Bright + Byron Bay 2026

Bright to Mount Buffalo

We climbed Mount Buffalo today, electrically assisted of course. Plenty of great lookouts along the way. I think it’s over a 1 km climb in altitude. The snow has melted, but it was still 4°C in the late afternoon. Barely any cars around, apart from us.

EV charging is getting cheaper, while petrol prices increase

After a picturesque day exploring Mount Buffalo, I picked up dinner from Mimi’s Tuck Shop in Bright. While parked, I plugged the car in to charge, opportunistically. I happened to glance at my iPhone to see that my EV charging is now cheaper, while oil prices continue to increase. The price to charge at the Tesla supercharger is now 43c/kWh. I recall it being above 60c/kWh. So, it has dropped significantly in the past year. The price of wholesale electricity in general has dropped, due to renewables in the grid. I know that first hand since my energy retailer, Amber Electric, passes on wholesale pricing for my home electricity. Of course, at home, I charge mainly from free solar hitting my roof, but that’s another story.

Bye bye Bright

Laundry packed into the frunk. Great to see electric service vehicles in the BIG4 Tasman Holiday Park. No noise and smell. Heading north again, probably stopping in Holbrook for lunch.

Bright to Holbrook, with FSD interventions

We don’t really plan our day’s trip ahead. We hopped in the car this morning in Bright, entered our destination for tomorrow as Budgewoi, and let the car decide the route. It decided that we’d stop at Holbrook and (I think) Goulburn, to charge along the way. The route seemed picturesque on the map, so we followed along. The views did not disappoint, but no photos of the scenery this time through, sorry. Parked the car at Holbrook. Our windscreen shade got its first use this warming season. I have the car set to keep the car at below 35°C so the snacks don’t perish. And the fridge in the sub-trunk keeps the cold food chilled. Lunch a block away at The Ten Mile Cafe.

Yass Superchargers, in search of services

Our Tesla was planning for us to stop next in Goulburn, but we weren’t going to make it. Unfortunately, the trip planner doesn’t factor in the human bladder. We told it to stop in Yass, at the Tesla Superchargers. There doesn’t seem to be a nearby public toilet, so we ducked into the pub next door. EV chargers don’t generally have services like windscreen squeegees or air hoses, which is a shame. Fortunately, we carry both with us, so we cleared a layer of bugs off the windshield. Back on the road, past the wind turbines that gave us the power.

Bargain motel in Marulan

For an overnight stop on a road trip, it’s hard to beat a motel. We won’t be staying long enough to take in the sights. We just need a clean room, comfy bed and a warm shower. Marulan Motor Inn delivered all that for $103. Friendly staff. Walk across to the restaurant for dinner, or next door for fast food like KFC (I resisted). The sink did fail the tall water bottle tap test, however 😉. I didn’t notice, until after I parked, the sign requesting guests park front in. I suspect that’s to prevent rooms filling with exhaust fumes, which of course our EV doesn’t do. Next morning, I assigned some work tasks to Claude AI on my laptop, and left it running on the backseat in the car, plugged into USB power, as we ventured out again along the highway.

Bankstown Superchargers

Quick stop in Bankstown to use the amenities. Then on towards the Hunter Valley, passing an all electric Woolworths delivery truck and an all electric Porsch Taycan. Opposite ends of the vehicle spectrum coming together.

Northern Central Coast

Hopping between Tuggerah, Budgewoi and our accommodation in Norah Head. Great to see Amber and her new (used) Tesla Model Y.

Norah Head Lighthouse

Heading off from Norah Head, our accommodation for the past three nights. Beautiful flat in a home, complete with an electric Weber BBQ like ours at home. Lunch yesterday with Mum at the Cessnock Leagues Club, after doing a conga line at the front steps. Nice place, but the Keno (?) announcements are too noisy for conversations. Brekky at Norah Head Beach Haus, followed by a photo with the lighthouse. Car packed with a portable cot for our new grandbaby, at our next stop in Thornton, near Newcastle. We noticed that the Hexham bypass is finished – looking good.

