It has its moments

Sunday brought a steady downpour of rain. I finally got the message: It was time to leave Mt. Beauty. I had toyed with the idea of hanging around the local area until the flying improved, but this was too much. If I was going to fly in these mountains it would have to be during a future trip to Australia. Now it was time to move on.

Even leaving was difficult. The fires had many of the mountain roads closed, and unless I wanted to backtrack through the flatlands there was really only one way to go. I headed North up the Kiewa Valley, then East along the Murray Valley to Corryong. From Corryong I went Northeast through the Kosciuszko National Park to Kiandra, then through the Snowy Mountains to Cooma. From Cooma I had a choice of the inland route north through Canberra, or continuing to the Southwest to the coast at Tathra. I decided on the coastal route. I had seen plenty of smoky, rainy mountains and hot, dry flatlands. It was time to go to the ocean and recharge. From Tathra I had a pleasant and scenic run up the coast, avoiding Sydney, but still battling my way around the outskirts. From Sydney north I took the old Pacific Highway which wound its way through National Park before dumping me onto the coastal road at Gosford. I stayed the night at Norah Head, and today I will continue up the coast to Port Macquarie where Andrew and Anna have invited me to come and stay and fly.

This morning I was having my breakfast looking at the ocean from the cliffs at Norah Head and an older gentleman strolled past. “I’m Impressed!” He said. “Why’s that?” I asked. “The lifestyle” he replied. “It has its moments,” I countered. A few minutes later he ambled by coming from the other direction. “What’s that blue object?” He asked. “A hang glider.” I told him. “Awgh!” He cried, “Wait’ll I tell me mates!”

Yes, I thought as I looked out at the South Pacific crashing on the rocks; it does have its moments.