Day Four - Another Day of Driving and Byron Bay
Roo Crossing
(Click to Enlarge)On the road again, bright and early, continuing north along the Pacific Highway. The drive to Byron Bay is usually a little over 3 hours from Port Macquarie. I was again taking lots of detours and being sure not to hit any kangaroos or koalas crossing the road. Much like deer in the US, many an unfortunate 'roo meets its demise attempting to cross.
For thousands of years Aboriginal people came to the Bay to swap stories, find marriage partners and trade goods. They called it Cavvanbah. Later, Captain James Cook found a safe anchorage and named Cape Byron after John Byron, who had circumnavigated the world and who was later the grandfather of English poet Lord Byron.
Today, Byron Bay is an interesting mix of young people and older hippies and it's quite festive on the weekend. People come from all over to surf and party and it's particularly popular with backpackers. I found that almost all the rooms were booked when I got there, though I did find one about a quarter-mile walk from the beaches with a two-night minimum stay. I took it.
Much of the charm of Byron Bay is what you do not find there -- No McDonald's! Drive-through restaurants are banned in the city centre and buildings are limited to a maximum of three stories. What's leftover is lots of pubs and bars, many with balcony seating, offering a wide variety of quality food, drink, and live music. One of which is the Beach Hotel, which is owned by partly by Paul Hogan. You can even find the hat there used in the Crocodile Dundee film.
Avoiding some of the bigger crowds, I stopped over at Hog's Breath Cafe, which can be found all over Australia, for an outstanding lemon salmon dish and a few pints of Super Dry. Sitting up on the balcony and watching the crowds below on a warm night with a good beer was an ideal way to spend the evening.