Solar shade canopy charges the car

Raymond Terrace has become a favourite stop on our trips north. Plenty of amenities such as food outlets, and plenty of Tesla superchargers. The parking spots are nicely shaded, and that shade is from solar panels that of course help to charge the cars. It seems like such as simple solution to fuel up and provide shade at the same time. After having some lunch in the shopping centre, we returned to the car, to do some work and admin on our laptops, plugged into the car’s USB ports, indirectly charging from the solar panels. Did I mention the solar panels?

Over 200 km streak of self driving, all the way to parking at the EV charger

Just plug in, because you never know.

Nearing the end of today’s driving, we pulled off the highway to visit the town of Urunga. A walk along the waterfront to the iconic boardwalk. We have walked it before, but not today. Bellies beckoned, so I grabbed some “emergency shoes” from the frunk so we could get into the local pub for dinner. We did our usual trick of ordering one meal to share, and were glad we did when we saw the size of it. And, of course, the pub cat found Francis.

Valla Beach and The Big Thong

Checking out The Big Thong at Valla Beach. As you might expect, there is actually a pair of “thongs”, but different designs. I wonder if “Big Thong” actually refers to the shape of the inlet/lagoon. Enticing blue water, with a strong current in places. We sat for a while to chill, but didn’t dare get out any snacks, given the kookaburra warnings, backed up by a keen eyed feathered hunter who followed us around. Last night we stayed at nearby “The Bungalow”, a converted garage. Beautifully done, backing onto a nature reserve, which sometimes has kangaroos, but not today.

Banana fritter and a Tesla test drive

We’ve passed The Big Banana many times, but this was the first time I’ve stopped there. It’s grown over the years to include a toboggan ride, water slides, ice skating, laser tag and a lot more. But we’re far too sophisticated for all that 😉. All I could think about in the drive up was getting a banana split, which changed to a banana fritter and banana smoothie when we reached the important decision at the counter of Bananas Cafe. In the car park, I noticed a Tesla Model 3 and Y with a QR code on the side, and a label “Self-Serve Test Drive”. It seems that you can just walk up to it, scan the bar code, and take the EV for a test drive. Clever idea, since I guess many people see the EVs parked at the superchargers and wonder what it would be like to drive one. Years ago, I think we first saw EVs charging at the chargers behind Olivers in Gundagai and wondered the same. A couple of years later we took a Tesla for a test drive, and were so impressed that we ordered one on the spot.

Please turn off your engine while parked

On the trip up to Byron Bay, we ordered ahead groceries from Woolworths. We followed Woolworths instructions, which ask us to park in the “Direct to Boot” bays, turn off our engine and message to say “I’m here”. The car park is underground, and mostly sealed, so exhaust fumes have few escape routes, including the lungs of shoppers and staff. We waited quite a while, which is fine – I’m just grateful that they bring the shopping to our boot – a godsend after a long drive. The big SUV in the waiting bay next to us just kept their engine running. Eventually, I put on my best friendly voice and asked them to turn off their engine. I pointed out that Woollies asks us to do that, and all their exhaust was just filling the confined area, including going back through their own car’s open hatch to their child in the back seat. They gave some mumbled acknowledgement “oh yeah”, hopped back into the car, closed the hatch, but kept their #%£* engine running. I just don’t understand how oblivious…

Free parking in Byron, with EV charging

September 16 - 17: A few visits into town and beaches while we stayed in Byron. Fran sent Tom on a quest to buy her a pair of thongs, even though he’s not a shoe person. He got lost in Barefoot Boulevard. Lunch at That Crepe Shop, whilst laughing at the coffee/decaf bag labelling.

