We’ve had a wonderful stay here at Pyengana, though those first few days of wind and rain certainly tried to blow us away. It makes you appreciate the calm when it finally arrives, and the last two days have been absolutely perfect. On our final morning, we stood outside just taking in the quiet. The sky was a brilliant blue with these long, wispy clouds stretching out over the hills, and for a moment, we both felt a real tug at our hearts about moving on. It’s funny how a place can grow on you like that; we really didn’t want to leave those green pastures behind.
As we made our way toward St Helens, we spotted a place called The Shop in the Bush. It’s a classic weatherboard building that looks like it’s been there forever, tucked right into the trees. We couldn’t resist pulling over for a bit of a fossick.
Inside, it was a real treasure trove. There were shelves upon shelves of beautiful old china and antiques. Lisa spent ages admiring the patterns and the history of it all, while Steve was mostly making sure we didn’t accidentally bump into any of the more delicate displays! We decided we didn't have quite enough room for a full dinner service in the van, so Lisa settled on a lovely Tasmania tea towel to remember the stop.
Coming down from the mountains to the ocean always feels like a bit of a shift, and we couldn’t have asked for a better day to see the coast. We had a look at a few of the popular camping spots like Cosy Corner North and South, but they were completely full. We decided to take a punt on Swimcart Beach and managed to snag a spot, but it wasn't meant to be at first. The ground was on such a steep hill that Steve just couldn't get us level front-to-back, no matter how much we fiddled with it.
We decided to unhitch and have a drive along the beachfront, mostly just to see the sights since we didn't think we'd find anything else. Then, in a stroke of pure luck, we ran right into Mickey and Rochelle—they’re the son and daughter-in-law of our friends Ray and Sharlene. It really is a small world, isn't it? They had a spot right near them that was much flatter and had plenty of room. We zoomed back, hooked up the van, and moved into our new home by the sea. Looking out at that crystal-clear water and the orange lichen on the rocks, we knew we’d ended up exactly where we were supposed to be.
