I Love My Neighborhood: Sydney’s Northern Beaches

Welcome to another edition of “I Love My Neighborhood”, where I ask expats from across the globe to share the joys of local life they’ve found in their corner of the world.

If you’re just joining in now, check out the other cities that have been covered so far here.

Today’s guest post comes from Russell, the British expat behind the blog In Search of a Life Less Ordinary. After living in Canada for some time, he’s now made a home for himself and his expecting wife in Sydney. Russell’s post is for anyone who has ever thought living in Sydney would be a good idea and full of natural beauty — because, well, it is.

Russell: Why I love Sydney’s Northern Beaches

Twelve years ago as the Olympics began in Sydney, I was sat at a desk in a concrete office block in my English hometown gazing out at the overgrown sidings of the town’s railway station. I wondered if this was all I’d get to see of the world. I didn’t understand how quickly life can change.

What followed was a whirlwind romance between two people from opposite sides of the planet, a few years lived in the idyllic English countryside and a few more spent crossing Canada from east to west, then a final push across the Pacific to Australia in 2006. We’ve lived in Sydney ever since.

It was the thought of living by the ocean that most appealed to me when I contemplated a move to Australia. Plus those endless sandy beaches. And an abundance of great food. And the sun. The long summers. The blue skies. The cold beer. The beachside lifestyle.

So we came to live on Sydney’s Northern Beaches, a stretch of more than fifteen golden sand beaches ranging from the lively suburb of Manly in the south to the exclusive Palm Beach in the north.

The region is situated only 10 kilometres from the bustling centre of Australia’s largest city, Sydney, and is an area of outstanding natural beauty, where the bush meets the beach and the calm waters of the lagoons offer a brief respite from the wild southern ocean. It’s not God’s Country. It’s better than that.

Coffee at Curl Curl

When I moved to Sydney, I was astounded at the range of great coffee available on every street corner in the city. The Northern Beaches is no exception. One of my preferred locations for sampling the black liquid gold is Curly’s on the Corner, an unpretentious and friendly café close to Curl Curl beach. Constantly buzzing with customers, its staff have a passion for creating exquisite coffee in the most informal of settings, and for consistently producing freshly-made, oversized subs, wraps and sandwiches to die for. It’s one of my favourite places to spend a weekend morning with friends and a regular haunt during the week. 

Long Reef whale-watching

Twice a year, large numbers of humpback whales make their way up or down the Australian coast along what is known locally as the ‘humpback highway’. Fortunately for us, the highway runs parallel to the Northern Beaches and these magnificent creatures can be seen from most vantage points in the area. The Long Reef headland is an ideal spot to look out for the tell-tale plumes of spray blowing skywards and, if you’re lucky, you might even spy the distinctive tail flukes as these gentle giants roll around in their ocean backyard.

It’s a sight that very few people in the world get to witness and Long Reef has a special place in my heart for this reason. You’ll quite often find me sat on the sandstone seats at the top of the headland, shading my eyes from the sun while looking out for these majestic beasts of the deep.

Off-leash at Bayview

One of the best features of the Northern Beaches is the ability to take a dog off-leash at the various lagoons and waterways across the peninsula. Bayview is one such place and I’ll regularly take my four-legged friend down to the tranquil water, away from the surf beaches to the east. Bayview practically splits the Northern Beaches peninsula from the mainland, and it’s a haven for pelicans and penguins, boat owners and kayakers, and even a seal or two. Nothing beats swimming with my dog in the warm summer water after a long day in the office. Milo was born to this life of ocean adventure and I indulge him whenever I can.

Bilgola Beach stair and sand sets

The Northern Beaches is a region of near-perfect beaches lined by Norfolk Pines, multi-million dollar houses and priceless views. Bilgola beach is one of the lovelier spots. It’s a small, secluded beach protected by high sandstone cliffs to the left and right, and relatively free from urban development behind.

I recently started training on this beach; on an early Saturday morning we’ll sprint in the sand, run stair sets, swim with intensity in the beach pool, and box at the edge of the ocean. It’s not everyone’s idea of fun but it gets me out and about in this unique beach-side environment, and it’s a thing of beauty to curl free weights on the shore while dolphins or whales splash through the water before me. It’s an incredible way to kick start my weekend.

Avalon’s village feel

There’s a cute beachside suburb called Avalon that I simply adore. It’s the closest thing to a village found in these parts and it has a friendly community feel that never fails to draw me in. My wife and I will head to the petite French bakery to pick up a rustic mushroom quiche, or we’ll browse the cute village stores looking for a gift for a friend or an item for the house. There’s a tiny cinema on the main street that’s reminiscent of a different time and food shops that look more familiar to the 1950s than the new millennium. Avalon is the charming, idyllic heart of the Northern Beaches and a must-see for tourists and residents alike.

Life on the Northern Beaches is full of natural beauty and picture-postcard views but it isn’t without its faults. From traffic congestion to an exorbitantly high cost of living, it has its issues. Yet it’s a place where I often forget I’m living on the perimeter of a major metropolitan city. I can be working in a city office in the daytime and be home within an hour. I can watch the whales from a headland, admire a lightning storm over the ocean, or share great food and drink at a beach barbeque and still catch the occasional glimpse of the Sydney Tower.

After six years of life on Sydney’s Northern Beaches, I sometimes think back to that view of the overgrown railway siding twelve years before. It’s funny but I miss it in a strange kind of way. It reminds me of a younger ‘me’ when the world was as big as a small southern English town and my responsibilities in life weren’t that much bigger.

I’ve since seen and done some wonderful things. And, as my responsibilities increased and experiences were heightened, along came the Northern Beaches. A place where I’m living a different kind of life. One more fulsome. A life less ordinary.

About the author: Russell is a British writer and expat living in Sydney by the ocean, who lived in Canada by mountains and snow, and writes about his search for a life less ordinary. A finalist in the recent Best Australian Blogs 2012 competition, he can often be found on Twitter as @russellvjward.

All photos courtesy of the author.