Hunter Xmas in July

03 August 2016 / Story: Grant Webber & Elaine Gazzard. Photos: Tom Wilde & Josh Fitzgerald

It is that time of the year again; sleigh bells, mistletoe, carol singers, snow on the ground …. Oh wait, it’s July – must be Christmas in July!!
This year the Hunter Chapter decided to celebrate the mid-year yuletide at the South Coast. Our trip down had us leaving the Twin Servoes bright and early for a run to Picton for morning tea. Surprisingly, the good folk of Picton decided to put on a wonderful display of festive cheer, which I choose to believe was in honour of the visit by the MX-5 Club! Streets lined with Christmas trees, carol singers and even a couple of snow machines provided an auspicious start to the weekend.

Despite the chilly temperatures and “brisk breeze” it was tops down all the way from Picton, through Balmoral and Hill Top, over Mt Gibraltar and dropping down in to Bowral. We had a quick regroup before tackling Oxley Hill on the way to Berrima and finally Moss Vale for lunch, where we managed to perfectly time our arrival with a few members who had chosen a more direct (i.e. later leaving) route. An astute recommendation from Jen and George has most of us lunching at Bernie’s Diner on Argyle St; definitely a must-do for anyone visiting Moss Vale. Great atmosphere, delicious and fresh food in a New York style, and for us a special guest waitress ready and determined to deliver everyone’s food direct to their tables! (Thanks Dianne!!)

Following lunch we had a short back-road run to Fitzroy Falls – Group Photo!! Being a man of science there are a few things I inherently believe and trust; one of which is that gravity acts toward the centre of mass and that object will fall down. So it was quite spectacular to see the water plummeting over Fitzroy Falls spend as much time going upwards due to the prevailing wind as falling to the depths below. However the wind did give some members the excuse to don some truly outrageous headwear in the pursuit of warmth. Needless to say our outdoor adventure was curtailed by chilled bones and ever-looming thoughts of cheese and cider around an open fire.

A quick run on the wonderful Myra Vale Rd past Fitzroy Falls Reservoir had us in historic Robertson (known for its potatoes and pies) and then down the scenic Macquarie Pass. Of course being a Saturday afternoon our drive down the escarpment was at the ideal pace to truly enjoy the magnificent views over the South Coast. After an impromptu and delightfully chaotic fuel stop in Albion Park we set course for our overnight rest stop; Jamberoo Resort.

Special thanks to the resort, who had decorated their dining room, stoked a wonderful fire, and even organised some live entertainment for us. All cars we quickly emptied and we gathered around the fire for pre-dinner nibbles of homemade cheese and mulled apple cider; a special treat from Helen and Lindsay that managed to survive the trip down in the boot of our rather stiffly sprung SE! Our special guests for the evening, Brian, Fiona and Alex Shedden, soon joined us as the combined effects of the fire, gourmet fare and tall tales had us all looking far rosier about the cheeks

We had a great Christmas dinner with all the trimmings, including crackers and pudding. The prize for the best decorated car was awarded to Rob and Dianne, for their splendid tinselled NB. After dinner Bronco, our yuletide balladeer, had us up dancing the night away, complete with a rendition of Mustang Sally featuring backing vocals from some of our members. An already memorable night was finished off by a spontaneous round of trivia “organised” by Bruce; I think there may even have been a winner??

Soon we were all tucked away in bed, with full stomachs and happy hearts, dreaming of the drives tomorrow – starting with a blast up Jamberoo Mountain in the crisp morning air!

Day 2 starts out on a clear crisp winters morning. After breakfast and all bills paid, we gathered in the parking area for today's run briefing from Grant our resident palaeontologist. Our group was joined by club President Bryan & his son Alex and Peter from the Illawarra chapter. It was great having them join us.
Setting off in true MX-5 tradition we turned right out of the resort and climbed our way up the tight and twisty Jamberboo Mountain Road. With revs high in the cool morning air it was the perfect wake up call before heading off to Kiama the long way via Berry.

Coming through Robertson we learnt that a T – Break is also known as a potty stop. Thanks to the on air inquire. A few members of the public hampered the drive up Jambaroo Mountain Road but once past them there were some great corners and sweeping bends. The trees covering over the top of the road gave the tunnel like impression with tail lights lighting the way. We continued on through Kangaloon and the scenery was brilliant and I can understand why people wish to live there.

Morning tea stop was the quaint town of Berry, where everyone found something they liked. The berry good coffee, the berry excellent carrot cake and the berry good shopping all in all a berry nice time. Lol……Our next stop was a surprise group photo stop at Canbewarra lookout, the road was narrow and the 4wds thought they owned the road making it interesting. But wow what an amazing view from the top, looking over the plans to the ocean of the south coast region. Tom took the photo, setting up the camera and getting us all in was always going to be a problem, glad he had the wide-angle lens with him. Photo turned out great.

Next stop Kiama for lunch. So down the mountain fairly clear run this time following the coast through Genora, where it was great to see a wallaby standing by the side of the road instead of laying on the road. As we got to Kiama some members decided it was time to head straight home. Kiama as always was popular and parking was at a premium. The blowhole didn’t disappoint with some spectacular water displays. Everyone went there our way for lunch meeting back at the cars for a last briefing and more goodbyes, then heading on to Mittagong.

Macquarie pass was pretty solid with bumper-to-bumper with car and a traffic light half way up. Lindsay and Elaine passed the time talking to an eight-year-old boy on the radio, what a giggle he was.
Arriving at Mittagong most of us filling up the cars and brought survival snacks for the last leg of the run.
We left in convoy towards Sydney without any real problem chatting here and there on the other side of Sydney we all basically we our way home.

Thanks to Grant and Helen for an absolutely awesome weekend and the other attending members for your company and friendship.

Tom Wilde's Photos: HERE

Josh Fitzgerald's Photos: HERE