Kid to dad in a bus:
Dad,
Shall we sit upstairs where we can see more ?
Previous funnies posted here have been
migrated to:
https://onemanadreaming.blogspot.com/
Saturday, August 23, 2025
A man's gotta eat. A man's gotta drink. A man's gotta climb mountains. And a man's gotta laugh.
Kid to dad in a bus:
Dad,
Shall we sit upstairs where we can see more ?
Previous funnies posted here have been
migrated to:
https://onemanadreaming.blogspot.com/
Monday, April 21, 2025
Shark Hole - Pink Caves to Caves Beach, part 2 - Central Coast, NSW, Australia
2025 April ... day-hike
Central Coast seashores
(near Lake Macquarie)
NSW, Australia
To Pink Caves
Deep Caves
Hales Bluff
Catherine Hill Bay Beach
Middle Camp Beach
Middle Camp Inlet
Baldy Cliff
Bogey Hole (Catho Rockpool in Google Maps)
Drummer Hole
Shark Hole ... this trip report
Pinny Beach
Quarries Head
Split Rock
Spoon Rocks
Finally Caves Beach - lookout & cave
Part 2 of trip report - this one
Shark Hole only
Part 1 of the trip report is to Pink Caves.
Refer to this link:
https://mntviews.blogspot.com/2025/04/pink-caves-to-caves-beach-part-1.html
The rest are under construction 😊
Preview
Shark Hole
Photo by Karen Lee
Shark Hole's narrow channel
Photo by May Yang
Our group
7 of us:
- Paul, taking ...
- Ai Ling Lim
- Amy Chi
- John Graham
- Karen Lee
- Lyndal Tegel
- May Yang
Map
LPI 1:25,000 scaled 9231-4S Catherine Hill Bay
LPI 1:25,000 scaled 9231-4N Swansea
Map 1) The relevant part of the 1:25,000
topographic map
Where our cars are parked
First:
Park Lyndal's car at end of hike.
At a carpark near
junction of Caves Beach Road & Bligh Avenue,
Caves Beach
Grid Ref: 7364 3556
Google Maps link:
https://maps.app.goo.gl/6bshBLewJWLAdGQU6
Then:
Park Paul's car at start of hike.
Junction of Breakers Blvd & Hooey St,
Catherine Hill Bay
Grid Ref: 7215 2950
Google Maps link:
https://maps.app.goo.gl/TVjHVwd8gt1Bx9aN9
I could have parked my car closer to the stairs
which descends down to the north side
of Moonee Beach.
Refer to photo #1 in this link:
https://mntviews.blogspot.com/2025/04/pink-caves-to-caves-beach-part-1.html
But Hooey St is closed today ... roadwork.
GPS tracklog file & route
GPX tracklog file can be downloaded from:
https://drive.google.com/file/d/1K0F2q9GwvNckjWYD-oVcSHYR2FhVfwZe/view?usp=sharing
Map 2) GPS route, in red,
recorded on the topographic map:
- 6 blue arrows, top to bottom:
https://maps.app.goo.gl/6bshBLewJWLAdGQU6
1 GR 7364 3556 End of our hike
https://maps.app.goo.gl/kKnQWUwSzbdWV2YG8
2 GR 7373 3552
Here, we watch Amy wading across
mouth of a cave.
https://maps.app.goo.gl/EjebKFd1YhQDLxsj9
3 GR 7335 3287
Ladder to get down to Shark Hole
https://maps.app.goo.gl/1twRfQuFPFYknQw3A
4 GR 7334 3227
Bogey Hole ... Amy has a swim at this spot.
https://maps.app.goo.gl/HJaBatkBZqw6eLAV7
5 GR 7272 2974 Pink Caves
https://maps.app.goo.gl/TVjHVwd8gt1Bx9aN9
6 GR 7215 2950 Start of our hike
Map 3) Satellite image of the above map.
- Yellow arrows:
Same as the blue arrows in the previous map
In summary:
First, park Lyndal's car at end of hike.
