Day 7 Thursday June 12^th 2014 Stockton

It was a warm night but now overcast. We caught the ferry across the Hunter River to Newcastle. What a bargain $2.50 for an all day ferry and bus pass and it takes less than 5 minutes to cross the river. It seems that this is a lifestyle for the locals as they pop on and off oblivious to our delight. We walk up to our regular coffee haunt Sprocket for a caffeine fix and more beans. Our day is to be spent chasing our needs so it throws up some interesting sights. We need a supermarket and the nearest is in Newcastle West, thanks to Google Maps we’re off along King Street and we spot an interesting hilly garden. Up the stairs we go. It is the old churchyard of the Christ Church Cathedral and each step has the inscription of a long gone tombstone recalling some unusual deaths “Killed accidentally by musket” and “Illegitimate, drowned”. The cathedral is quite imposing and we’re lured in by organ music. The Reverend David Campbell takes us on a tour of the nooks and crannies of the church. He is an Irish Presbyterian minister but along with his own St Andrews church his role is that of duty chaplain at the cathedral. A fascinating man with a lilting accent who has lived his life back and forth between Australia and Northern Ireland and who has a passion for politics we spend half an hour or more with him.

We clamber down the steep streets and stairs admiring the two and three storey homes that cling to the hillside overlooking the city river and beaches beyond. This city has so much to offer. The supermarket chores done we go in search of the fish co-op in Wickham another long walk but we sit in the sun and eat fish and chips on the wharf watching the fishing trawlers and yachts. The fish is excellent. Footsore we limp back along the waterfront stopping at the converted wharf shed that is now the Honeysuckle Hotel for a cold beer. The walk to the ferry is more of a hobble as our feet are now complaining bitterly. In all we cover about 11kms.

Travelling Kms: 0Kms