One of Australia’s Best Drives (dare I say that?)

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One of Australia’s Best Drives (dare I say that?)

STEPHEN SCOURFIELD, Motoring Editor

Motoring isn’t just about tin boxes with a wheel at each corner. It’s still about drive experiences.

And, while we often focus on the specifics of the cars themselves, we also have one eye on the open road — and driving at the heart of the supplement “for people who drive cars, or just like them”.

This is a great drive for Christien de Garis, in his Toyota HiLux ute, towing a Jayco Penguin camper.

But what has been your greatest road trip or drive experience?

Camera IconChristien de Garis, Mallee, the ute and surfboard. Credit: Christien de Garis/Supplied

CHRISTIEN DE GARIS, on the road

I have to be careful in the pages of The West ***********. I’ve already labelled a private coastal road in South Australia’s Eyre Peninsular potentially one of Australia’s, if not world’s, best ocean drives.

And now I am on the New South Wales mid north coast on my adventure zig-zagging around the country with my dog Mallee and I’m awestruck again by another unexpected drive along a water body, albeit a river this time.

I love being surprised by travel. When you set out to do something either mundane or for me at the moment, travel from one small coastal town to another, only to experience something that becomes a travel highlight.

I’m remembering when I first drove another hidden gem for the first time — the “Ocean Loop” in Esperance — a drive I had never heard of before I moved to the town. The scenery is spectacular. I would say (from memory), more stunning than its Victorian counterpart, Great Ocean Road.

data:image/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAIAAAAAAAP///ywAAAAAAQABAAACAUwAOw==Camera IconUnexpected beauty on the 45km journey. Credit: Christien de Garis/Supplied

Fast forward a few decades and I’ve got a similar awestruck look on my face because I’ve just been completely surprised on what I though was going to be a quick, unremarkable drive up the coast from my camp at Crescent Head to South West Rocks.

I’ve turned off the rainforest coastal road and onto a back country back road hugging the Belmore River.

It follows every bend and turn and I’m snaking along at the leisurely speed limit of 80km/h which I’m grateful for as I can take in this unique *********** drive.

data:image/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAIAAAAAAAP///ywAAAAAAQABAAACAUwAOw==Camera IconNot much between farm, road and river. Credit: Christien de Garis/Supplied

After hitting the NSW mid coast on my trip around Australia I have been largely surrounded by stunning coastal rainforest but now, just a few kilometres inland and I’m in rich dairy country.

On one side I’m passing just metres from farmhouses and the on the other I’m bordered by the Belmore River — either straight down to water or there’s a narrow strip of lush grass where farmers have their cows grazing.

And now another unexpected discovery along this route — I can do my shopping. Not just any groceries — but home-grown, organic, as paddock-to-plate produce you could get.

Many locals who live along this picturesque drive have set up displays of homegrown pumpkins, local honey, figs, tomatoes, lemons and limes. Just pop your cash in the honesty box.

data:image/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAIAAAAAAAP///ywAAAAAAQABAAACAUwAOw==Camera IconLocal produce and an honesty box. Credit: Christien de Garis/Supplied

Digging around my ashtray for cash, I manage to scrape together enough for a $7 jar of honey and soon the bitumen is now running along the bank of the larger Macleay River which feeds into most the surrounding waterways.

It’s here I’m slamming on my brakes after taking a snaking bend and suddenly see the sign for the local fishing co-op, spotting the bloke clad in rubber overalls sweeping out the ice from the rear industrial workshop. It seems the real deal and I’m pulling in.

This shop stands out on its own — nothing else but the building and carpark. Behind the counter Liza Anderson is telling me business is booming, as the message about this place spreads.

She says the stock changes every day depending on what the local fishos have caught. I can’t go past the local flathead fillets that seem exceptional value at $30kg.

data:image/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAIAAAAAAAP///ywAAAAAAQABAAACAUwAOw==Camera IconFish changes daily at the Co-op right on the river. Credit: Christien de Garis/Supplied

This unscheduled shopping expedition is thirsty work and I discover another worthwhile stop along this short but eventful path is the Heritage Hotel of Gladstone sitting on the river’s edge.

Opening as an inn in 1873, its exterior hasn’t lost any of its charm and on its grounds are other heritage tidbits. Like the anchor from Acielle shipwrecked at nearby Hat Head in 1929, and mounted behind the bar is the bell originating from now heritage-listed ruin of Trial Bay Gaol further up the road at Arakoon.

One of the country’s best scenic drives? I need to leave some wriggle room before claiming that, but certainly an affirmation of taking the road less travelled.

data:image/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAIAAAAAAAP///ywAAAAAAQABAAACAUwAOw==Camera IconRefuel at the Heritage Hotel of Gladstone along the way. Credit:

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