At a carpark near
junction of Caves Beach Road & Bligh Avenue,
Caves Beach.
Then, park Paul's car at start of hike.
Junction of Breakers Blvd & Hooey St,
Catherine Hill Bay.
To Pink Caves
Deep Caves
Hales Bluff
Catherine Hill Bay Beach
Middle Camp Beach
Middle Camp Inlet
Baldy Cliff
Bogey Hole (Catho Rockpool in Google Maps)
Drummer Hole
Shark Hole ... this trip report
Pinny Beach
Quarries Head
Split Rock
Spoon Rocks
Caves Beach - lookout & cave
End at Lyndal's car at Caves Beach.
Timeline and Distance
08:01 0.0 km Start walking along Hooey St
The Pink Caves timeline is in this link:
https://mntviews.blogspot.com/2025/04/pink-caves-to-caves-beach-part-1.html
The other places are under construction 😊
12:13 6.86km At southern-most part
of Shark Hole
12:22 6.99km At Shark Hole's
narrow channel entrance
12:27 7.07km At cliff edge above Shark Hole
12:32 7.07km Leave cliff edge
12:37 7.29km At top of ladder
which would get us down to
Shark Hole's narrow channel
12:41 7.29km Start to climb down the ladder
12:47 7.4 km At seaside edge
of the narrow channel
Photo session.
The girls are having fun doing various poses 😊
12:57 7.4 km Start to return to the ladder
13:02 7.48km At top of the ladder
Lunch
13:31 7.52km Resume walking
13:38 7.79km At top of rocky headland,
north side of Shark Hole
(At where Amy is in photo #34)
The rest are under construction 😊
16:48 14.15km At Lyndal's car at Caves Beach
================================
Total: 8 hrs 47 mins
14.15 km Distance is from Google Earth
Pictures - Shark Hole only
Overview of Shark Hole
1a, b) Overview of Shark Hole.
- 2 red arrows, left to right:
1 Ladder down to a narrow channel
2 As far out as we'll go at this rocky headland
- 2 yellow dots, left to right:
1 We'll be there ... photo #8
2 We'll be there ... photo #33
- Yellow arrows & dashes:
Our route along this part of the coast
Photos by John
Shark Hole
2a, b, c) At Shark Hole.
- Upper pic:
• Ai Ling
• Red arrow:
Ladder down to a narrow channel
Refer to photos #10 - #12.
• Yellow arrows & dashes:
Our route around Shark Hole
• 2 yellow dots, left to right:
1 We'll be there ... photo #8
2 We'll be there ... photo #33
- Middle pic:
(Continuation to the right of the upper pic)
• Yellow arrow: Our route around Shark Hole
• Red arrow:
As far out as we'll go
at this rocky headland
- Lower pic:
(Continuation to the right of the middle pic)
Headland here is the southern-most part
of Shark Hole.
3) Shark Hole.
4) Heading to Shark Hole's narrow channel ...
Refer to photo #5.
- Yellow oval: The narrow channel is in there
- Left to right: May, Karen ... They are already there.
5) Shark Hole's narrow channel.
- Karen
- White arrow:
A rock ... One can stand on top it ...
Refer to photo #18.
We can't reach the rock from here 😭
unless we are willing to swim 😭
Photo by John
To reach the other end of the narrow channel ...
- From the above photo, backtrack a bit.
- Then climb up the cliff.
- There, we'll meet up with a foot track
which will lead us to the other side
of the narrow channel.
Climb up the cliffs above Shark Hole
6a, b) Climbing up the cliffs above Shark Hole.
- Top to bottom (in both pics below):
Amy, Ai Ling, Lyndal, John
7) Almost finished climbing up the cliffs.
- Blue arrows: Foot track ... We'll follow it.
- Cyan arrow: But first, a detour to a cliff edge.
Cliff edge above Shark Hole
This is the cyan-arrow detour of the above pic.
