The Launch-
Byron Bay was my first stop. It’s the most easterly point of Australia and generally a very chilled out place. Like every sleepy destination that gains fanfare there is a tipping point- once it reaches a certain level of popularity is starts loosing its charm. This is true for place like Tulum in Mexico, Playa Samara in Costa Rica and you can see the writing on the wall for Byron Bay. All these places still have plenty of charm to go around, but with every passing year it looses some authenticity. I spoke to a local that said Byron is dramatically different than it was 5 years ago and is a different place entirely from 10-15 years back. Now a popular weekend beach retreat for anyone along the east coast from Brisbane to to Sydney and everything in between. Not having much of an itinerary before landing that changed pretty quickly once I checked into my hostel and I explored the options. On the hit list were surfing, sky diving, scuba diving and of course a tour to hippie village Nimbin that’s a subculture (twilight zone) all to its own. I booked the skydiving for the following day and put the rest on the back burner.
After settling in I took a walk to the popular Cape Byron Lighthouse where I go my first surprise. I THINK there was a time in Hawaii where I saw one dolphin years ago, but it was uninspiring and obviously not very memorable. On the walk to the lighthouse, whose path hugs the coast the whole way, I looked out and see 2 dolphins breech. Fumbling around to find my camera it becomes quickly apparent that the 2 I saw were only a tiny fraction of a massive school of dolphins. The kept me (and several other onlookers) company for the entire walk and were probably in the 50-60 or more range. They made the already great lighthouse walk into a memorable experience. The weather threw a wrench into my skydiving jump the following day and I adjusted my plans. I moved skydiving to the following day and headed out for a surf lesson. I had only surfed one other time in Maui about 7 years earlier so I never thought the first time back on a board after the knee injury that had me incapacitated for 2 years would be a “surf” board. Thankfully my knee didn’t give me any problems and by the end of the session I was I was getting up regularly and catching waves with confidence. I can definitely see the appeal and how so many people are religiously fanatic about the sport. I hope to continue with it over the next year and try out different spots along the way.
Take 2 on skydiving- just like the movie Groundhogs Day when I get out of bed the next day I looked outside to see the eerily similar weather and headed downstairs to check with the travel desk. Sure enough skydiving would be canceled (again). I walked down the street ran into an old acquaintance from high school who remarked how “That first step is a doozy” when I stepped in a puddle… I readjusted my plans again and booked the Nimbin tour pushing skydiving back (again) to the following day.
The cliff notes version of Nimbin is this- it was a small (somewhat normal) community that sometime in the 60’s hosted a love festival. A group of hippies on a multi day hallucinogenic mind bender decided they liked Nimbin enough to declare it their new home and they just never left. Now in its 3rd generation of the alternative lifestyle hippie culture the community fights the government and protests anti drug movements. Walking around the streets on Nimbin it was apparent there were a ton of locals that traded in “experimenting” with recreational drugs for full blown research some years back. It was also remarkable how many bakers there were in the town and I’d be willing to bet there are more pastries per square foot in Nimbin than any town in France. All of which that included a special, but not so secret ingredient in their recipes. It was definitely a very strange place that an hour is MORE than enough time for, but I’m glad I got the chance to check it out. Take 3 on skydiving- success! The weather has cleared enough and it was going to be on today. One thing an inexperienced skydiver does not want to do is have 3 days to think about it, but it was well worth the wait. I jumped once before in Vegas, but this one was much higher. A 14,000 foot 60 second free fall and the difference was very noticeable. Jumping over the Pacific Ocean also added amazing scenery and perspective. It was truly one of my more memorable experiences to date. The remainder of my time in Byron I spent just chilling out. I spent a lot of time on the beach swimming and working on my tan and when I wasn’t on the beach I was enjoying the incredible street musicians on every other corner. One day sitting in the lobby of Nomads that opens up to the street I hear “SHINDELAR!!”… It wasn’t even 8 hours earlier that i wondered to myself if it when there will be a time that I randomly run into a friend that we didn’t know each other were in the same town/country/continent. Sure enough the very next morning Ryan (aka Mr. Pink) from Vegas recognised my Cubbies shirt and shouted out… We hung out that night and had a few drinks. I also ran into him and his girlfriend a few note times on the beach before they left.
It was great to have an unexpected friend in the area. I was also lucky enough to have some friends (whom I did know were there) come down from around the area and visit. It was great seeing our resident Marquee go-go dancer Steph Cheah, the crazy Irishman and final night wingman Steo Keating and one of the most inspiring people I knew from back home who left Vegas over 4 years ago and has been traveling as a full time philanthropist Amber Brovelli. I also met some great people while I was there that will be shouted out on my next entry..It was great hanging with you all and a great way to start my trip!
Bob
