Stoopid tourists and imaginary sheep.

After we [sadly] left the Byron hinterland, we stopped for the night at Port Macquarie where we stayed at a dog friendly motel. 

There were dogs everywhere. In the rooms to our left and right, upstairs and downstairs. We were allowed everywhere too, even the swimming pool area. But no one played outside because there was no where to play and no gates or fencing to keep us safe. 

I don't want to be overly harsh so I will give our motel 3 stars for friendliness, a nice room and the heart shaped liver bikkies I got on arrival. But no star at all for actually being set up for us dogs on holiday. Hey humans! we have requirements too you know! 

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There were many dog friendly beaches in Port Macquarie which was the one and only reason we decided to stop in this town. 

This is Nobby's Beach.

After Palm Beach, it was a bit of a let down.

We did however meet this dog, in a manner of speaking since he was too busy to say hello. 

Can you see him in the picture above?

You can see a video of him here, if you like. Be careful. He's a bit crazy.

I bet some of you know what he's doing. Personally, I think he needs to get his head checked by his Dr Dog and ASAP.

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The next morning, we got up bright and early and went to Lighthouse Beach. 

It was much nicer!

For some reason, Cushion decided I needed to get comfortable with surf. Why, I ask you? WHY do I need to do that? I live in suburbia for heaven's sake! What are the chances of me ever being taken to Hawaii and needing to know how to surf?

There is no understanding humans. But I love My Cushion dearly so I dutifully followed him out into the water.

"You want me to stay here with you, give me a treat first."

"Wave coming! Wave coming!"

"See, you silly man? Now your shorts are all wet! And for what?"

"Completely incomprehensible."

After Lighthouse Beach, we started our journey home. Because we were in a rush to beat the holiday traffic, I missed seeing a camel. 

Bummer.

However! If you click on the videos below, you will see me meeting some other local fauna at the very start of our holiday! 





It was the first time I've ever met these strange creatures. I think I handled myself admirably, don't you?

The Typist wants to tell you how I got chased out of Uncle E's shed by a fluffy white cat and was too scared to go up to a chicken that came into the yard but this is my blog and I'm not going to let her tell you lies like that.

And that sums up my Christmas and New Year road trip. Thank you so much for coming on holiday with us! We really enjoyed your company and hope you had a good time too!

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HOW TO GET TO LIGHTHOUSE AND NOBBY'S:

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NOTE! Only part of Lighthouse Beach is off-leash. Want to find out specifics and other dog friendly areas in Port Macquarie? CLICK HERE.

The day I burnt my toes.

It was sad to leave Uncle E, but we had no time to cry or be silly. It was a beautiful day! It was the first day of a new year! And we were off to stay in the rainforest!

On the way, we stopped at Palm beach on the Gold Coast. 

Look at this beach! It's specially for us dogs. Isn't it beautiful? 

It wasn't just some smelly, muddy, stony patch that humans didn't want to use either. It was a proper big sandy beach. Can you see the buildings far far away in the picture below?

The Typist thinks that's our famous Surfer's Paradise. [If you know it's not, you'd better tell her or she'll keep believing it too.]

Does anyone else think this dog looks like me?

"Where's Cushion going? Is he stoopid?"

 "Cushion!!!!!"

 "Help! HELP! A wave ate my human!" 

"Oh god. Who's going to take me for walks now?"

 "Ooops." 

"It's okay, Typist. No need to panic. He's alive."

My humans think this must be when I burnt my toes. The sand was very hot! Even Cushion burnt his feet. The Typist was the only smart one. She had her sandals on.

I didn't play much at Palm beach but it was very nice and I highly recommend it if you're in the area. 

There were even nice cold showers to wash the sand off! 

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Pic from HERE.

HOW TO GET HERE:

View Larger Map

CLICK HERE for a pamphlet you can read and print.

Postcard from Brisbane: fishing and a booboo.

By the time we came home from fishing at Nudgee beach, it was past 9.

The Typist was sure she'd catch some nice fat fish for dinner. She made Cushion buy her a new fishing rod. She checked the tide times. She made Uncle E bring the big eskee so she wouldn't run out of space for her fish.

Boy! Was she wrong! She caught a big fat nothing, and we all came home hungry and tired and had leftover curry instead. (Not me, I had beef with pumpkin, sweet potato and lentil mash.)

It was beautiful there though.

 "Is this boring or what?"

From L to R: Me, Uncle E, The Typist, Cushion

Did anyone spot the booboo? It was The Typist's fault [of course].

Postcard from Brisbane: Nudgee beach and my 1st attempt at agility!

We went to the beach this morning. There aren't too many dog friendly beaches here in Brisbane like there are back home. We were told Nudgee was the 1st. 
  
Luckily, it's pretty near Uncle E's house because I'm so over being in the car.

 This is Nudgee beach reserve.

 It was very pretty but dogs aren't allowed off leash here.

Since I am the most important part of this holiday and no one cares if The Typist wants to walk around and take piccies, My Cushion bundled me back into the car to look for the dog friendly beach.

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And here it is!

It was just 1 minute back up the road. There was a big field with a fence all round it and, as you can see in the picture, the beach was just on the other side of the fence. I had a good run there! It was the 1st good run I've had since coming on holiday.

There were steps, tunnels and poles in the field too! For some inexplicable reason, my humans kept trying to make me do something or other with them.

"But why do you want me to run through the concrete tunnel? Can't I just walk round it? You do realise I'm not a circus dog, right? And by the way, if...IF I do this silly thing, what's in it for me?"

Then I met Jake. My goodness! He was such a little show off!

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 "Hah! What's the big deal?"

 "Out of my way, youngster! Can't you see I'm doing agility?"

"C'mon! Call this a high jump?"

 

"Okay, this one I don't get. You want me to do what?"

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The beach was the best part of the morning. It was only very little because the tide was high. I hope my humans take me back there when the tide is low so I can walk on the sand bank.

I met Rover and Effie!

 From L to R: Rover, Effie, me and Jake.

Right next to the little beach was a mangrove swamp. The Typist thinks it's part of the Boondall Wetlands. It looked really interesting but guess who isn't allowed in there?

 

Oops. Please pretend you didn't see this picture.

I know, I know! We did A Very Bad Thing. Our humans started screaming at us immediately! And we all went back to the beach immediately! 

 

 That's me swimming! I think I'm getting better at it.

 I had a really good time at Nudgee beach. And I'm so happy I finally got to play with some Brisbane dogs!

I hope I get to go back there again before we leave.



HOW TO GET TO NUDGEE BEACH: 



NOTE from The Typist.
I've read that the actual name of the dog friendly park is Tuckeroo but I can't seem to confirm or locate it on the map. It's not hard to find though. You'll see the enclosure from the road. Enjoy!