Once over, we headed down the long sand spit of South Tuross Beach. Thousands of blue bottles lined the sand, having been washed up during the big seas of the previous days - lucky that we hadn't gone in for a swim! We left the beach and walked up through the caravan park at Blackfellows Point, where dozens of red-necked wallabies lazed around or nibbled on the grass of the park.

We followed a dirt road from the caravan park to Potato Point, a small village of coast houses. Crossing it, we re-entered the Eurobodalla National Park and climbed over the grass and lomandra covered Jamison's Point. As we reached the southern end of the point, a wide panorama opened up before us, looking down 6.5 km long Brou Beach, with the silhouette of Mount Dromedary dominating the background. This impressive mountain, named by Captain Cook on his voyage of discovery in 1770 without realising that for several thousand years people had been calling it Gulaga, would be our companion for the next few stages.

In between Brou and Mummaga Lakes we moved slightly inland to follow a track along the low clay cliffs. Parts of this area had been recently burnt by a bushfire and the erosion of the clay cliffs was very evident - one of the few scars on the landscape that we had seen on our walk to date.

        

As we crossed over the bar, we were greeted once again by a superb view of Mount Dromedary over the waters of the inlet. Following a boardwalk around the northern shores to cross the bridge and reach our cabin for the night, we were accompanied by a chorus of bellbirds. We had only been in Narooma for ten minutes and already we liked it.

Wagonga Inlet and Mount Dromedary

However, by Friday the horde of Canberrans and Sydneysiders heading to the coast for Easter had started to arrive and it was time for us to move on. It seems that it is never possible to escape completely the work-dominated rhythms of life of the big cities - only too short a time ago we would have been part of this mass exodus.

Under a clear blue sky we headed down the walkway that followed the southern shore of Wagonga Inlet before climbing up to the Narooma golf course, which surely has one of the more spectacular layouts looking out over the Pacific Ocean along a line of cliffs (though if you slice your ball don't bother searching). At the southern end lay the best view of all, across Narooma Beach to the dramatic silhouettes of the Glasshouse Rocks.

As we followed the beach around, the route became more and more constricted between sea and cliff. At the southern end, Nello found a narrow passage along the jagged rocks of the lower cliff face. Passing our backpacks across as the surf crashed on the rocks below, we emerged onto the long open stretch of Handkerchief Beach, grateful not to have had to backtrack over a kilometre and climb back up to the alternative route over the headland.

A cabin and van park lies adjacent to Handkerchief Beach, and we strolled passed groups of Easter holidaymakers swimming, sunbaking and surf fishing. The perfect sunny still day ensured that everyone was in high spirits.

 

The path undulated through the thick kikuyu in the paddocks, following the spectacular cliffs and crossing isolated coves and beaches. Inland, the silhouette of Mount Dromedary dominated the horizon across the green grass of paddocks. Seaward lay the lighthouse-capped profile of Montague Island. These two landmarks were our constant companions for the day.

Rural interface with the bush

The path from Corunna Point led us up to the cliff top and through the lemon-flowers of a banksia forest, finally emerging amongst the tall eucalypts of the Mystery Bay Campground. Mystery Bay, named for the strange unsolved disappearance of five men in the late 19th century, is a secluded bay protected from the large sea swells by a cluster of off-shore rocks; a quiet, magical setting.

From the bay, we turned inland. Our destination was the home of Liz, an old school friend of Nello, and her husband, Tony, set in rolling green countryside near Central Tilba. We wandered up the dusty country road past Tilba Tilba Lake and through the green paddocks, the songs of birds providing a welcome replacement to the sound of the surf. A pleasant 3 kilometres on, we reached Liz and Tony's house, with its wonderful views towards Mount Dromedary. For the next few days of Easter, we would enjoy their hospitality and company, and the serenity of this idyllic rural setting.