Coastal Bliss, New South Wales.

- Ellie Lowe -

As Summer is hastily approaching; I thought what better to humbly boast about than our stunning coastline here in Sydney, Australia. I was born in the beachside town of Manly, so I assume my instinctive nature to always be somewhat close to the ocean stemmed from there. The cool salty air and deep blues of the ocean send my heart into a spin.

I’ve explored many beaches along our coast over the last few years, most of which are secluded and semi unheard of, just the way I like it. I’m going to start down south and work my way up to the central coast, listing off a few of my favourites. I love to encourage people to get out of Sydney itself when they travel here, as exciting as it may seem to tick Bondi Beach off your list, I can promise some of the real coastal gems are found here in this post.

Mystery Bay
Firstly, doesn’t the name of this place just tug something inside of you, bringing forth some kind of urge to explore it immediately?! No? Just me? Okay. Well, I may very well be a little bias when it comes to this area of the coast. Some of my relatives own a house there and allow our family to use it as a holiday home whenever it is available. We’ve only done it a couple of times but there is just something about it. The beach itself isn’t that amazing, but I am just so addicted to that tiny, quiet, coastal town feel. One morning Shawn and I got up for sunrise and the whole beach was covered in sea mist or fog; I’m not sure which exactly. But it was so eerie and beautiful, I realised this place would thrive in any weather. There are rock pools, caves, and something to drop your jaw around every corner. If you ever get the chance, venture down south of Sydney and explore the coastline.

Hyams Beach

A little further north of Mystery Bay you’ll find Hyams Beach, which contains the whitest sand in the world. No, I’m actually not exaggerating. It IS the whitest sand in the world, Google it. Now how did I not know of this until a few years ago? I have no idea, but who cares because now I do and I find myself day dreaming of this place often. The sand is so white it literally makes that squeaky sound when you walk through it. And the water, don’t even get me started on the water. Turquoise blue, crystal clear, calm, smooth, heavenly. I just can’t. Look, bottom line is you really need to go here. About 3 hours south of Sydney, so totally doable for a day trip!

Cave Beach

Somewhat a neighbour of Hyams beach, this place has a totally different vibe but incredible nonetheless. We spent Australia Day here one year, and I still think it’s the best place I’ve ever spent it at. It’s surrounded by nothing but raw, rugged, Aussie bushland and of course, caves. The beach itself was wide and long, lots of breathing space, which is another of my favourite things. The waves weren’t small as such, but they weren’t so big that you were getting dumped. A fun day of exploring, swimming, climbing through endless rock pools and sunbaking was had. There is a camping ground right next to the beach if you wanted to stay overnight.

I’m going to pretty much skip Sydney itself because there are many obvious beaches to explore there. I’ll list of a few that are worth checking out if you’re in town: Bondi (if you must), Bronte (do the Bondi-Bronte walk), Gordon’s Bay (no sand, something a bit different!), North Head (no beach but incred views over the city and ocean/harbour, also where my husband proposed to me so, personally, the best spot ever) and Parsley Bay (the perfect spot to lie all day on an inflatable pool toy in the bay. No really, it’s been done.)

Heading up north to the Central Coast region now…

Bouddi National Park Coastal Walk

Oh my goodness this place has given me so much joy. I can’t believe I never knew of its existence until a month ago. The coastal walk stretches out over 15 km’s, but the section I’ve done is only 3km one way. We started off at Putty Beach which had a grand total of three other humans also basking in the beauty whilst we were there, so a little different to the 10,000 people you’d be sharing one of Sydney’s beaches with. We swam in the perfect water before starting our breathtaking journey along the boardwalk. We trekked until we reached Maitland Bay. Okay, this place was next level. Totally, and I meant totally, secluded. Surround by bushland, no buildings, hardly a soul in sight and the water was beyond perfection. I could have floated around all day. I could use all of the good words to describe this place, but I’ll let the photos do the talking. There is also a nearby campground here, which is extremely tempting for next time we visit.

I’ll leave you with those to begin with, if I discover anymore worth mentioning, I’ll let you all know! If you’ve managed to sit through the entirety of this post, I applaud you. I tend to ramble. But hey, all I really wanted anyone to get out of it is this: come to Sydney! And then venture out of Sydney. Happy traveling.

Ellie x

Go check Ellie out on instagram @ellie_lowe and also her incredible blog called She's Gone Lala. You will find many more helpful hints and just generally rad blog posts over there. This girl is definitely an inspiring adventurer and one to keep an eye on.