Lake Macquarie and Beyond

Last weekend we had the pleasure of attending a family Christening in Newcastle.  Newcastle is a good five hour drive north from home, and we had a choice to make.  Would we drive up in our Subaru, staying in a motel, or would we take the camper and stay in a caravan park.

We elected to take the camper.  We headed north on the freeway, making the most of the M7 motorway.  Pennant Hills Road is never much fun at the best of times, but we were through soon enough and heading up the F3.

We arrived at the caravan park I had booked, and my heart sank.  The park's name held the promise of enjoying a holiday - walking to the water to wet a line... Well if you took a cut lunch that is.  It became very apparent to me that my choice in park was not popular in the left front seat.

Now if we had both had few good night's sleep under our belts, the conversation in the front seats might have been a little more diplomatic... but we were both a little grumpy.  A few terse words were exchanged.  Thankfully Jo was a little quicker than me to work on a solution to our problem and my salvation came in the form of an iPhone and Google.

Between the iPhone and Google, Jo was able to find and book an unpowered site at  Belmont Pines Lakeside Holiday Park.

The park was well maintained, with a new kids playground and a pool to keep the tykes amused.  It also had a magnificent view overlooking Lake Macquarie.  It was perfect.... and I was saved.

The unpowerd sites had a great view

The view got even better as the sun went down.

Sunset over Lake Macquarie

We were taken to Caves Beach by my brother, and thankfully the tide was out, allowing the little ones to explore the caves to their hearts content.  There were some nice sandy pools allowing them to splash about in.  As it is early in the season though it wasn't long until teeth were chattering and it was time to head home.

Exploring the caves

The kids loved racing around

We had a great weekend with the family doing what all extended families should do more often.  

On the way home we reflected on the weekend.  We were very glad we had taken the camper as the boys settled very quickly each night in their familiar beds.  We were also able to cook our own meals and were fully self contained.  It was certainly much more enjoyable than staying in a motel with two young boys who love to race around and let off steam.

So whilst caravan parks are not our thing normally, for a weekend family gathering, it worked out just right... well if you don't count my first booking that is ;)