I'm travelling from Sydney up to Brisbane (maybe further) in early June. Anyone have any ideas on fun/interesting/beautiful/whatever places to visit/things to see?
It's a great trip to do. It's just a shame that you're doing it in winter. Nevertheless, I recomend two places to check out. Firstly, about an hour north of Newcastle on the highway: Take the turn off to Hawks Nest and drive through and check out the Great Lakes National Park. It has some gorgeous beaches and lakes to see, as well as some interesting aboriginal areas etc. You can camp along the way as well and the road goes (I think) all the way north to Forster, and it's in pretty good condition. Then, further north, check out the Hat Head National park, just north of Kempsey on the highway. It's not as big, but it's worth spending a night or so in Hat Hat in a camp ground to chill out. There are some great walks you can do around that area as well. Unfortunately, unless you're pretty die hard, it will probably be too cold to swim around these parts, but they're still really pretty, and not too overtouristed (yet).
Great. Thanks for that! Hopefully i'll be able to check one of them out. It would be awesome to go in summer, but it should be warmer up north and hopefully there wont be as many tourists around.
With the new motorway improvements, I think you could probably go from the inner city or North Sydney to the Brisbane CBD in around 11-12 hours, if you just drove and only stopped for half hour breaks every few hours along the way. That's if you went along the Pacific Highway. Not sure how long it takes along the New England Highway, but I think it's about an hour or so longer. The distance is pretty much the same. But it all depends on traffic as well. If there is heavy traffic, or a car accident along that horrible section between Grafton and Ballina, then you could easily add another couple of hours on to the trip.
That sucks. Im sorry to hear that man. It's a seriously shit piece of road. Should have been fixed YEARS ago.
Nothing like the 'ol "road" that used to link the Illawarra area to Sydney: Bulli Pass...killer road!
You've just got to take your time and take it easy. When I drove from Newcastle to Sydney I was absolutely blown away by the area .... and that's coming from someone who's been right around and throughout Australia. There is absolutely no rush and I reckon cruising at 80km/h through the middle of nowhere is the greatest thing in the world. Of course, if you drive this particular highway at 80km/h, you're standing a good chance of ending up as pavement paint. And you may gain a motorcyclist as a bonnet ornament.
