Seventeen Seventy Rediscovered

The last time I visited the town Seventeen Seventy was back in 1983. Then the road in was probably the worst I have ever encountered. Nothing but ruts and pot holes on a dirt road for hours. How times have changed, it is a popular seaside town and there is a nice bitumen road in.
Seventeen seventy is named as such because it was the second landing James Cook and his shipmates made in Australia. There is a walk around the headland, a marina with associated cafe and tourism facilities and a nice national park nearby.
I met up with some old buddies I hadn't seen since I was in my twenties. They, like me are enjoying semi-retirement and getting out in their van.
I found a reasonably priced campground, on the main road just between Agnes Water and Seventeen Seventy. The owner was a keen scholar of bush food. For a small fee he passed on his knowledge and treated us to a bush food tasting.
In the bush I would be hopeless surviving. I am in an environment where I am completely ignorant of what is in the larder. I love getting the opportunity to learn and fill in that missing knowledge.
I stayed there a couple of days. It was good to wash my clothes, shower and bring myself to some semblance of civility. Then I relocated to the national park. There are some lovely sites by the river. The road in, though sandy and having a few ruts was within my van's capability.
A couple of campers had a bit of an issue with a broken axle. Luckily, town wasn't so far away and a guy with a portable welder was able to repair it.
I went for a paddle in the packraft along the river both in town and in the national park. The currents are very strong here so I had to be careful to read the tide charts and keep close to the shore. Last thing I wanted was to drift out to the open ocean or be blown afar into an area where I would find it difficult to return from.
I loved this area. Both the town and national park are great places to visit. I would have enjoyed staying here longer, but the rain gods cuased me to change my mind. Looking at the rain maps, far north was the place to head.

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