BATEMANS BAY, at the mouth of the Clyde River and the end of the highway from Canberra, is a favourite escape for the landlocked residents of the capital, just 152km away. It’s not the most exciting place on the coast, but since it’s a fair-sized resort, there’s plenty to do.
Alternatively, you can board one of the little trains that run through the woodlands of the Birdland Sanctuary, 55 Beach Rd (daily 9am–5pm; $8.50), for a closer look at the birds and native animals.
In the Murramarang National Park (ranger tel 02/4478 6006), a small coastal strip just north of town, there are campsites at Pretty Beach, Pebbly Beach and Durras Beach – popular not only with campers but also with kangaroos, which come here at dawn or dusk to frolic on the beach. Rumour has it that they even enjoy body surfing. You can stay at Murramarang Resort (tel 02/4478 6355; cabins and on-site vans; $46–60) where there’s bike and canoe rental available, plus organized geology walks, lake rides and fishing cruises, or at Pebbly Beach where there’s a basic campsite (tel 02/4478 6006).
From MOGO, 10km to the south, you can visit the open-air Old Mogo Town museum (daily 9am–5pm during school holidays, otherwise Fri–Sun 10am–4pm; $6), a reconstruction of a mid-nineteenth-century goldrush town near an old gold mine. The best time to come, however, is Sunday morning when there’s a bric-a-brac market held here. Twenty-five kilometres south of Batemans Bay, just before Moruya, a small, unsealed road turns off the highway to the west, heading through a pretty valley and then up over hills at the edge of the remote Deua National Park to the former goldrush town of Araluen where, between 1868 and 1872, about fifteen thousand prospectors congegrated in the hope of striking it lucky.
Batemans Bay Tourist Information is on Princes Highway, at the corner of Beach Road (daily 9am–5pm). As you’d expect of a resort, accommodation consists mainly of motels and a wide range of holiday units; most of the latter require a minimum week’s booking during peak summer times. Try Bay Surfside, 7km out of town at 662 Beach Rd, whose units sleep up to six and have all mod cons. There’s camping at eight caravan parks including the Coachhouse Marina Resort, by the beach on Beach Road 1km south of town, with a pool and tennis court; and Batemans Bay Tourist Park, close to town (but not the beach) and with a YHA hostel section attached. Mogendoura Farm, on Hawdons Road, 8km west of Moruya on the Moruya River, offers cottage farmstays with horse-riding, canoeing and bushwalking opportunities; minimum booking is two nights.
There’s a range of restaurants in Bateman’s Bay, mainly with fish and seafood-based menus. Rafters, 28 Beach Rd has a relaxing, intimate atmosphere, with à la carte dining and vegetarian options. On the promenade, Seagulls serves rather overpriced seafood and steaks, but the sweeping waterfront views may make it worth the extra expense (closed Tues; tel 02/4472 0253) while the Starfish Deli also has a marine panorama with a modern menu, including a variety of wood-fired pizzas and many veggie dishes. Jameson’s on the Pier offers fine dining on fresh fish and is set on its own jetty opposite the promenade, jutting out over the river.
Murramarang National Park
One of the main features of this park are the kangaroos at Pebbly Beach.
With wonderful beaches, stunning headlands, cliffs and rock platforms the
park is popular for swimming and fishing. Located 10km north of Batemans
Bay. Camping areas are available at Pebbly Beach, South Durras and Merry
Beach. Bookings:-(044) 239 800.