand.

With a brisk breeze at our backs, the two kilometres of beach-walking went quickly and, finding the right exit, we crossed the foredunes to reach the Mundooi Walk, a short track through the coastal heath of the old back dunes. Out of the wind, the temperature rose quickly and it was good to reach Merimbula Back Lake. Here we left the Wharf to Wharf Walk - it was heading towards its finish at Merimbula Wharf, but we were heading more directly towards the bridge across Merimbula Lake. We headed inland just in from its shore for a while, before finding an exposed, but shady point where we could sit on the rocks and enjoy the view and the breeze over lunch.

The route continued to meander around the slope above Back Lake to finally cross a flat swampy area behind the lake, then a footbridge over Merimbula Creek and into the streets of Merimbula. We crossed over to the shores of the much bigger Merimbula Lake and strolled along the wooden esplanade beside the lining mangroves. The coffee shop on the esplanade was too inviting - beside their aren't too many places where you can enjoy a coffee alongside mangroves.

Continuing on, we crossed the lake via the road bridge, with a strong cross-wind blowing, to traverse the Fishpen Peninsula and approach the ocean again. The strong wind tricked us into thinking it would be better to follow a sandy 4WD track through tall forest parallel to the beach. However, in the lee of the wind the track was stiflingly hot - we took the first exit across to the beach, took our boots off and wandered down the remaining four kilometres towards Pambula Beach on the firm intertidal sand, with the wind at our backs and the waves splashing our feet.

On reaching the end, we cut across into the Pambula Beach Holiday Park, where the fair Nello had swapped our original tent sites for some more sheltered ones. It was a very nice place to stay and, that evening, we wandered across to the beach restaurant for fish and chips and a glass of ale from the local microbrewery. Occasionally ending a day like this is one of the pleasant aspects of the Great South Coast Walk.

Today would be an early start, as we had the first major water-crossing, the Pambula River. Low tide was at 8 am, so we set off at 7.30 to quickly cross the beach and follow the Jiguma Track through the trees along the next headland. It brought us out to a nice viewpoint over the mouth of the Pambula River, where a well-formed low surf rolled in towards the entrance. It looked wide, but looks can be deceptive and we were not crossing at the entrance.

We followed the track down to the calm river-side beach and further along its shore to the crossing point that the fair Nello and I had sussed out earlier. Here, a broad sandbar curved out into the wide expanse of water to reach the deeper main channel, only 30m from the opposite bank. Bathers on and gear packed in dry-bags, we crossed faily easily with a longish wade and shorter swim across the channel in a slightly outflowing tide ... one crossing down.

Back in our walking gear, we wandered along the shore-line across maroon-coloured rocks to reach Barmouth Beach. A little further along, we climbed up a small gully, a short-cut to reach the Haycock Point Track. This was a very pleasant track that wandered through tall eucalypt bushland and more open grassy heathland, with occasional panoramic views over the Pambula River mouth and the sweeping stretch of beach to the north.

On the track out to Haycock Point

The track spilled us out onto Haycock Point itself, with its rock ribs, offshore islets lined with cormorants and spectacular views - it was a good place for morning tea.

Then it was down through the heath to Long Beach, very aptly named as we could see its end over six kilometres to the south, separated into two by the rocky outcrop of Quondolo Point. It woud be a walk of two halves, with lots of time for meditating to the steady roar of the surf and the surge of negative ions.

After rounding the ochre-coloured rocks of the point, we continued beneath the low, but colourful cliffs to reach an almost hidden gulley - the entrance to Quoraburagan Pinnacles. It was time to drop packs and make a short detour up into the gulley where the eroding cliffs were at their most spectacular, dramatically carved with bands of brilliant white and orange clay.

Continuing on down Long Beach, we finally reached its end, now named Terrace Beach, where a set of new metal steps led us up to a gridded platform and a parked car. The access to this beach was via a gravel fire-trail through the tall coastal forest and, after lunch and a chat with the fishing couple who owned the car, we took to the road and continued on inland and steadily upwards.

Eventually, we reached a junction with another road that headed eastwards towards North Head. It was time to turn left and follow it gently downwards towards the coast as the forecast grey cloud started rolling in from the west. After another six kilometres of road-walking, we found the track to the right that we wanted, just as the first few drops of rain started to fall. It led us to the cliff-line at Worang Point with a great view over the sea towards Eden.

Faint at times, the foot track turned back to the west and led us in and out of wooded gullies and spurs to drop down onto the sandy bar at the mouth of Lake Curalo - we were almost at our destination. Crossing the bar and climbing up onto a sealed road that parallelled Aslings Beach, we quickly reached the entrance to Eden Reflections Holiday Park. The rain had been light and intermittent, so we were now back where we had started two days ago, only slightly damp, but with hot showers, a nice camp kitchen and tent sites on the edge of the placid lake.

