Kiama Blowhole

You can certainly say cheese on NSW's South Coast, home of cheese towns Bega and Bodalla, but there is much more in the region to put a smile on your face.

Tucked beneath the Illawarra, Shellharbour has a fine oceanfront cafe strip and south of the village of Bass Point, Bushrangers Bay is a marine
aquatic reserve with diving and snorkeling on an underwater cliff face with hundreds of cavities harbouring fish.

Kiama has its beaches and famous blowhole, and next to the visitor's centre the Pilot's Cottage Museum, telling the story of the town's past, while the Princess Highway will take you to Saddleback Mountain's magnificent lookout.

Minnamurra rainforest is just inland from Kiama and from the Rainforest Centre there's a 1.6km elevated boardwalk that crosses Minnamurra Creek and opens up the 400-hectare rainforest, and you can take two hour return walk to Minnamurra Falls. While visiting the rainforest, make a stop at the village of Jamberoo, home of Jamberoo Action Park.

Not far from Kiama is Crooked River Winery, then further south Gerringong, Seven-mile Beach, Shoalhaven Heads and the dairy farms of Eurododalla before you hit the Sapphire Coast.

The sweep of the Shoalhaven takes in Nowra, with its Fleet Air Arm Museum displaying military aircraft, and Jervis Bay, where Hyams Beach is one of the whitest sand beaches in the world and the bay's dolphin's can be seen on a dolphin watching cruise from Huskisson.

Inland from Nowra on the Shoalhaven River is Bundanon the former home of painter Arthur Boyd. who gave the property to the nation in 1995. On Sundays his house and grounds, studio and a collection of his work are open.

At Ulladulla the Princess Highway passes the town harbour and fishing fleet, the perfect place to stop for some fish and chips.

Between Ulladulla and Batemans Bay the Muramarang National Park offers coastal camping and to the west of Ulladulla, Pigeon House Mountain, named by Captain Cook in 1770, is a local landmark that is possible to climb, although it is a very difficult scramble towards the top of the 70 metre peak.

South of Ulladulla is the Eurobodalla region where the Clyde the cleanest of the major rivers on the east coast flows to the sea of Batemans Bay.

Seals on Montague IslandMontague Island is just nine kilometers off Narooma and is managed by the NSW National Parks and Wildlife Service, which takes tours to the island to see the state's biggest colonies of Australian and New Zealand fur seals, a large colony of Little Penguins and a variety of birds.

Mogo, just south of Batemans Bay, is a one time gold mining village that now houses galleries, craft shops and cafes. Old Mogo Town is the recreation of a 19th century gold rush village while Mogo Zoo is dedicated to the preservation of endangered species.

The Sapphire Coast has Bega within its borders, the historic cheese-making town that houses the Bega Cheese Heritage Centre.

On the coast, Tathra has a wide surf beach and historic sea wharf, and just to its north is Mimosa Rocks National Park, a coastal strip of sea caves and rock stacks surrounded by sea.

Merimbula spreads around the Mouth of the Merimbula River, while further south Eden is famous for its killer whales.

Must Do and See

Visit Green Cape light station (near Eden) in the ben Boyd National Park, the first cast concrete lighthouse tower in Australia (link). Green Cape Lighthouse
Stop in at the Bega Cheese Heritage Centre, where you can taste the different varieties of the famous Bega Cheese, see the cheese-making production process and take home any or all of the Bega products
www.begacheese.com.au
Get drenched in the sea spray at the Kiama Blowhole, which can spurt water up to 60 metres in the air, Little Blowhole, off Tingira Crescent, also provides spectacular sprays of water.
Kids will love Jamberoo Action Park, the largest recreational theme park in NSW www.jamberoo.net
See the white sands of Hyams Beach