8a, b, c) Very nice view of Shark Hole.
The girls like this spot 😊
- Upper pic: May
- Middle pic: Karen
• Yellow route: How we came to Shark Hole
• 2 yellow ovals, top to bottom:
1 Rocky headland,
north side of Shark Hole ...
Refer to photos #33, #34, #36.
2 Shark Hole's narrow channel ...
Refer to photo #5.
- Lower pic: Amy
• Yellow route: How we came to Shark Hole
#8a: Photo by Karen
#8b, #8c: Photos by May
#8b, #8c: Photos by May
To Shark Hole's narrow channel
9) A well-formed foot track
along this part of the coast.
- John in front, followed by Ai Ling
- Blue arrow: Direction of walk
Shark Hole's narrow channel
The top of the narrow channel
is just by the side of the foot track.
It is easy to miss it,
as the opening down into the channel
is very narrow !
So, keep your eyes wide open
if you don't want to miss it.
10) The fissure down to the narrow channel.
- White arrow:
Tip of a ladder leading down the fissure
The Ladder
All of us climb down the ladder,
except Lyndal and Ai Ling.
Lyndal:
She has an injured hand from few weeks ago ...
Bitten by a cat 😊, I think.
Ai Ling:
No idea why shes doesn't want to climb down
to explore.
11) Ladder down to the bottom of the fissure.
- May ... taking photographs of Amy & John
12) Note: The ladder doesn't reach the bottom !
Luckily, there is already a fixed rope
to assist us.
- John keeping a watchful eye on Karen
Fissure (leading to the narrow channel)
13) Inside the fissure.
It would lead to the narrow channel.
- May
14) Inside the fissure.
- Left to right: May, John
- Yellow arrow: Route to the narrow channel
- Red dashes:
A boulder ...
Due to the strong contrast in the lighting,
it is difficult to take photographs here.
Hence the red dashes are to outline
the shape of the boulder.
15a, b) The boulder ...
Outlined by the red dashes of previous pic.
- Amy climbs the boulder ... just for fun.
- Upper pic, clockwise from bottom-right:
May, Karen, Amy
- Lower pic, top to bottom: Amy, May
Narrow channel
16) At the narrow channel of Shark Hole.
- Left to right: John, May, Karen
- White arrow:
Same rock as the white arrow in photo #5
17) Amy wading to the rock.
She is the only one willing to get her body wet.
- White arrow:
Same rock as the white arrow of previous pic
- When the tide is low, one could walk to the rock
without getting the feet wet.
Photo by Karen
18a, b) Amy on top of the rock of previous pic.
#18a: Photo by May
The girls are having fun !
19) May, Amy.
20) Amy.
21a, b) May.
22) May, Karen.
23) Karen.
24) Karen.
25) Karen.
26) Karen.
Photo by May
Return to the ladder
27) Top to bottom: Amy, Karen, May.
- White arrow:
The boulder featured in photos #14 and #15
28) Through the narrow fissure.
- Amy, Karen, May
29) Karen.
- Yellow arrow: The ladder
30) Yellow oval: The ladder.
- Top to bottom: Amy, Karen, May
31) Almost at the ladder.
- Top to bottom:
• John ... at top of the ladder.
• Karen, May
Climbing up the ladder
32) Karen.
Rocky headland, north side of Shark Hole
Lunch is at the top to the ladder,
by the side of the foot track.
Then, we go to the rocky headland
on the north side of Shark Hole.
33a, b, c) Approaching the rocky headland.
- Upper pic: The rocky headland
• Black arrow: Amy
- Middle pic: Panning to the right of the upper pic
• Looking down at Shark Hole
- Lower pic: Panning to the right of the middle pic
• Looking down at Shark Hole
• White oval: Narrow channel
• Yellow route: Our route around Shark Hole
34) The rocky headland.
- Left to right: Lyndal, Amy
- Amy is at the furthest point we'll go
in this headland.
35) (Continuation to the right of previous pic)
Looking down at Shark Hole,
and at where we came from.