Dusk at Urunga

Cabin with an EV charger

September 15 - 20: Our home for the week: a cabin 15 minutes walk from the beach, complete with an EV charger in the carport. Our visiting (now local) daughter Erin, and her friends Keke and Sienna kept the pace lively. Ingenia Holiday Parks Byron Bay has cabins, powered sites, camping, camp kitchen, cafe (coffee!) pool, in a beautiful setting of grass and subtropical trees. The staff are friendly, offering to replenish any supplies as they zip around on their service buggies, which are fully electric, with a noticeable absence of noise and fumes as they move around the park. At least one of the staff, I suspect the manager, has a n EV. It’s a black Tesla labeled “Lola”, often parked at reception. The reception parking area includes two EV charging spots with destination chargers.

Byron Hinterland day trip

How to plan a day trip? Open the map on the Tesla screen. Tap Lismore. Tap Bangalow. What else? Zoom in along the route. Tap some random lookouts. Tap Federal, and anything else along the way that looks interesting. Off we go. Pie in the park in Bangalow. Drove through the plains around Lismore. Several homes still wrecked, reconstructing or marked for relocation after the floods 😞. Beautiful drive back through the hinterland. Many stalls on the side of the road selling produce, like we see at home around Emerald Victoria. We stumbled across one selling baked goods, so we had to take a look. “The Loose Goose” beckoned us to buy a couple for later. I was relieved that the “falling nuts” sign was not a dietary health warning. Driving on, “the Minyon Falls” appeared as a nearby attraction, so we tapped that pin too. Beautiful backdrop to eat our cherry/choc treats. We love these random exploration days. Back to Ingenia Holiday Parks, Byron Bay, splitting a burger for dinner at the Tallow…

On the lookout for lookouts, Ballina to Evan’s Head

Checkout from Ingenia Holiday Parks, Byron Bay, after brekky at the on site Tallow Cafe. We roughly followed the road south towards Evan’s Head, tapping a few lookouts on the Tesla’s navigation and choosing “Add to trip”. Beautiful day for sightseeing, including from the paragliders launching off the cliff. We chose Evan’s Head, so Fran could visit Muzza's Milk Bar, and experience lolly heaven. Unfortunately, a growing migraine meant that we only got to drive past it. Sadness ensued.

New Italy is new for us

We’ve passed the turn off to New Italy several times over the years, on our trips up and down the east coast of Australia. Great to see that the signage now shows EV charging. We finally pulled in there today for a rest stop. It’s a beautiful place, with picnic tables, trees, grass, toilet block, cafe, gift shop, museum, and a bank of v4 Tesla superchargers. It offers overnight stops (in vehicle), for $15 per night. We couldn’t stay long, since Francis's migraine started to kick in. We might drop by next time for lunch. Back in Evan’s Head, I used the last of our water for drinking and topping up the window washing fluid, since the screen had started warning that we were getting low. I figured we’d restock in New Italy. Unfortunately, there is no drinkable water available, just tank water. I don’t like travelling without any water, so I bought a bottle of bottled water, for the first time in years. Lesson learned.

Emergency stop in Maclean

Today’s plan was to go inland on the way back south from Byron Bay, to visit an old friend in Guyra. But, we never quite made it. This morning, Francis woke with a headache (not Tom) which gradually developed into a migraine, during our journey south. In Ballina, Fran had a coffee, hoping the caffein would relieve a migraine, since it helps dilate blood vessels and – yeah, for real (or so she tells me). In Evans Head at noon, she took some aspirin, but that came back up. We tried walking it off, getting cool air, fresh air, reduced light, all the things, but it wasn’t getting better. Half an hour later, stopping further south in New Italy, we decided we needed some medical intervention. We headed south to the Maclean District Hospital-ER. We pulled into the emergency bay, and were fortunately the only ones in the waiting room. The staff quickly triaged and treated her. A couple of under the tongue pills for migraine and nausea. But the migraine persisted. So, then an injection of…

