11/01/10

We were excited to have arrived in Byron because we knew that a lot of the people we'd met in Oz would be here at the same time, (Ed, Coen, Kev and Birdie) so we were planning to meet up with them. We were so glad we managed to book somewhere to stay because when we arrived all the hostels had no availability. Our hostel was in a fairly central location so we dumped our bags and headed to woolworths to get some food shopping. Our hostel did free dinner as long as you bought a drink at the bar, which was sweet.

We unexpectedly bumped into some Canadians (Blair and Mike) that we made friends with in Mission Beach, they were staying in the same hostel as us, so we had a few drinks with them over dinner and played the weekly quiz. A few beers later and a respectable 6th out of 15 quiz position, we discovered that they were planning on walking to the lighthouse early the next morning so we knocked it on the head and decided we would tag along which meant getting to bed.

Up at 6:30am the following morning, still have asleep we meant the Canadians at reception and set off while the sun was just warming up. It was a good hour walk along an uneven hilly path surrounded by dense forest before we caught a glimpse of the lighthouse. The lighthouse itself was just part of the reason we went on the walk, the main reason as it was situated on Cape Byron which was Australia's most easternly point. After a short while we made it and walked to the point of the headland standing as east as any person could on mainland Australia. Pretty cool. Hanging around for a while before the walk back we spotted a few pods of dolphins and some big rays casting shadows on the ocean floor. Was well worth the walk. We decided on a different route back, one that was flatter and hugged the beach to catch a glimpse of any surfers at 'The Pass' and to check out the temperature of the sea. COLD! A big difference even from Surfers. I guess its just going to get colder from now on the further south we move, damn it!

Back at the hostel we were pretty hungry so made some lunch before hitting the beach with the hostel's free bodyboards. One each, we both braved the cold water and took to the surf. it was great fun. Both of us catching some good waves and showing off our skills - before getting dumped on by the wave and having to swim back out again. After a short while Mike and Blair met us on the beach and had found out that a surf shop not too far from our hostel was renting surf boards for $30 for 24 hours. Feeling that bodyboarding was beneath us we set off to to grab ourselves some bigger boards. We got 2 between 4 of us and went back to the beach with the boards under our arms feeling pretty cool.

Back at the beach this time attempting to stand on the waves it was so much more fun. Alex gave the Canadians a heads up on what we had learnt on our surf lesson, as this was their first time surfing, then just dived straight in. They both stood up almost straight away and were hooked after that. Around mid afternoon Birdie and Danielle got our message we had left for them with their hostel and met us on the beach. Birdie also gave the surfing a go and did pretty well too.

That evening, after a tiring of surfing and in need of some good food Steph had arranged to meet up with one of her friends from back home who she had worked with at Tchibo, Rose. She lives in Byron now and knew a great local pub - The Rail, with live music and good food so we met her there. Some food and a few pints later Alex left with some Swiss girls that we had bumped into, who were also on our Whitsundays trip to meet up with Birdie, Danielle and the Canadians. While Steph stayed with Rose for a couple more. Back at our hostel bar with the others, the drinking started. We ended up leaving the bar around 11pm and heading into town in search of a party. The popular backpackers haunt 'Cheeky Monkeys' was full to the brim with a huge queue so we opted for the slightly smaller and less busy club called Cocomangas. It was good fun, with the highlight being a breatheliser machine at the exit that we all tried on our wayout... all over the limit surprisingly.

The next morning we both checked out of Aquarius and moved to a hostel just opposite called Main Beach Backpackers as ours was fully booked and Main Beach was $5 cheaper each per night. Having checked into our new room and eaten some breakfast we went back to the beach to get the most out of our surf boards before we have to hand them back. Having been handed back our surfboards in one piece after a successful 24hours Birdie and Dani joined us for a BBQ at the hostel and it was yum. It makes it so much more affordable the more people there are so we had burgers, kanga bangers, salad, potatoes, corn on the cob... a right feast. A welcome change from the standard pasta.

That evening, our last full night in Byron before we caught the night bus to Sydney and Birdie and Danielle caught the bus up to Brisbane the following night, we met the canadians in their hostel for a few beers before heading to the Beach Hotel to try and find Ed and Ramon from our Whitsunday sailing trip who had arrived in Byron also. This place was really cool, it had a live band playing from San Fransisco and was nice and open and on the seafront. Unable to find Ed and Ramon and feeling a little tired from the night before and the days surfing we called it a night and went to bed.

Our final day was spent relaxing and looking after Mikes ear. With a suspected ear infection the first trip was to the pharmacy for ear drops. Letting Blair administor them and making jokes and fun of Mike for being almost deaf the drops didnt work so we went with him to the hospital to get some treatment. A good while, a siringe and some antibiotics later we were out and back at the beach again. With Mike not allowed in the water Blair and Alex played with his early birthday present a skimmer ball. All beached and sun'd out we went back to the hostel to make some food before saying goodbye to the canadians with a chance of meeting up again with them in New Zealand before catching our 14 hour overnight bus to the hustle and bustle of Sydney.

Although we were excited to discover Sydney and see the Opera House and Harbour Bridge, we were also sad to be leaving Byron as it has been one of our favourite places to stay and we had a lot of fun with all the people we had met along the way. It was a really laid back town with a great atmosphere with everything based around the sea and surfing. We would definitely come back here if we were to visit Australia again.