- Yellow route: How we approached Shark Hole
- 2 vertical red arrows, left to right:
1 Flat Rock Point
2 Hales Buff ... Pink Caves is around there
- Red dot: Drummer Hole
- 3 horizontal red arrows, left to right:
1 Between Drummer Hole & Bogey Hole
2 Baldy Cliff area
3 Headland south of Middle Camp Inlet
36) Facing the opposite direction of photo #34.
(Photo taken at the same spot as photo #34)
- Left to right: Karen, Ai Ling, Amy, Lyndal, John
- Yellow arrow: Direction of walk
37) (Continuation to the right of previous pic)
Facing north-ish.
- May
- 3 red arrows, left to right:
1 A cave ... photos are under construction 😊
2 Quarries Head ...
We'll be there.
Trip report is under construction 😊
3 Spoon Rocks ...
We'll be there.
Trip report is under construction 😊
- Yellow route:
Our route along that part of the coast
Flora around Shark Hole
38) Osteospermum moniliferum
(synonym Chrysanthemoides monilifera)
subsp. rotundata
(Bitou bush)
- Bitou bush is a spreading woody shrub
with yellow daisy-like flowers.
- It is a major environmental weed in Australia,
as it invades coastal dunes
and prevents native plants from growing.
The rest of the trip
The rest of the trip report after Shark Hole
is under construction 😊
Pink Caves to Caves Beach, part 1 - Central Coast, NSW, Australia
2025 April ... day-hike
Central Coast seashores
(near Lake Macquarie)
NSW, Australia
To Pink Caves ... this trip report
Deep Caves
Hales Bluff
Catherine Hill Bay Beach
Middle Camp Beach
Middle Camp Inlet
Baldy Cliff
Bogey Hole (Catho Rockpool in Google Maps)
Drummer Hole
Shark Hole
Pinny Beach
Quarries Head
Split Rock
Spoon Rocks
Finally Caves Beach - lookout & cave
Part 1 of trip report
Pink Caves only
Part 2 of the trip report is to Shark Hole.
Refer to this link:
https://mntviews.blogspot.com/2025/04/shark-hole-pink-caves-to-caves-beach.html
The rest are under construction 😊
Preview
Pink Caves
Very nice pink rocks in the cave !
Why are the rocks pink ?
The pink color of the rocks is caused by
a type of microalgae called
crustose coralline algae.
This algae forms a thick, calcified crust on
the rock surface, giving it a vibrant pink hue.
Warning / Danger
You should only visit the Pink Caves
during low tide and low swell.
It is suicidal to go at other times.
Peolple have died there !!!
Weather
The Weather is weird.
Forecast was for heavy rain
a few days prior to the hike.
Then improved to moderate rain.
Even the day before the hike,
forecast was for showers.
However, on the day, the weather is sunny.
(We can see showers raining down
to the east and north of us.
but not a single drop of rain on us 😊)
Our group
7 of us:
- Paul, taking ...
- Ai Ling Lim
- Amy Chi
- John Graham
- Karen Lee
- Lyndal Tegel
- May Yang
Map
LPI 1:25,000 scaled 9231-4S Catherine Hill Bay
LPI 1:25,000 scaled 9231-4N Swansea
Map 1) The relevant part of the 1:25,000
topographic map
Where our cars are parked
First:
Park Lyndal's car at end of hike.
At a carpark near
junction of Caves Beach Road & Bligh Avenue,
Caves Beach
Grid Ref: 7364 3556
Google Maps link:
https://maps.app.goo.gl/6bshBLewJWLAdGQU6
Then:
Park Paul's car at start of hike.
Junction of Breakers Blvd & Hooey St,
Catherine Hill Bay
Grid Ref: 7215 2950
Google Maps link:
https://maps.app.goo.gl/TVjHVwd8gt1Bx9aN9
I could have parked my car closer to the stairs ...
Refer to photo #1.