It had been a longer walk than anticipated, as the area north of Curalo Lagoon was now a private housing estate, obliging us to do the longer trip out towards North Head and back. My feet were a bit sore, even a couple of blisters on my toes, but it was still very satisfying to crawl into a sleeping bag after completing this very varied day on the South Coast.

We woke up to see a mist rising off the lake after the overnight rain, as a flotilla of pelicans paddled by. The morning, however, was fine, which was good, as we needed to leave early again to catch the low tide when we rounded Twofold Bay. Sections of the bay shoreline are only passable at low tide and we didn't want to walk along the road. Even at low tide, a knee deep wade in places was inevitable, so sandals or volleys were the footwear of choice. Despite the need for an early start, it would only be a short walk (10 km) to Boydtown as part of this day would be required to do a car shuffle.

Setting out, we strolled quickly along the pedestrian/cycleway that followed the long stretch of Aslings Beach, before climbing up behind the rocky cliff-line that continued on from the beach end. We wandered through the back streets of Eden, then headed westwards to cut across the main street and walk down towards the calmer waters of Twofold Bay.

From the heights, we had a spectacular view over the bay towards the distant summit of Mt Imlay, before descending to Cattle Bay, site of a a tuna cannery from 1945-1999. Crossing the broken concrete pads overgrown with weeds, it was hard to envisage a large cannery here that was once supplied by 40 tuna boats, nor the new $130 million luxury marina proposed for the site. Such is progress.

The track left the fenced-off site and headed back into bush and suburbia to reach Cocora Beach and the start of The Bundian Way. The Bundian Way is a planned 365km walk along old aboriginal pathways from Twofold Bay to Mt Kosciuzko ... a big and interesting project. For the moment it remains a 2 km trail on the north side of the bay dotted with interpretative signs telling the stories of the life of the original Aboriginal inhabitants.

We followed it for a while, leaving to pick our way around the impressive orange rocks and cliff at Cocora Point, before rejoining the trail at Bungo Beach. A strange thing happened here - we were joined by a red kelpie named Coco (according to its tag) who led us around the rocks and, in fact, all the way to our destination at Boydtown ... more of that later.

The Bundian Way ended at the Quarantine Bay yacht club, where yachts swung gently on their moorings. Here began our first low tide section, picking our way around the base of a low cliff with maroon and orange rock ribs jutting out into the water. It was a dry walk up to the end, where we were faced with a choice of wading around a big rock rib or scrambling up and over through a narrow gap. I decided to suss out the wade, slipped and had an early swim .... the others, more wise, scrambled over the rib to cross Shadrachs Creek and reach Legges Beach. I followed, somewhat bedraggled.

The next section between Legges and Brandy Creek Beaches was an adventurous mixed scramble and wade around and across some jagged rock ribs that protruded out into the bay. Beyond, the shore was even more rugged, so we headed inland along a dirt track to pick up a firetrail that climbed steeply up and then steep down through the forest to reach the bridge over the Nullica River. Coco led us over it to the far side.

Coco the red kelpie leading us along the foreshore

My clothes were starting to dry out when we turned back towards the bay and followed the sandy shore of Boydtown Beach to our campsite at Eden Discovery Holiday Park. The fair Nello had already arrived and, having heard the weather forecast, had switched tentsites to cabins, something we greatly appreciated when the thunderstorm passed through later that afternoon.

It was not yet time to relax, as a car shuffle was in order - first to take the drivers back to Reflections Park to collect their cars and gear and bring them to Boydtown. Then, after sorting out what would be needed for the next three nights camping and what was meant for later, we did a second car shuffle to our end point at Wonboyn. I brought the drivers back in the heavy rain, but all was ready for the next part of the walk.

There was still enough time to relax in the cabins - rain on the roof of a comfortable cabin is certainly a nicer sound than rain on the fly of a two-man tent. As for Coco the dog, she left us on Boydtown Beach to join up with some other people. I telephoned the number on her name tag and her owner happily came to pick her up. It had been an adventurous day that ended well for both Coco and the walkers.

We awoke to a perfect walking day after the rain, with some cloud and a light wind. That was good, for today was goiing to be the longest walk of the stage - 26 km to Saltwater Bay in the Beowa National Park - with another water-crossing to boot. The low tide time had shifted forward to 10am, so it was not necessary to start too early.