A motel charging EVs from its own power plant

When our plans changed yesterday, we fronted up to the Waterview Motel, Maclean. It’s simple accommodation, right near town, perfect for an overnight stay on the way along the coast. We’ve been here before, and had the time to take a peaceful walk along the levee bank across the road that keeps the town safe from the Clarence River. Like last time we stayed, I walked ten minutes down the road to get some takeaway dinner from Peking Chinese Restaurant McLean. Fried rice and satayed vegetables hit the spot. A double room on Booking.com listed for $145. But it was only $130 direct. Jeremy and Joy have run this place for nearly four years. Lovely people. He regularly posts on the socials about the motel, improvements and staff. They had some storm damage to the roof that necessitated temporarily removing the solar panels. The tap just passed the tall water bottle test. I nearly failed the get power cord out of the jug handle test. We filled up the water bottles. We filled the car's washer…

Following the Clarence River, from Maclean

We grabbed a few photos at Maclean Lookout and Pinnacles. We shared the view of the Clarence River with a local wallaby (under the step descent sign, in the photo). A smoke haze covered the horizon in one direction. A quick stop by the river at the small but pretty town of Ulmarra, testing the accuracy of the Tesla’s reversing camera. Next: over the Great Dividing Range, to Guyra and Armidale.

Can’t be fusspots when there’s only one option

“I’m hungry,” says Fran. “Let’s stop for lunch soon.” “Sure, we’ll stop at the next town.” I promised. Turns out, the next town was a long way ahead, up and over the Great Dividing Range. Fusspots Cafe at Ebor was the only spot for lunch, so we couldn’t really be fusspots. It was perfect. The staff kindly made us a couple of salad and cheese rolls, which we took to the picnic area at the nearby Ebor Falls, just off Waterfall Way. Topped off with some ginger beer from our car fridge. The driver next to us lifted out a couple of her new kids. And by kids, I mean literal kids – young goats. You just never know who you’ll meet on the road. Next: Guyra.

A power point in NSW highest town

On our way south, we diverted west across the ranges to Guyra, to pop in to see an old friend. Guyra is the highest town in NSW. It snowed here a few weeks ago, but today it’s 24°C. Daniel says the maximum here is about 30°C. His home is heritage listed. The rooms include the old sergeant’s quarters, and a gaol cell, which is appropriately Daniel’s room. To protect the heritage frontage, he has installed solar panels on the rear of the roof, along with a battery. Loki reluctantly said hi, and Gizmo tested the Tesla’s front camera. 😼 Daniel used to skipper the ferry from Saratoga, which began and ended Tom’s commute into Sydney. They exchanged dad jokes between wharves. No EV charges in Guyra, but that will change, if Daniel has his way. He’s trying to get fast chargers installed in town, to bring in more visitors. He advises the Armidale region council on transport issues. We put in our requests, including: near toilets, near something interesting or shops, and shade. Tick, tick,…

Motel room with a free tank of fuel!

We checked into the Armidale Inn for the night for $130. That includes a free tank of fuel – well, technically a full battery charge, and morning continental breakfast. We rolled into Armidale, after driving from Maclean, up onto the Great Dividing Range, through Ebor and Guyra. Armidale is Australia’s highest city, at 980 metres. Maclean, where we started the day, is barely above sea level, so the car spent a lot more energy than usual getting us up here. Nice motel, in a row of motels. Set far enough back from the road to not be noisy. We arrived just before sunset, with the sun blinding us as we drove up next to reception. This is another motel that asks drivers to not reverse their exhausts facing the rooms. Apple Maps showed the nearest place for dinner was the Deer Park Motor Inn, just 100m away. We walked into the restaurant as the only customers. The staff were a bit apologetic about the limited offerings, but we were just grateful to sit and chill with a cooked meal. Back at…

Following a log truck, knowing our final destination

We took Thunderbolts Way from Armidale, starting with blue sky and green paddocks up on the tablelands. Down off the Great Dividing Range to Gloucester, it was a captivatingly beautiful drive, with lots of contrast. As the road dropped into the forest, the mist rolled in. We crossed a few river bridges, and stopped by some to stretch our legs. We followed a log truck around the wet bends for a while, trying not to imagine the opening scene from Final Destination 2. Stopped for lunch in Gloucester. Bought pies from a local bakery, one known for being less than friendly. We met up with our daughter Amber and her friend since primary school, Kayla, at Kayla’s home, along with her 18-month-old triplets and her Maremma sheepdog, Kimbo. Kimbo is as tall as the triplets, and literally watches over them. He likes stealing their dummies, and gives the side eye when asked to give them up. Amber and Fran gave him plenty of pats, and we spent a couple of hours catching up before heading south…

