Mooney Mooney Creek

Location: Mooney Mooney Creek
Length: 6km

This is a very nice paddle - mostly protected from wind due to high ground and/or trees on each side. Also lots of shade from the trees as it was a hot day. The launch point is accessible off the Old Pacific Highway not far down from Somersby, near the bridge.

We launched just north of the old highway bridge and south of the freeway "big dipper" bridg, paddling upstream as far was we could, about 50 minutes at at leisurely pace, then 40 minutes back. Part of the Great North Walk follows the creek here and we had walked this part of the track previously.

Going under the bridge is interesting - seeing it from that perspective.
Along the way we saw some other kayakers, lush ferny groves and tall timbers. Plenty of fish were jumping and we got a real buzz seeing a big (but young?) sea eagle perched in a big old dead tree, watching us closely as we cruised by.

At launch the water looked dirty and uninviting but by the time we reached the "end" it was quite clean and unseasonably warm so we had a refreshing dip and them some morning tea on the rocks. Lots of little fish were swimming around us as we cooled off in the water and they even fed off a few crumbs we threw to them.

 

Wamberal Lagoon

Location: Wamberal Lagoon
Distance: 4.4km

The lagoon is surprisingly large, with a nice feel of remoteness and abundant birdlife. We also explored up Forresters Creek which also surprised us with how far we could paddle up.

Patonga Creek

Location: Patonga
Distance: ~8km return

This has been our favourite trip so far. The creek is relatively narrow compared to other waterways we've been on. There are lots of mangroves but some steep sided parts with beautiful red-gums on the banks. A fair bit of boat traffic and other kayaks but still peaceful. We launched at the end of Meroo Ave and headed upstream until the mangroves closed in. We could have gone further but were happy to turn around and find a nice rock for our morning tea. At the end we went past the packed camping ground and had a look at the mouth of the creek where it meets the Hawkesbury River. It's important to time this trip well with the tides!

Rileys Island (between Woy Woy and Davistown)

Location: Davistown
Distance: ~3km return

We circumnavigated Rileys Island nature reserve anticlockwise with our friends in their new (used/handbuilt) kayak. With a freshening N/E breeze we faced quite a chop on the last leg. The contrast between the island and built up areas in Davistown and St Huberts Island made the trip interesting.

Woy Woy Bay Bay

Location: Woy Woy
Distance: ~5km return

For our second paddle we tried something a little more ambitious, launching at Woy Woy ferry pier (2hr parking!) then under Spike Milligan bridge into Woy Woy bay. The bay was much bigger than it looked on the map. It was quite pleasant but the headwind on the return leg was challenging.