We headed off to wander past the historic Seahorse Inn, built in 1843 and recently renovated into a boutique hotel, to rejoin the beach and follow it around. Ahead lay the orange cliffs lining Nullica Bay - the top of the cliffs was private land, so a low tide route aroound the base of the cliffs was required. It was a pleasant walk, picking our way around large boulders, occasionally climbing over rock platforms and ocassionally wading shin-deep to reach Torarago Point.

Around the point lay the long sandy stretch of Whale Spit and, once we reached it, we crossed over the narrow grassy neck to reach the broad expanse of the Towamba River, We followed the inlet side of the spit along until we arrived at a point adjacent to a small islet. The fair Nello and I had earlier sussed this out as the best place to cross and it was time to change to bathers and pack dry-bags.

A short chest-deep wade brought us to the squelching mud-sand surrounds of the islet and the legions of small crabs that guarded it. Quickly crossing the islet, it was back into the water for another chest-deep wade out to a broad sandy shoal, where the water was only shin deep. From here a long wade to reach the soft sandy shore on the far side (about 500m from shore to shore). Putting our packs back on, we trudged another 500m across the sand flat, made a final thigh deep wade of Kiah Inlet and completed the crossing.

Once back in walking gear, it was but a short stroll along the inlet to reach to reach the historic Davidson Whaling Station near the entrance of the river to Twofold Bay - it was a good spot for morning tea. Continuing on, we wandered up through the buildings of the old whaling station before heading along its gravel access road upwards and inland beneath the canopy of eucalypts. On reaching a service road, we turned left to head back down to Fisheries Bay, where for the first time, we saw the enormous chip pile of the nearby Export Woodchip Port, a blot on the landscape.

Crossing the sandy beach, we climbed up past the historic Edrom Lodge, built in 1910, and out along its access road, passing huge stacks of sawn tree trunks awaiting chipping, a sad sight indeed. Cut the trees down, chip them, ship them to Japan to be turned into glossy paper that isre-exported back to Australia, used to make advertising brochures, stuck in your letterbox and thrown in the bin .... and they call it economic progress. Enough of the sermons!!

We had reached the gravel road into Beowa National park and quickly headed down it to reach Boyd's Tower - yet another historic building, constructed on the coastal cliffs by Ben Boyd in the 1840s to spot whales for the hunting. The sandstone structure itself was impressive and the views from it, northwards over Twofold Bay and southwards along the maroon coloured cliffs of Beowa were even moreso.

The area around the tower had been significantly upgraded, with metal boardwalks, lookouts and and fine gravel paths. This is all part of a grand and somewhat controversial project to develop the Light to Light Walk, from here to Green Cape lighthouse into an upmarket experience. It was going to be interesting to see what else they had done, as we set out after a pleasant lunch and headed down the track .... 12km down, 14 to go.

The maroon cliffs of Beowa

The recently upgraded path, soft earth underneath and with numerous sets of stone steps, meandered and undulated its way through the coastal heath, much of the canopy still skeletal after the 2020/21 fires. At several points the track neared the cliff edge to providse superb views back up the coast to Boyd Tower or over rocky coves. Rounding Red Rock Bay, with its slabs of maroon mudstone, we continued on to Leatherjacket Bay, a lovely spot to rest a while in the shade, with its jumble of multi-coloured stones on the beach. The day was getting hot.

From Leatherjacket Bay, the LtoL now followed a new alignment, closer to the coastal cliff-line to take advantage of more views of bays, coves and rock formations. Crossing a couple of creeks beds and small beaches, we climbed up onto the grassier, more open headland backing Mowarry Point. Down below lay a glorious stretch of golden sand backed by clear blue waters - Mowarry Beach was too inviting to pass by on a hot day - we stopped, stripped down to underwear and had a swim.

Refreshed, we climbed back up onto the tops to reach the actual point, where we could wander across a rich maroon rock platform, before climbing back up into the heath and heading south. The new track alignment brought us back onto a dramatic section of rock-topped cliffs, before one last dive into the thick coastal heath saw us heading down towards Saltwater Creek and our campsite for the night. The fair Nello had wandered out to join us for the last bit down to the camp - just in time to watch a large diamond python crossing the track.

Saltwater Creek campsite sits in a picturesque spot on a grassy treed area above a sandy beach wedged by two lagoons. Boxing kangaroos, lyrebirds, goannas and bandicoots provided the amusement while the pale pastels of the evening light ended a superb day.

The only downside (apart from two of the group picking up a tick) was that we were sharing it with a group of 30 teenaged schoolboys from a local school on an outdoor adventure camp. That said, we had been hiking for 9h30 and, after such a long day, nothing was going to keep us awake.