Yesterday in Sydney, a fire just north of the city closed down the F3 Freeway, the Pacific Highway and the rail line to Newcastle for about 5 hours. Hence anyone living north of Hornsby (as I do) was going to have trouble getting home. When I found out about the rail closure (as I commute by train from Gosford most days), I remembered that ferries run from Palm Beach to Ettalong. Given that there was no estimate when the lines and roads would re-open I hightailed it to Palm Beach. As did quite a few other people as the picture below shows.
I was standing on the wharf by this stage about to board a ferry. I had been waiting an hour so, for me, it wasn’t too bad. But the picture shows that the queue had grown considerably by then. Also note the jet ski on the right. As I got off the bus to stand in the line, a chap was stating that his mate was going to give him a lift home and would be arriving real soon. It seems that there was an impression by a few others that the mode of transport would be a tinny. Not the best vessel for the crossing to Ettalong but it would get you there.
This mixture of Aussie mateship and ingenuity also allowed some entrepreneurial opportunities to be negotiated. A seat was offered to someone for “20 bucks just to cover petrol, mate” and the queue was avoided.
Unfortunately, his mate was late and it wasn’t a tinny but a jet ski (the one in the picture) that showed up. Observing from the wharf, there seemed some animated discussion about what to do. But in the grand spirit of adventure and the Aussie tradition of “she’ll be right, mate” it seemed that one bloke would sit behind the driver with the other kneeling down at the back with a backpack. With that settled, our intrepid, ingenious, entrepreneurial, knockabout nautical adventurers set off.
And if you look carefully at the photo above, you can see how one of the lads is clinging to the side of the jet ski after falling off just moments into their epic voyage (accompanied by much merriment from the crowd on the wharf – laughing with the chaps mind you). The photo also shows some who decided on a slightly more accommodating and sea worthy craft.
Alas I did not get a chance to witness if they tried again. A ferry had arrived and it was time for boarding and a quite scenic voyage to Ettalong. Considering the inconvenience for many of my fellow travellers, the crowd during the wait were good natured and relaxed. Of course the inconvenience was put into perspective by the more serious matters happening just across the bay and a few ridges away and tempered by that it wasn’t actually a bad day to be going for a ferry ride.
Did you have to catch the bus to Palm beach? That’s a 2 hour trip in itself. Better than not getitng home at all I guess. Anyway its a good story.
By the time I got to Wynard, they were running direct buses so it was about an hour trip. They were telling us three hour delays at the wharf but they were running at least three ferries so that helped move the crowd.
It was about 2 1/2 hours to get home in the end but quite pleasant considering.
Of course the terra firma alternative would have been up the Windsor Road to Pitt Town then head north to Wiseman’s Ferry, St Albans, Buckety (35km of gravel) then turn south to Kulnurra, Yarramalong Valley, Wyong and Gosford. Roughly a 100km outflanking the fire exercise. OK if you can decide on it before you get stuck in the F3 traffic jam.
Then again if you’re wheel-less there’s a cessna on pontoons sitting in Rose Bay ready for hire.