Year 2 – 7 February 2025 -Newcastle

We woke at a reasonable time and had scrambled eggs and bacon for breakfast. We were going ashore to explore Newcastle, Australia’s second oldest town. The tide runs through the Stockton channel which we were anchored in and about 2-3 kts.

We had seen nearby a public slipway and a small pontoon nearby and there was also a bus stop which could take us to the Stockton ferry which goes over to Queens Wharf in Newcastle. We got ourselves ready and headed off to this small pontoon. There were quite a few pelicans around and they are really large here and bigger than the Galapagos. We moored at the back of the pontoon and there was a sign saying 15 minutes only. There was a number which Malcolm rang and we got permission to leave it there and we locked it up.

We caught the bus to the ferry and went through the suburbs and it was noticeable how much poorer it was compared to Sydney and lots of small one-story brick houses. We caught the ferry which only took 5 minutes across to Newcastle and the picture of the day is overlooking part of Newcastle with its Cathedral in the background and a ship going out of the harbour at the same time.

Once we were ashore we walked along the front along the river toward the marina a couple of miles west. There is a lot of Industrial buildings opposite Newcastle where there is what appears to be coal transportation works and buildings together with grain silos. This is still a busy port with a number of ships coming and leaving daily.

In a nutshell this used to be a very industrial town with steel and coal mining and being the main activities. It is now trying to lose that heritage a little and they have spent a lot of money converting the docks area on the Newcastle side to a front walkway with restaurants and bars. There are a lot of the old industrial shop and office buildings which they have preserved and are now shops/restaurants.

We walked along the front and passed many of the restaurants in an area called Honeysuckle and there are lots of modern flats along the front although their view is still industrial. We continued and came to the marina which no longer has a chandlery (boat shop) but as we were quite hot we had a refreshing shake. Malcolm wanted to go to the Chandlery some 15 minutes away and so I went with him by Uber. Mark and Trevor went for a walk and we agreed we would meet them at the Newcastle Museum. Malcolm got some shorts and I got a few bits and pieces.

We came back by Uber and met at the Museum. This was interesting as there were aboriginal artifacts and then there was farming and sheep and wool production. This led on to  coal mining, steel production with the steel works being the largest integrated steel works in the British Empire at one point. The steel works only closed in 1999 and the plant has been demolished. Clearly the town was poor and life was hard.

After the museum we had some lunch on the waterfront. We then walked inland and passed the Town Hall, Civic Center, Theatre and war memorial. We went to find Darby Street which is a little bohemian but also has a lot of cafes, bars, restaurants and is a trendy part of town. It was good to see it and walk through. We retraced our steps to the Hunter Street area which is another part with lots of restaurants and they are now bring back department stores lost some years ago. We walked back to the front to have a drink and then caught the ferry and bus back to Stormbird. There was a nice breeze fanning us and the tide started to go out. We chilled for a bit and then had cheese and biscuits watching the sun go down over the industrial vista.

It had been a good day and we had seen quite a lot of Newcastle. We plan to head to the harbour and the beaches which you can walk along tomorrow. There are also a number of public baths so hopefully we can have a swim too.  

Need/Opportunity Year Two

I am in need of more crew from April to September so if of interest do email me at  hine.nick9@gmail.com  

In year two I will be going from New Zealand to Sydney and hen up the Eastern Australian Coast, Indonesia and then through Bali, Singapore and on to Thailand to end year two about the end of November 2025.

The blog will continue as we continue the journey. If you have any comments or suggestions about the blog then do email me on hine.nick9@gmail.com