No Thai, but still a free charge

From Gloucester, we headed south towards the coast, and our destination for the next few nights, a villa in Erina. We stopped in Raymond Terrace just long enough to use the amenities and reply to some messages. Then Erina Fair, for some takeaway rice paper rolls and a few items at Coles. Our old favourite Thai Thyme Express was sadly gone. We lived on the Central Coast until three years ago, when we sold up and set off road tripping, so Erina Fair is familiar territory.

Mist on Thunderbolts Way

Umina Beach, facing a fierce rabbit

Catching up with Amber, Scotia and Davey in Umina Beach. Archie, the dog, was scared of Herbert the rabbit, who just looked at him with those "I'm gunna mess you up!" eyes. Amber's Tesla now has a matching fridge in the sub trunk.

Customised licence plate, on screen

We’ve had our customised licence plate “TRIPNG” for over a year. It wasn’t until today that I realised that I can customise the Tesla to make it also appear on screen. I’ve known about the ability to change the car colour or wrap, but missed seeing the licence plate. Limitations: 1. It only appears on the rear of the vehicle, not the front. 2. It doesn’t appear on the image of the car in the mobile app. 3. It won’t change the physical licence plate, which you might want to do when passing a speed camera 😉. Software updates require a wifi connection, and won’t download via the car’s own cellular connection. That’s a frustration when we’re on the road for weeks, unable to connect the car to a wifi network. I tried connecting it overnight to the wifi of my phone, but that just seemed to drain gigabytes of data without actually getting a software update. It’s the little, geeky things 😉.

Hunter Valley, fancy rides

Catching up with three generations: Mum, sister and daughter, in the Hunter Valley, NSW. Lunch at Four Pines Brewery at the Farm, in Pokolbin. I thought we had a fancy ride, but then people arrived via horse drawn carriage, while others left in a helicopter. Some women at the table next to us asked the passing cowboy if he could take them for a ride.

Drop a pin, then drive there

I learned a new Tesla trick today (thanks to Hugh Sykes): long press on the map (hold your finger down for a few seconds) and it drops a pin. Tap the pin, and you can make it your destination. That was very useful today. Our villa is in a big complex, and entering the unit and street address sent us to the other end of it. With a pin dropped on the villa itself, Full Self-Driving took us right to it. It also got us to the Woolworths Direct to Boot parking at Erina Fair. The shopping centre address only gets you to the shopping centre, which has a lot of car parks. A pin on the Direct to Boot bays took us straight there, and our groceries came out to Bay 5. And, yes, we turned off our “engine” as requested. What other hidden Tesla tricks should we know about?

Where did the lizard go?

I saw a lizard. Where did it go? It was on the driveway. Now I think it’s gone in front of the car, too low to see over the bonnet. Tap the camera button. There it is, just in front of the bumper camera. I wonder if it’s the same one that ran past my feet on the villa porch a couple of days ago. The camera is very useful for seeing what’s out of sight.

A tunnel of trees on Federal Drive

An avenue of trees over Federal Drive, in the Byron hinterland. See full post: Byron Hinterland day trip

Three generations with EVs

Three generations of EV drivers met for lunch at Macs Beach Cafe, Macmasters Beach, on the NSW Central Coast: my daughter Amber, us (Fran and Tom), and our friends Hugh and Margaret. Hugh has just upgraded his Tesla Model 3 to a Model Y, both long range. He and Margaret have already taken it along the south coast, around to Orbost, and back home through Canberra. Before that, they did EV trips in Western Australia, central Queensland, the UK and New Zealand. Margaret has a Hyundai Kona Electric, and started road-tripping in it years ago, back when public chargers were few and far between. Amber has driven most of the way around Australia in diesel vans, but recently upgraded to a used Tesla Model Y. She's enjoying the much smoother ride, less fatigue at the end of a day's driving, and much cheaper "fuel". She's about to do a lap of half the east coast, and has started kitting out her EV for serious road tripping. We (Fran and Tom) had already been to Macs four days earlier, in better…

