JC Travels
August 4, 2024
Byron Bay  ·  New South Wales
Byron Bay — Cape Byron coastline
Week 551  ·  Byron Bay  ·  New South Wales  ·  Most Eastern Point of Australia

Byron
Bay

I had a business trip to Brisbane, so we flew to "Brissy" the prior Friday and drove a couple of hours south to Byron Bay for the weekend. Byron Bay is past the Gold Coast and is across the Queensland border in the state of New South Wales — and worth the extra hour drive.

Byron Bay has the reputation to be the place where the rich and famous go — it is, but it's very understated with no high rises or new malls. Pretty much a perfect beach that faces north away from the straight line waves of the Pacific.

Whale Watching

15–20 Whales in Two Hours

We had a couple of choices of things to do — settled on a whale watching tour as it was still pretty chilly and snorkeling or going in the ocean was more energy than we wanted to expend. It is also the whale migration season so the chances of seeing one seemed high. The trip worked well — we saw whales about 10 minutes into the trip and over the course of a couple of hours saw 15–20 whales, including a couple in a fight over territory. Great sunny morning as well.

Whale watching Byron Bay Whale watching Byron Bay
Lennox Heads from the whale watching boat
Whale watching from Ballina  ·  Lennox Heads in the distance
Byron Bay Beach & Cape Byron Lighthouse

The Most Eastern Point of Australia

Finished the day at the beach and hiked up to the lighthouse which overlooked the Pacific proper on the most eastern point of Australia. Saw whales from the shore — lots of them moving north up the coast — and saw a pod of dolphins surfing from the cliffs above.

Byron Bay beach looking towards Cape Byron lighthouse
Lennox Heads Byron Bay beach looking north
Top of Cape Byron looking south over Arakwal National Park
Cape Byron — most eastern point of Australia Cape Byron looking north to Byron Bay
Town of Byron Bay — very low key
Lennox Heads  ·  Byron Bay beach looking north  ·  Top of Cape Byron looking south  ·  Cape Byron — most eastern point of Australia
Whales from Cape Byron Dolphins surfing from the cliffs at Cape Byron
Whales from Cape Byron  ·  Dolphins surfing from the cliffs above

"Byron Bay has the reputation to be the place where the rich and famous go — it is, but it's very understated. No high rises, no new malls. Pretty much a perfect beach."

Overlooking exclusive area with $10m plus houses Cloudy and clear night in Byron Bay
Overlooking the exclusive area — $10m+ houses  ·  Byron Bay at night
Sunday — Cabarita Beach

Sunday was a bit of a washout with rain most of the day — we worked our way up the coast exploring the different beach cities like Cabarita Beach before meeting a friend in Brisbane for dinner.

Cabarita Beach NSW Cabarita Beach NSW
Cabarita Beach NSW
Cabarita Beach — working up the coast on a rainy Sunday
Byron BayNew South WalesWhale WatchingCape ByronAustralia
Week 551  ·  August 4, 2024