Byron Bay

We headed to Byron bay, which is famous for a laid back hippy surf scene. Despite it being 'layed back' free camping is a real no no and camp sites are pricey. We bit the bullet and managed to get a deal for 4 nights on a camp site right on the beach. The place was very relaxed yet trendy. Lots of boutiques, shops, restaurants and healthy lifestyle places. Ruth wouldn't let herself go in the shops as they were a haven of lots of floaty colourful clothes which she found hard to resist. The camp site was nice, lots of bush turkeys roaming round. They are protected and boy do they know it. Quite unfazed by people, they like to see what you are eating. We also met another huge Goanna. I (John) tried the 'don't move' technique this time so as not to spook it. It was about 4 feet long and stopped right in front of me and licked my leg with it's big forked tongue. There were some great walks here through Rainforests leading onto the headlands. The beach was another beauty with lots of different surfing options. We got some great waves although we both had a 'sharky' incident. Ruth was surfing when a young shark (maybe a Grey Nurse) swam past her several times and then glided right underneath her for a closer look. She was in the middle of convincing herself that it was just a big fish when a nearby Aussie surfer shouted over “I see you've got yerself a shark there hav ya”. Ruth laughed nervously but when she paddled towards the guy he said “don't you be bringing that thing near me!” Apparently it would have only taken a toe or two if it would have bitten her. Only! I was surfing around the headland at a place called Tallows. After falling on a good sized wave and getting hit in the face by my board I ended up spitting blood for a few minutes. This quickly followed by the largest dark shadow I have ever seen in the water. In hind site I think it was just a huge school of fish. However a local did tell me it is a very sharky spot. Apparently they used to bring Whale carcasses in there and the sharks still remember. We left in one piece and feeling pretty good about our short stay at Byron.