Cheapest car in Australia is electric

Stopping at Goulburn for lunch, we came across this cute small EV at the Superchargers. The BYD Atto 1 is now the equal cheapest new car in Australia. Not just the cheapest EV – the cheapest of any kind, electric, petrol or diesel, tied only with the petrol MG3. The "Essential" base trim sells for $19,990 drive-away. It has a lot of features for the price, including air con, wireless Apple CarPlay and Android Auto, adaptive cruise control, keyless entry, and vehicle-to-load (so you can run appliances from the car's battery). It's a small car, so it has a small boot (308 litres), but you can of course increase the boot space by folding half or all of the rear seat (up to 1,037 litres). We asked the driver of this car about it. She described herself as a nonna, on a long drive with her granddaughters. She has had many cars in her lifetime, but she says she likes this one the best. She has the next trim up from the base trim, the "Premium". That gives her a bigger battery (43 kWh instead…

Self-driving into a port-a-loo

Our stop in Coolac has toilets and ... well, that's about it. There's a hotel, currently being renovated. We pulled in for a brief leg stretch at the Superchargers there, on the Hume Highway, an hour and a half past Goulburn. Parked next to us was a red Model Y with red rims. Its driver, Jack, said he's the only one who likes them. He's on a road trip from Queensland to Victoria with his son. He mentioned the potholes in Queensland, so I warned him about the potholes in Victoria. Leaving Goulburn earlier, the Hume Highway runs right through the Cullerin Range Wind Farm, with its 15 turbines on the hills either side of the road. The much bigger Collector Wind Farm, with 54 turbines, is just to the south. Together they have a capacity of 257 MW, but the wind doesn’t always blow, so over a year they average about 70 MW (27% of capacity, typical for wind farms). That’s about 615 GWh a year, enough to power about 96,000 homes, or to drive an EV like ours about 4 billion km. Similar sized…

Top pub and top motel in Yackandandah

We aimed for Yackandandah tonight, as it's one of our favourite places to stop. One of our favourite motels is here too: Motel Views, so named because ... well, you can figure that out. On the way, we crossed the border back into Victoria, and back to the potholes. There's a new twist, though. Many of the filled-in ones still have the painted warning circles around them, which were helpful when there was a hole inside. Now we steer around potholes that are no longer there, and the circles around the ones that are still there play the boy who cried wolf. For dinner, we drove straight to the top pub, the Star Hotel Yackandandah. Not to be confused with its fierce rival, the bottom pub (the Yackandandah Hotel). To our surprise, it was a quiet night, and we were one of just two couples eating. We had some laughs with the staff, as they explained that many in this holiday town had gone away on holidays. One of the deciding factors was the fast charger just out the back, though it's…

Home from Byron Bay, 4,985 km later

Three weeks away, and we rolled into the garage fifteen kilometres short of five thousand. The last run was Yackandandah to home in Emerald, and we took the back way through Yea rather than the Hume. A toilet stop at Lake Nillahcootie, where the gums stand with their feet in the water, and a photo of an old gum spreading over a paddock fence near Bonnie Doon. Down the Melba Highway to Krissy and Tim’s place in Mooroolbark for lunch. A home cooked meal and the best coffee, from our favourite chef and barista. Krissy sent us home with soup for dinner as well. Twenty two days, Emerald to Byron Bay and back, catching up with family and friends the whole way up the NSW coast.

A coach and a Model Y in the Hunter Valley

Two kinds of transport, a century apart, beside the vines in the Hunter Valley. See full post: Hunter Valley, fancy rides

Charging under the Southern Cross

At Totally Renewable Yackandandah, charging under the southern cross, while having dinner at the Star Hotel Yackandandah.