New South Wales - Australia 2004 - page 213

Huskisson; it's open daily from 9am to 4pm. Hyams Beach Store ( & 02/4443
0242 ) has an accommodations guide listing 34 rental properties from A$100
(US$65) a weekend.
SEEING THE AREA
If you want to see the best spots, you'll need to pay the rather extortionate park-
entrance fee of A$10 (US$6.50) a day. Some of the places you could visit
include Hyams Beach , reputed to have the whitest sand in the world. Notice
how it squeaks when you walk on it. Wear sunscreen! The reflection off the
beach can burn your skin in minutes on a sunny day. Hole in the Wall Beach
has interesting rock formations and a lingering smell of natural sulfur. Summer
Cloud Bay is secluded and offers excellent fishing.
Dolphin Watch Cruises, 74 Owen St., Huskisson ( & 1800/246 010 in Aus-
tralia, or 02/4441 6311; www.dolphinwatch.com.au), runs a hardy vessel out of
Huskisson on the lookout for the resident pod of bottlenose dolphins—you have
“more than a 95% chance of seeing them,” the company claims. A 2-hour coffee
cruise runs at 10am on Saturdays and Sundays, public holidays, and school hol-
idays, and costs A$20 (US$13) for adults and A$10 (US$6.50) for children. A
2 1 ⁄ 2 -hour dolphin watch and bay cruise leaves at 1pm and costs A$25 (US$16)
for adults and A$12 (US$7.80) for children. It's possible to see humpback and
southern right whales June to July and mid-September to mid-November. A 3-
hour whale-watch cruise costs A$40 (US$26) for adults and A$30 (US$20) for
children.
WHERE TO STAY & DINE
If you have a tent and camping gear, all the better. Caves Beach is a quiet spot
(except when the birds chorus at dawn) located just a stroll away from a good
beach; it's home to resident eastern gray kangaroos. A campsite here costs A$8
(US$5.20) per tent in winter and A$10 (US$6.50) in summer and on public
holidays, though at press time moves were afoot to increase prices. It's about a
250m (about 1 ⁄ 10 -mile) walk from the car park to the campground. Greenpatch
is more dirt than grass, but you get your own area and it's suitable for motor
homes. It's infested with overfriendly possums around dusk. A camp spot here
costs A$13 (US$8.45) in winter and A$16 (US$10) in summer.
For supplies, head to the area's main towns, Huskisson (pop. 930) and Vin-
centia (pop. 2,350). The Huskisson RSL Club, overlooking the wharf area on
Owen Street ( & 02/4441 5282 ), has a good bistro and a bar. You'll have to sign
in inside the main entrance. The Huskissson Hotel (also called the “Husskie
Pub”) is just down the road and has a nice beer garden and cheapish meals at
lunchtime.
Huskisson Beach Tourist Resort This resort is the very pinnacle of cabin
accommodations on this part of the east coast. Cabins vary in price depending
on size, but even the smallest has room enough for a double bed, triple bunks,
and a small kitchen with microwave. Larger cabins have two separate bedrooms.
There's a game room and barbecue facilities on the grounds.
Beach St., Huskisson, Jervis Bay, NSW 2540. & and fax [phone] units. Fri-Sat A$75-A$105
(US$49-US$68) cabin; Sun-Thurs A$60-A$95 (US$39-US$62) cabin. DC, MC, V. Amenities: Small heated
outdoor pool; lighted tennis court; coin-op laundry; nonsmoking rooms. In room: TV, kitchen, fridge, cof-
feemaker, hair dryer, iron.
Jervis Bay Guest House After the Jervis Bay Hotel, take the second road
to the left—Nowra Street—and follow it to the end. This relatively new guest-
house has four distinctly different rooms (different color schemes, beds, and so