November 2, 2023		INDEX
Click for next image		Time Out describes Bilgola Rockpool as a hidden gem and it is certainly that. It is in a secluded bay only accessible by road in theory. The connection is the Serpentine Road but like many a snake the Serpentine is well hidden. To get to it from Newport you have to travel along a fairly major road with no pavements. Not a good idea. But there is another way from the almost equally spectacular Newport Beach. Strangely you have to climb a lot of steps to get to the Bilgola Beach. This is because the connection crosses a rocky headway, or cliffs. But first things first. I used Google to find a route to Bilgola and followed this fairly successfully until it came to getting off the final bus. On and on we went but I had no clue where to get off. I made the mistake of asking some of my fellow passengers, who helpfully told me they had never heard of it: except one who directed me to Balgowlah. Similarly named but in the opposite direction. Having discovered this was an error I tried to re-trace the route but somehow I'd lost faith in my Google directions. Luckily I did find people who seemed to know where Bilgola is but I was assured that (a) it was too far to walk (it isn't) (b) there's nothing there (c) the swimming pool I was seeking doesn't exist (it does) and (d) the reason why there are places called Balgowlah and Bilgola in the same area was to fool the tourists (that one was correct). All good fun really since the one way to get me to do a thing is to tell me I can't do it, and it worked. I climbed the steps through some wonderful greenery like something out of Kew Gardens and found a very pleasant beach complete with a coffee stand and a rather nice pool.
INDEX Jonathan Brind	November 2, 2023