Day 4 Thursday 11/6/2026 Moss Vale to Stockton, 14 – 20

We wake to clear blue skies and a lightly crisp morning. Not having been away since Xmas it’s surprising how quickly we slip back into the packing and unpacking routine of caravan life.

We have a quick pit stop at the Pheasants Nest servo, the last before the start of the motorway. The changes for Sydney’s 2nd airport are visible, roads are going hither and thither. I only wish it had been open back in my working days. There’s a $15 toll for the North Connex tunnel but worth every cent for us caravanners as it links the motorway with the Newcastle Expressway. No more squeezing through suburban traffic. Sliding off the expressway at Mooney rest area on the north shore of the Hawkesbury River we change drivers. The Newcastle Expressway is in poor condition, not potholed but the mixture of tar and concrete patches causes it to feel like driving on outback corrugations. This sort of bouncing and shaking will test any good bra and just happens to dislodge the fascia from our fridge!

Norfolk pine fringed NRMA Stockton Beach Holiday Park is a favourite of ours for many reasons. It’s both on the beach and the Hunter River and only a 5 minute ferry ride from the city of Newcastle. It’s a peaceful spot with a delightful breakwater walk and for ship lovers there is constant activity on the Hunter.

As we setup and clean the van, we listen to the sound of ship horns as they enter the river and make their way up to the coal wharves. And that coal is the Hunter Valley coal from the many mines that we passed on last winter’s trip.

Woody goes off walking to get his bearings and to sample the beer at the General Washington pub. I wander along the beach and walk the length of the Shipwreck Walk breakwater. The breakwater was built on the wrecks of the many ships that had foundered on the hazard once known as Oyster Bank. Many of the rocks have become memorials to loved ones, making it a walk of mixed emotions. It’s late afternoon and the walkway is busy with walkers, and fisherfolk throwing a line after the working day. With fishing and surfing, this city certainly has a good work life balance. Looking to the north the Stockton Dunes can be seen. They are the second largest moving dune system in the southern hemisphere.

We finish off the moussaka for dinner. It’s good to be back here.

Accom: $38.00 (4 for 3 deal)

Fuel: $42.10 (2.039) 20.65litres

Towing Kms: 299kms