But Hooey St is closed today ... roadwork.
GPS tracklog file & route
GPX tracklog file can be downloaded from:
https://drive.google.com/file/d/1K0F2q9GwvNckjWYD-oVcSHYR2FhVfwZe/view?usp=sharing
Map 2) GPS route, in red,
recorded on the topographic map:
- 6 blue arrows, top to bottom:
https://maps.app.goo.gl/6bshBLewJWLAdGQU6
1 GR 7364 3556 End of our hike
https://maps.app.goo.gl/kKnQWUwSzbdWV2YG8
2 GR 7373 3552
Here, we watch Amy wading across
mouth of a cave.
https://maps.app.goo.gl/EjebKFd1YhQDLxsj9
3 GR 7335 3287
Ladder to get down to Shark Hole
https://maps.app.goo.gl/1twRfQuFPFYknQw3A
4 GR 7334 3227
Bogey Hole ... Amy has a swim at this spot.
https://maps.app.goo.gl/HJaBatkBZqw6eLAV7
5 GR 7272 2974 Pink Caves
https://maps.app.goo.gl/TVjHVwd8gt1Bx9aN9
6 GR 7215 2950 Start of our hike
Map 3) Satellite image of the above map.
- Yellow arrows:
Same as the blue arrows in the previous map
In summary:
First, park Lyndal's car at end of hike.
At a carpark near
junction of Caves Beach Road & Bligh Avenue,
Caves Beach.
Then, park Paul's car at start of hike.
Junction of Breakers Blvd & Hooey St,
Catherine Hill Bay.
To Pink Caves ... this trip report
Deep Caves
Hales Bluff
Catherine Hill Bay Beach
Middle Camp Beach
Middle Camp Inlet
Baldy Cliff
Bogey Hole (Catho Rockpool in Google Maps)
Drummer Hole
Shark Hole
Pinny Beach
Quarries Head
Split Rock
Spoon Rocks
Caves Beach - lookout & cave
End at Lyndal's car at Caves Beach.
Timeline and Distance
08:01 0.0 km Start walking along Hooey St
08:04 0.24km Turn right (south)
into an access stairs
to Moonee Beach
08:20 1.12km Just outside Pink Caves
Explore inside Pink Caves
08:41 1.2 km Back outside Pink Caves
09:02 1.48km At cliff top above Pink Caves
The Shark Hole timeline is in this link:
https://mntviews.blogspot.com/2025/04/shark-hole-pink-caves-to-caves-beach.html
The rest are under construction 😊
16:48 14.15km At Lyndal's car at Caves Beach
================================
Total: 8 hrs 47 mins
14.15 km Distance is from Google Earth
Pictures - Pink Caves only
Stairs to Moonee Beach
1) Access stairs from Hooey St
(Catherine Hill Bay)
down to the north part of Moonee Beach.
- Except the 2 guys in surfboard,
the rest are our group.
- Red arrow: Flat Rocks Point
- Red horizontal bar:
Flat Island (says NSW LPI topographic map)
- Beach in this pic: Moonee Beach
- The bay here is:
• Deep Cave Bay in AllTrails.
• Unnamed in Google Maps
(In Google Maps, Deep Cave Bay
is marked further north !)
- When you are down at the beach,
turn left to go to Pink Caves.
- Note the showers not far out to the sea.
But we never encountered any rain
during our entire walk.
Along seashore to Pink Caves
2) Along the beach to Pink Caves.
- In the middle of the pic, left to right:
Lyndal, Amy, John, Karen, Ai Ling, May
- Note the showers not far out to the sea.
But we never encountered any rain
during the entire hike.
3a, b) Along rocky shores to Pink Caves.
- Upper pic:
• Left to right: Karen, Lyndal, Amy, John, Ai Ling
• White arrow: May
- Lower pic: To the right of the upper pic
• Red arrow: Flat Rocks Point
• Red horizontal bar: Flat Island
4) Red algae on the rocky shore ... pretty !
