[lettie]

We awoke on our first full day in Tweed Heads to a hot but cloudy day. It does rain a fair bit in this neck of the woods and is significantly more humid than Melbourne. After a breakfast of eggs and smoothies at a local cafe, we decided to head south and explore the area.

Tweed Heads is within easy reach of Mount Warning National Park and the stunning beaches of Byron Bay, so this is where we decided to go. We drove about 20mins to Murwillumbah, a small town in Mt Warning National Park with a lovely little visitor centre on the river. After spending some time checking out the area in the visitor centre, and chatting to the lady who worked there (everyone is really friendly here), we crossed the bridge into Murwillumbah. From the bridge we could see a rather unusual 'Welcome to Murwillumbah' sign. It was graffittied onto what looked like somebody's back yard wall and it was massive. We pottered around town for a little while, again, this place reminded me of Hebden Bridge, the kind of place where ageing hippies would settle. The town had a nice relaxed feel to it though and from the riverside we could see Mount Warning looming in the distance. Mt Warning is an extinct volcano which last erupted about 20 million years ago. There are walking tracks in the area which take you to the summit.

From Murwillumbah we drove south to Byron Bay, again, a relaxed town but slightly more expensive looking than Murwillumbah. The town was full of trendy cafes, beachwear shops and had a very seaside resort feel to it. We found a lovely wine shop there and it would have been rude not to go in... Although Byron Bay is a resort, the natural beauty of the area is outstanding. This is Australia's most easterly point on the mainland and I have to say that for a resort full of holidaying Sydneysiders the beaches were wonderfully clean and the landscape unspoiled. Our next door neighbour at the motel was from Sydney, she later told me that Byron is full of dope smokers....... I didn't believe her, this was a woman who hadn't a good word to say about anywhere ( and they say us Poms whinge!!!)

We took a walk up to the lighthouse at Cape Byron and admired the beaches and bushland below us. It is really beautiful here and what's more, a haven for wildlife. There was a school of dolphins swimming past the Cape, easily visible from the lighthouse. I could see a large turtle swimming amongst the rocks below us and you should see the size of the lizards!!!!! A big beautiful lizard walked across the path to the lighthouse, it was right in front of us and couldn't care less. I've never seen a lizard so big outside of a zoo. I have to say........I'm quite taken with Australia, it's a fabulous place.

Here are some pics.....'Welcome to Murwillumbah,' Mount Warning in the clouds. Byron's lovely beach, the most easterly point and look at the size of this ******!!!!!!