South Coast NSW (Depot Beach & Barlings Beach), January 2026

Our Plan A for January this year was to travel to Sydney and then join our son, Damian, and his family for a trip to the Snowy Mountains area, with the intention of climbing Mount Kosciuszko.  It was a good plan, but unfortunately, the very hot weather at the time had other ideas.  Victoria was having terrible bushfires and the fire on the NSW border was encroaching on Kosciuszko National Park.  We had no idea as to whether it could be contained and decided that even if it was, the smoke from it would detract considerably from the Kosciuszko trek. 

We had decided on a few days at Barlings Beach after Kosciuszko, so that was still happening, and when we eventually abandoned Plan A, we managed to book a few days at Depot Beach as an alternative.

Thursday/Sunday, 8/11 January - To Sydney via Myall Lakes

THURSDAY

Up fairly early on for our 7-hour trip to Banksia Green Campground in Myall Lakes National Park.  A couple of stops on our way to Bulahdelah, where we left the highway, and headed east through the park to our campsite.  The last stretch included crossing the Bombah Broadwater on the Bombah Point Ferry. The ferry is very small and the crossing is only about 150 metres.  

Arrived at Banksia Green and set up camp before going for a walk to the beach.  Banksia Green is on a thin strip of land between the broadwater of the Myall River and the Ocean.  A nice spot.

FRIDAY

After breakfast, we set off for the 4-hour uneventful trip to Jannali.  Called into a roadhouse for lunch and arrived around 3pm.

SATURDAY/SUNDAY

A restful couple of days at Jannali while we kept an eye on what the bushfires were doing and working on Plan B.  Fortunately, Sarah was able to locate a couple of vacancies at Depot Beach so we had a plan for Monday.

Monday/Thursday, 12/15 January 2026 - Depot Beach

 MONDAY

Another early start for the 4-hour trip to Depot Beach.  We broke it up with a stop at the Blowhole at Kiama.  A good coffee stop, too.

The Kiama Blowhole is apparently the world's largest, capable of shooting plumes of seawater 30 metres into the air.  Nothing like that today, but pretty impressive all the same.  A little bit of Trivia:  The name "Kiama" is derived from the Dharawal language, meaning "where the sea makes noise".

On to Depot Beach, which is just north of Bateman's Bay.  A basic setup followed by a late lunch and then a bit more canvas out.   We are expecting some rain while we are here. 

Depot Beach is in Murramarang National Park, and the first thing you notice is the wildlife.  Eastern Grey Kangaroos everywhere.  No sooner had we set up than we were visited by a lace monitor, followed by very friendly rainbow lorikeets.

After settling in, we took a short walk to the beach.  Almost deserted! And a pretty amazing outlook with a rockshelf to the south, which just demanded - Explore me!   

TUESDAY

Just up the road from the camping area is Depot Beach Rainforest Walk.  Walking this track, you can’t help but imagine what the region was like 50 million years ago, when the whole area was covered by this lush rainforest. Few stands of littoral rainforest remain in Australia, which is why this precious area is listed as an endangered ecological community.  It's only about a kilometre, with well-established paths and walkways.  Lots of spotted gum and burrawang palms.  A lovely spot.

Back to camp for lunch and another visit to the beach.

WEDNESDAY

A little drive today to visit the beach at North Durras, where Durras Lake enters the sea.  Apparently, it's not always open to the sea, sometimes closed for a couple of years.  It is categorised as an estuarine lake, which is a partially enclosed body of water that is intermittently connected to the ocean.  Obviously, the water would be quite brackish when it's closed but today it's a lovely spot and the kids had a great time exploring the creek. 

Did I mention that the wildlife at Depot Beach is amazing!  

In addition to the lorrikeets, we had King Parrots, Masked Lapwings, Bower Birds and Wattle Birds.  Amazingly, we even had a Lyrebird visit our camp.  We've never had that happen before.

THURSDAY

Rain overnight, so it was a bit of a slow pack up this morning before heading to Batemans Bay for a bit of shopping and lunch, before heading to our next camp at Barlings Beach.

 

Thursday/Tuesday, 15/20 January 2026 - Barlings Beach

We are expecting rain over the next few days, so it's all canvas out - even the long wall, with Nate set up in his Swag under the awning extension.

We're set up at Aspen Holiday Park at Barlings Beach, which is just east of the small village of Tomakin, and about 20km south of Batemans Bay.  Damian and family are in a cabin, so at least they will be dry.  

Nice pool at the Caravan Park, which the kids made use of when it wasn't raining and a lovely beach, which we would have made better use of in sunnier times.  An interesting rocky island (Barlings Island) jsu offshore, which no doubt is accessible on low tide, but not for us at the moment.   The island is a significant site for local Aboriginal culture, as is Barlings Beach, with historical evidence of middens and stone artefacts dating back 3,000 years.

A few trips into Batemans Bay over the next few days and a couple of nights out to Club Malua for dinner, but the highlight of our visit to this part of the world would have to be Mogo Wildlife Park.  Put it on your bucket list.

This is a pretty amazing spot, housing many of the world's endangered and curious species – binturongs, hyenas, lions, tigers, silvery gibbons, white rhinoceros, red pandas, to name a few.  And their enclosures are pretty good too, nothing like the cages of years gone by.

Most of the animals are part of programs dedicated to protecting their species. Mogo cares for over 300 animals, safeguarding their populations against habitat destruction in their native habitats around the world. An example, fewer than 2000 Silvery Gibbons are left in the wild - in their native homes in the rainforests of Southeast Asia, and yet, Mogo has a thriving colony that welcomes new gibbons most years. 

Mogo is heavily involved in international, regional, and global breeding programs for endangered species.  Recent successes include the Rothschild Giraffe, Sumatran Tiger, Lion, Silvery Gibbon, Cotton-Top Tamarin, Golden-Lion Tamarin, Siamang, Pygmy Marmoset, Red Panda, and Zebra.

As you can probably tell, we were impressed.

Tuesday/Friday 20/23 January 2026 - Home via Sydney & Crowdy Bay National Park

A couple of days in Sydney on our way home and an overnight at Diamond Head Camp Area in Crowdy Bay National Park.  Crowdy Bay is a little off the highway on a very "ordinary" gravel road but it's a very pretty spot.  Lots of Eastern Grey Kangaroos.

A bit of a walk in the morning before leaving, out to the point overlooking Diamond Head Beach and to Kylie's Hut - well, the replica of.   The original hut was built by local farmer Ernie Metcalfe for the novelist and journalist Kylie Tennant in the late 1960s. Sadly, the original hut was destroyed in the 2019-20 bushfires that burned through much of the area. It was reconstructed in 2022.