creek

Heading to the beach on a beautiful sunny day seemed like a good idea at the time, Bundy could burn off some energy and I could get some Vitamin D and maybe take a few photographs. Byron Bay is a popular spot on the northern coast of New South Wales, once a quiet coastal town it is now booming with resorts, restaurants, boutiques and tourists aplenty. I thought it would be easy enough to find a dog friendly beach away from the centre of town, but I was wrong, after driving around in circles trying to find a specific dog friendly beach all I had come across were nature reserves and ‘no dogs allowed’ signs. Traffic was actually pretty heavy and parking was at a premium, after one too many one-way streets I pulled up outside the Croquet Club, rang my husband and vented about what a shite place Byron Bay is and Bundy had to settle for sniffing the grass and trees near the club car park. Byron Bay isn’t actually a bad place to visit, I just didn’t expect it to be so difficult to find a quiet spot where we could spend quality beach time together.

Rather than give up on the beach idea completely I drove north to Kingscliff thinking that there were dog friendly beaches up that way because we had previously taken our dogs there. It took longer than planned thanks to me unknowingly taking a scenic route that actually had me heading south. Once at Kingscliff parking was a breeze and finally Bundy got to escape the confines of the car. The first beach entry looked promising, but alas a ‘no dogs allowed’ sign was erected and we had to keep walking along the esplanade until we got to a creek that looked good for swimming. Cudgen Creek is a coast waterway that flows alongside the town of Kingscliff, plenty of people swim in the creek and go fishing, Bundy couldn’t do much at all because he had to stay on his lead – this was not an ‘off-leash’ swimming spot. Anyway, at least the little fellow was able to splash around in the water, chase seagulls and do a bit of rock climbing so the day wasn’t a complete waste. Australia seems to have become even more dog-unfriendly in recent years and it really bugs me.