5a, b) We can see the Pink Cave entrance now.
- Upper pic:
• White oval: Pink Cave entrance
- Lower pic:
(Continuation from the right of the upper pic)
• 4 red arrows, left to right:
1 Hales Bluff
2 We'll walk on the rocky shore
to go around Hales Bluff.
3 Baldy Cliff ... We'll be there.
4 Spoon Rocks ... We'll be there.
• Woman on the left edge is not our group.
Pink Caves entrance
6a, b) Pink Caves entrance.
- Amy takes the honour for the 1st person
to get there.
Inside Pink Caves
7a, b) Wonderful pink-coloured rocks in the cave !
- 2 white arrows, left to right:
Same as the 2 white arrows in photo #8
Photos by John
8) Inside Pink Caves.
- 2 white arrows, left to right:
1 Refer to photo #9.
2 It is the red arrow in photo #10.
9) Crystal-clear water ... not just in this small pool.
Crystal-clear water in all the small pools.
- This is the left white arrow in the previous pic.
10) Left to right: John, Amy
- Red arrow:
• It is the top white arrow in photo #8.
• Also, Amy will be standing over it
in photo #11.
11) The pool here is the red arrow of previous pic.
- Lyndal, Amy, John
12) Lyndal, Amy, John.
- The pool in the front
is the one in the previous pic.
13) Amy ... on the pink rock.
14) May on the pink rock.
- In the background, left to right:
Karen, Lyndal, Amy
15) Lyndal, John.
16) Nice colour !
To the back of Pink Caves
17a, b) Walking towards the back of Pink Caves.
- Upper pic: Ai Ling, Lyndal, John, Amy
- Lower pic: Lyndal, John, Amy
Upper pic: Photo by May
Back of Pink Caves
18) Back of Pink Caves.
- Karen, Lyndal, Paul
Photo by Ai Ling
19) John, May, Karen, Ai Ling, Lyndal, Paul.
Photo by Amy
The other side of Pink Caves
20) Looking across the channel
at the other side of the cave.
Photo by John
21) Looking across the channel
at the other side of the cave.
- John, Lyndal, May
22) Lyndal, John, Karen.
Photo by May
23) May, Karen.
24) Karen.
Looking out from the cave
25) Fantastic colour !
- May
Photo by Karen
26) Karen.
- 2 people on the right of Karen: Ai Ling, Paul
Photo by May
27) Looking out towards the cave entrance.
- Left edge: Amy
- Right: May (further out), Paul, Ai Ling, Karen
Photo by John
28) May, Karen.
Photo by John
29) Amy.
30) Amy, May.
Just outside Pink Caves entrance
31) Ai Ling.
Pink Caves entrance
32) Pink Caves entrance: Middle of the pic.
- Red rectangle: All 7 of us, left to right:
1 Lyndal ... top-left corner
2-6 Ai Ling, May, Karen, Paul, Amy
7 John ... right edge
Photo by John
Climb up the cliffs above Pink Caves
After Pink Caves, to proceed further north,
we need to climb up the cliffs above the cave.
33) This place is just around the corner
to the right of photo #31.
- Amy has a go at the cliff face ...
and showing off 😊
- She probably can climb all the way to the top.
But it is too dangerous for the rest of us.
Refer to photo #34 ...
34) So, Amy climbs back down.
(And we'll go to find an easier way up.)
- Left to right: Amy, May
- This pic is similar to photo #5a ...
Pink Caves entrance is behind
the rock cliffs (left half of this pic)
and to the left of the narrow inlet.
Photo by Karen
Not far south from the above pic
John finds an easier way to climb up the cliff.
Although we need to zigzag up.
35) John finds an easier way to climb up the cliff.
- Left to right: Lyndal, Ai Ling, John
36) From where I was in the previous pic ...
Looking down at the rocky shore.
- Left to right:
Karen, May, Amy
They are behind us, busy taking photos 😊
The rest of the trip report
Under construction 😊
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