Ventures into the Wilderness

On Saturday night we ventured into the Wilderness of Suffolk Park - suburb just south of Byron Bay. Wanted to go to pub to watch NRL (description of what this is would make an entire chapter on it's own, suffice to say that it is a type of Sport). Even though Byron Bay and Suffolk Park are only 10 minutes drive apart, was like entering different world. Firstly realised was only female in entire room. The men were all wearing slim fit jeans (not a great look in combination with beer-belly, or indeed, at any time at all), ordering beef-steak-burgers-with-extra bacon-and-a-New-thanks-mate, and saying things like "the Mrs" when referring to female partner /wife.

Today, Sunday, ventured out for drive to check out our water supply. This is of course the sort of thing everyone does on a Sunday. There was also going to be an Event out by Rocky Creek Dam (the water supply dam), aimed at rainforest restoration. Alas...

Not again!!! For people living in a subtropical rainforest, some of us seem a little overly concerned with the weather... also, did not rain all day.

Went for walk around area anyway. Looked clean enough! Plenty of "Lock the Gate" signs around these parts, we all had better hope mining companies do not gain access and turn dam into lethal fracking-fluid cocktail.

Observe the ducks (merrily swimming in our drinking water)!

Finished off morning with trip to Nimbim, apparently the pot-smoking-capital of Australia. Village itself is really cool, eccentric looking with loads of personality and plenty of access to free-range eggs and herbal teas - unfortunately not all that friendly in atmosphere. Got the feeling that, whether it wanted to or not, the town attracted aficionados of substances slightly heavier than pot - a group likely to be seriously against any form of tourism. Add backpackers trying to buy joints plus law of supply and demand and so on - resulted in married 30-something-couple from Byron (myself and Hubby) legging it back to their Commodore after finishing soy lattes, squealing "NO, I don't want any bloody weed!"

Here is the pretty town-centre: