Pittwater LIfe December 2019 Issue

The Local Voice Since 1991 

DECEMBER 2019 

FREE 

pittwaterlife 

ALL THE COLOUR OF CHRISTMAS 

JIBE TALKING – PITTWATER YACHTIES ON 75TH SYDNEY TO HOBART 

JUSTENE GORDON’S YOUTHFUL ENDEAVOUR / SEEN... HEARD... ABSURD 

PLUS: MONA VALE ROAD PEDESTRIAN SAFETY WIN / RUSSELL MORRIS

Editorial 

Stunned by reader feedback 

Our feature story last 

month detailing Council’s 

intention to crack down on 

rogue residents and defend 

public land from unauthorised 

‘development creep” certainly 

stirred a hornet’s nest. 

We were inundated with 

readers’ emails of complaint, 

citing locations and photos 

of dozens of alleged 

unauthorised works across 

Pittwater. 

(Reader Sue Martin 

forwarded us a document 

dating back to the days of 

the former Pittwater Council 

which listed 133 addresses and 

locations of pedestrian access 

reserves from North Narrabeen 

to Ingleside and Palm Beach.) 

We will continue to liaise 

and work with Council on your 

behalf. 

What a great example of the 

community having their say... 

* * * 

Also last month we broke 

news of the private legal 

action brought against Council 

in the Land and Environment 

Court aimed at stopping the 

Station Beach offleash dogwalking 

trial from proceeding. 

Council’s update is that 

procedural directions were 

made at the scheduled 

hearing on November 8, with 

the matter listed for further 

directions on 28 February. 

Given the trial was slated 

to commence in December, 

we asked Council whether the 

legal action had forced the 

long-awaited implementation 

onto the backburner. 

The reply: “No comment.” 

* * * 

On behalf of the Pittwater 

Life team I’d like to thank 

all our readers and loyal 

advertisers for their support 

in 2019. We look forward to 

bringing you more great reads 

in 2020! 

Wishing you all a very 

merry and safe Christmas and 

holiday season. – Nigel Wall 


DECEMBER 2019 3

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Email: 

info@pittwaterlife.com.au 

Website: 

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Publisher: Nigel Wall 

Managing Editor: Lisa Offord 

Graphic Design: CLS Design 

Photography: Adobe / Staff 

Contributors: Rosamund Burton, 

Gabrielle Bryant, Rob Pegley, 

Matt Cleary, Brian Hrnjak, 

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Vol 29 No 5 

Celebrating 28 years 


DECEMBER 2019 

FREE 

pittwaterlife 

ALL THE COLOUR OF CHRISTMAS 

JIBE TALKING – P I T T WAT ER YAC H T I E S O N 7 5TH S Y D NE Y TO H O B A R T 

JUSTENE GORDON’S YOUTHFUL ENDEAVOUR / SEEN... HEARD... ABSURD 

PLUS: MONA VALE ROAD PEDESTRIAN SAFETY WIN / RUSSELL MORRIS 

30 

42 

64 

WALKERS 

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Pittwater Life once a month. 

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Email: 

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thislife 

COVER: Nothing says ‘Aussie Christmas’ like an 

arrangement of native foliage and flowers, ideal for your 

table centrepiece!; a rethink on the new shared pathway 

for Mona Vale Road will deliver improved pedestrian and 

cyclist safety (p6); learn what we’ve seen, heard – and 

consider absurd – this month (p20); meet local youth 

support champion Justene Gordon; we talk to Pittwater 

crews competing in the 75th Sydney to Hobart yacht race 

(p30); Check out local carols and church services (p34) and 

find some great gift ideas (p36). Merry Christmas all! 

COVER IMAGE: Pamela Pauline/pamelapauline.com 

also this month 

Editorial 3 

Pittwater Local News 6-27 

Life Stories: Justene Gordon 28-29 

Sydney to Hobart 25th Anniversary special 30-33 

Christmas Gift Guide 34-41 

Art Life 42-43 

Surfing 44-45 

Health & Wellbeing; Hair & Beauty 46-53 

Money 54-55 

Law 56-57 

Trades & Services Guide 58-60 

Food 64-66 

Gardening 68-70 

Travel 72-74 

the goodlife 

Restaurants, food, gigs, travel and gardening. 

Also find our regular features on beauty, health, surfing, 

art, local history, our guide to trades and services, money, 

law and our essential maps. 

ATTENTION ADVERTISERS! 

Bookings & advertising material to set for 

our JANUARY issue MUST be supplied by 

WEDNESDAY 11 DECEMBER 

Finished art & editorial submissions deadline: 

WEDNESDAY 18 DECEMBER 

The JANUARY 2020 issue will be published 

on MONDAY 30 DECEMBER 

COPYRIGHT 

All contents are subject to copyright and may not be reproduced except with the 

written consent of the copyright owner. GST: All advertising rates are subject to GST. 

4 DECEMBER 2019 

The Local Voice Since 1991

News 

Mona Vale Road pedestrian 

The plan to site a shared 

pedestrian and bicycle 

path immediately next 

to the proposed truck arrester 

bed on Mona Vale Road has 

been scrapped for safety reasons, 

Pittwater Life can reveal. 

Instead, following intervention 

by the Pedestrian Council 

of Australia and ongoing 

discussions between Roads 

& Maritime Services and 

Northern Beaches Council, the 

shared path – a component of 

the Mona Vale Road East upgrade 

– will now be relocated. 

Pittwater Life understands 

the potentially dangerously 

sited section of the shared 

path could now push into 

adjacent Crown and Council 

land not previously earmarked 

for the project. 

Repositioning the pathway 

further away from the road 

would also enable the arrester 

bed – a crucial safety element 

of the upgrade designed to 

avert disaster by capturing 

any runaway vehicles – to be 

lengthened even further. 

A Transport for NSW 

spokesperson confirmed the 

truck arrester bed would be 

built west of the intersection 

with Ponderosa Parade and 

Samuel Street. 

“A shared path was proposed 

to be built next to the 

truck arrester bed but following 

representations from 

the Pedestrian Council of 

Australia, Transport for NSW 

has reviewed the location of 

the shared path,” the spokesperson 

said. 

“In consultation with 

Northern Beaches Council, 

Transport for NSW has agreed 

to move the proposed shared 

path away from its original 

location next to the truck arrester 

bed. 

“Following the relocation 

of the proposed shared path, 

Transport for NSW has reviewed 

the original design of 

the truck arrester bed and will 

extend its length to maximise 

use of available area. This will 

enhance this important safety 

feature of the project. 

“Work is now being carried 

EARTHWORKS STAGE: 

Ground levels will drop 

to meet the existing 

roadway. 

out to redesign the truck 

arrester bed which will be 

operational once the upgrade 

is complete in 2022.” 

Pittwater Life understands 

positive and collaborative discussions 

have been occurring 

over recent months between 

RMS and Northern Beaches 

Council, with a mutual desire 

to create greater distance between 

the road / arrester bed 

and the planned three-metrewide 

shared pathway. 

The new pathway will run 

from Foley Street (Pittwater 

RSL Club) down to Ponderosa 

Parade. Then it moves to the 

other side of the road (users 

will cross at the new signalised 

intersection) before it runs up 

the hill between Samuel Street 

and Lane Cove Road. 

Once the upgrade is 

complete, the speed limit 

for heavy vehicles travelling 

downhill will be 40km/h. 

High visibility speed limit signage 

will also be installed to 

alert heavy vehicle operators. 

Meanwhile, the upgrade 



safety win 

project has moved into the 

earthworks stage, including 

removing topsoil and scaling 

and breaking rock between 

Manor Road and Mona Vale 

Cemetery. 

The cutting of the rock 

faces and filling of the gullies 

along the road corridor will 

widen and bring the adjacent 

ground levels to meet the 

level of the existing roadway. 

During the earthwork stage 

(anticipated completion end 

2020) workers will remove 

around 210,000 cubic metres 

of sandstone and soil and 

install more than 140 rock 

anchors and shotcrete (spray 

concrete) to stabilise the excavated 

rock faces. 

For safety reasons, pedestrians 

and off-road cyclists 

are advised to avoid Mona 

Vale Road between Daydream 

Street, Mona Vale, and Manor 

Road, Ingleside. There is no 

footpath or cycle way and the 

road shoulders are not available 

during construction. 

Work in December will include 

continuing rock breaking 

along Mona Vale Road 

between the descending section 

and the site compound, 

erecting electrical poles and 

connecting the new electricity 

service along the southern 

side of Mona Vale Road. 

Work for 2019 will conclude 

on Friday, December 20 and 

recommence in the New Year 

on Monday, January 6. 

– Nigel Wall 

News 



From little 

swims, Big 

Swims grow 

ON 

THEIR MARKS: Four ocean swims are scheduled in January. 

News 

The Big Swim, Palm Beach to Whale 

Beach, held at the end of January, is 

one of the popular choices for ‘Can 

Too’ ocean swimmers – the organisation 

which helps swimmers face their fears 

and helps raise money to find a cure for 

cancer. 

However, many ocean swimmers are 

also taking advantage of the swims in 

the Pittwater Swim Series – ideal for 

building up for the Big Swim. 

This season, ocean swims are at 

Newport (January 5th), Bilgola (12th) 

and Warriewood to Mona Vale (19th) in 

the lead-up to the Big Swim on the 26th. 

(Meanwhile Avalon have set their date for 

March 29). 

Can Too swimmer Lindsay Asquith is 

considering the lead-up swims. Lindsay 

attended the Can Too courses for 

nervous swimmers due to an experience 

with the 2004 Tsunami. 

“I have trained under the Can Too 

mentoring program and I am now an 

experienced ocean swimmer,” she said. 

“And the lead-up swims sound ideal for 

Big Swim training.” 

According to John Guthrie, one of the 

organisers of the Pittwater Series, each 

of the lead-up swims offer both short 

and long options. 

“It’s a great way to build up your ocean 

swimming fitness for the 2.8km Big 

Swim,” John said. “For those not greatly 

experienced at ocean swimming the 

shorter swims are a great way to build 

confidence and test skills acquired in the 

pool,” he said. 

Another incentive for swimmers is the 

chance to win a trip for two, including 

airfares courtesy of Travel View Avalon 

and three nights, luxury accommodation 

at the Bay Royal Apartments Byron Bay. 

The prize also includes two entries to the 

Byron Bay Classic. 

Fellow Pittwater Series committee 

member Rob Berry says the swims 

continue to attract thousands of ocean 

swimmers to Pittwater. 

“We really appreciate the support of 

Northern Beaches Council which provides 

a grant towards promotion of the swims 

as well as all the individual clubs’ 

sponsors who help to make it happen. 

“The swims are important fundraising 

events for the purchase and maintenance 

of vital lifesaving equipment which helps 

to make the beaches safer for everyone. 

They are also great for local businesses 

that benefit from the influx of 

competitors and their support groups,” 

said Rob. 

There are many overseas swimmers 

who enter as well as swimmers from all 

over Australia. 

For more information about the 

Pittwater Ocean Swim Series go to 

www.oceanswims.com; also, each host 

Club has information on their websites. 



Five-star family affair 

News 

It’s safe to say that Margi 

Whiteman absolutely 

loves netball. And despite 

approaching 70, she has no 

intention of slowing down. 

Margi played to Manly 

rep level, before becoming 

a coach at 23; coaching for 

22 years straight. Even with 

brief breaks for when kids 

and grandchildren came 

along, she has coached for 

more than 40 years. She’s 

always been either playing, 

coaching, managing or 

administrating the game. 

You could say netball is in 

her DNA. 

Which might literally 

be the case, because 

daughter Kylie Elliott, and 

granddaughters Alyssa, Tahli 

and Krystal Elliot are also 

all members of Pittwater 

Peninsula Netball Club, 

where Margi has coached for 

the past six years. 

Though granddaughter 

Alyssa is only 6 she can’t 

wait to get started in the 

NetSetGo team. It’s a format 

where rules are modified, 

there is no grading, and girls 

play in all positions to get 

used to the game. 

Alyssa says she wants to 

play netball “because you get 

to run!” 

Her sister Tahli has played 

Netta for three years, and 

this year played in the 10A 

grade who were Grand Final 

winners. Tahli possibly 

has a career ahead of her 

in advertising, as she says: 

“Netball stands for fun, 

fitness and fabulous friends!” 

Krystal is 12 and has 

READY FOR THE SEASON: 

Margi Whiteman with daughter 

Kylie and granddaughters Tahli, 

Krystal and Alyssa. 

played both Netta and 

Competition Netball for 

Peninsula for six years. She 

now also enjoys umpiring 

and helping as a junior coach 

at NetSetGo. She says that 

netball is, “a fun sport you 

can do with your friends, or 

with new friends, get fit and 

have friendly competition”. 

“It’s so good for kids.” Margi 

agrees. She goes on to explain 

why making friends is such an 

important part of that: 

“Kids often leave at 17 

or 18,” Margi says. “They 

disappear to Uni, have kids 

and families, then come back 

to play again with friends 

they’ve made over the years. 

Night comp means they can 

put kids to bed, and then 

head off for a game indoors 

on the wooden floors. There 

is an over-35s division 

which is growing, a walking 

league for grannies like me 

and mixed comps now that 

mum and dad, or seniors’ 

boyfriends can play in.” 

Margi’s daughter Kylie 

is proof of this theory, 

after returning to netball 

as a mum. Formerly a 

representative player, coach 

and fitness instructor for 

Manly Warringah Netball, 

more recently she has 

managed teams and assisted 

with coaching for Pittwater 

Peninsula Netball. 

“Netball is a great sport 



for all ages,” says Kylie. “I 

started when I was seven 

and I’m still playing at 43. I 

played competitively from 

11 to 21, then played socially 

after that with groups of 

friends. I even had a stint of 

playing mixed netball for a 

few years where myself and 

three friends enticed our 

husbands to play.” 

“You are never too old to 

play,” Kylie continues. “In 

2017 and 2018, I went back 

to reps again and played 

State Champs in the Masters 

division.” 

Pittwater Peninsula Netball 

Club clearly caters for all 

their needs. One of Manly 

Warringah’s oldest clubs, it 

was formed 47 years ago by 

Aileen Brodigan, as there 

wasn’t a team at Avalon’s 

Maria Regina school for her 

kids to play in. 

The club, which trains 

indoors in Avalon and 

Narrabeen, always has 

around 50 teams across all 

ages and skills. It means 

around 500 players are 

representing Peninsula at 

any one time. And they’re 

pretty successful: 23 teams 

made it into the 2019 final 

series and nine played in 

Grand Finals. 

“It doesn’t matter whether 

players are in A grade or 

G grade, the enjoyment is 

just the same,” says Margi. 

“I watched the 10As and the 

10Gs in their Grand Finals 

last year, and the skill levels 

were different, but the 

feeling was just the same.” 

“Because Peninsula is a 

larger club, there is more 

opportunity for grading,” 

says Margi. “The numerous 

teams per grade means 

you play at an appropriate 

level, which is good for selfesteem.” 

There are also pathways 

to rep teams and the ability 

to become an umpire or a 

coach. The enjoyment that 

has kept Margi in the sport 

for over 50 years is very 

simple though. 

“I love to see the players 

laughing and learning in a 

fun way, and looking forward 

for the following season to 

start,” she says. – Rob Pegley 

* Online registrations 

from January 1; visit 

peninsulanetball.org.au 

Commodores’ 50 years 

To mark its 50th anniversary in 2019, Mona Vale Commodores 

Netball Club is proud to announce the launch 

the Netball NSW ‘EmpowerPlay’ Program for the upcoming 

2020 season, aimed at building self-confidence, resilience 

and self-awareness for young players aged 10-13 years. 

With registrations for the winter competition commencing 

on January 1, club Vice President Jen Fitzpatrick 

said the Commodores – a sub-club of Pittwater RSL and 

affiliated with the Mona Vale Surf Life Saving Club – was 

the club to join if you lived in Mona Vale or its immediate 

surrounds. 

“We are a small, family friendly club where all abilities 

and levels, from NetSetGo to Seniors, are catered for and 

nurtured,” said Jen. “We have a passionate Committee who 

are dedicated to providing a friendly environment where 

players are encouraged to have fun, make new friends and 

develop their skills.” 

Part of the Manly Warringah Netball Association, Mona 

Vale Commodores play at John Fisher Park at Curl Curl 

on Saturdays from April to August. Also, the club runs 

8-week NetSetGo skills sessions during the year for 

children aged 5-8 years (conveniently held at Emma Street 

Courts behind Mona Vale Public School). 

“We are the Mona Vale Netball Club, so if you live in 

Mona Vale we’d love to have you join our local Club and 

wear the red, blue and white!” 

A 2020 Registration and Information Day will be held 

at Mona Vale Surf Club on Sunday February 2 from 

9-12pm. Online registrations (from January 1) at Monavale.nsw.netball.com.au. 

More info on the website or 

call Jen on 0414 017 761. 

– NW 

News 



News 

Newport facing expansion challenge 

Newport Kindergarten has become a 

casualty of the push to create more 

dwellings to accommodate a growing 

population on the upper northern 

beaches, announcing it will close its 

doors at Christmas. 

The forced closure comes as developers 

increasingly eye off opportunities 

across Newport Village and the suburb’s 

surrounds, with two significant 

Development Applications lodged with 

Northern Beaches Council in recent 

weeks. 

If approved, the two developments 

would see 32 dwellings and 94 offstreet 

car parking spaces added to the suburb’s 

population footprint. 

Newport Kindergarten’s owners said 

their facility would shut its doors permanently 

on December 25, leaving 11 staff 

without jobs and forcing dozens of families 

to find a new kindergarten for their 

children in 2020. 

Owners Amber Bernauer and David 

Williams wrote to parents in late November, 

telling them they had only recently 

been told the building they leased for the 

kindergarten at 7 Queens Parade had been 

sold, with the new owner wanting to use 

the site as a display unit for its real estate 

development. 

NEW DWELLINGS PLAN: Beaconsfield Rd, Newport. 

In late November, developers lodged a 

DA for a site comprising lots 5, 7, 9 and 11 

Queens Parade and 60 and 62 Beaconsfield 

Road, with plans for 18 new threebedroom 

dwellings and car parking for 

43 vehicles. (The site currently has seven 

dwellings across the six lots.) 

The projected development cost was 

almost $20 million. 

Ms Bernauer and Mr Williams apologised 

to families for the short notice and 

the inconvenience, adding: “We would 

like to take this opportunity to thank our 

amazing team for their dedication and 

loyalty, we will be proactively supporting 

them over the coming weeks as they seek 

employment elsewhere.” 

Also last month, developers lodged a 

DA with NB Council to build 14 units 

(eight single level, six two-storey) plus 

eight retail spaces on the corner of 

Robertson Road (153 and 155 Barrenjoey 

Road). Additionally, 51 off-street 

parking places are sought. 

Total cost projection was $7 million. 

The Newport Residents Association 

(NRA) told Pittwater Life that while it 

welcomed a modern development of 

the site it believed the new proposal 

was “too intensive”. 

“A smaller number of units would 

be preferable, giving more floor space for 

each,” said NRA President Gavin Butler. 

The NRA strongly opposed the removal 

of the mature native gum on Robertson Rd. 

The NRA also noted that during the 

construction phase the developers wished 

to remove approximately eight Robertson 

Rd parking spaces. 

“We believe this will have a major impact 

on the Robertson Rd businesses and 

cafes and alternatives should be explored. 

“Also, whilst the traffic report suggests 

that the provision of 51 car spaces in the 

proposal will not cause undue impact on 

the Robertson Rd traffic, we find this hard 

to accept given this is a narrow plaza-type 

street and the entrance is opposite cafes 

and parking for those cafes.” – Nigel Wall 



News 

Lagoon boardwalk open 

After a month’s delay due to bad weather, 

the new overwater boardwalk on the 

northern foreshore of Narrabeen Lagoon has 

finally been completed in time for the busy 

summer season. 

The boardwalk, which runs across a section 

of the Lagoon near Bilarong Reserve, cost $2.3 

million – with Council footing $2 million and 

the balance funded by the NSW Government. 

The boardwalk will ensure a safer route for 

cyclists, joggers and walkers while protecting 

the lagoon’s shoreline biodiversity. 

Built with marine-grade hardwood and 

non-corrosive materials which blend in with 

the natural environment and protect it from 

the saline conditions, the boardwalk realigns 

a very narrow section of the trail safely away 

from the busy Wakehurst Parkway. 

Northern Beaches Mayor Michael Regan said 

the redundant section of the Lagoon Trail 

that has been replaced by the new overwater 

boardwalk would be closed and replanted 

to re-establish a habitat corridor along the 

northern foreshore of the lagoon. 

Pittwater MP Rob Stokes said: “The 

Narrabeen Lagoon Trail has become one of 

Sydney’s iconic loop tracks and this new 

section of boardwalk makes the trail even 

safer and more scenic for everyone to enjoy.” 

– NW 



Season’s 

Greetings 

from all of us 

at SeabreezeKitchens! 

Showroom closed from December 20, 2018 - January 2, 2020. 

Holiday opening hours from January 2 - January 9, 2020, 10.00am - 3.30pm 

Back to normal opening hours from January 9, 2020. 

188 Harbord Road, Brookvale, NSW 2100 

Monday – Friday 9am - 5pm, Saturday 9.30 - 4pm 

Phone 02 9938 5477 

www.seabreezekitchens.com.au

6THINGS 

THIS MONTH 

News 

Ocean Swim. The Narrabeen 

Beach Ocean Swim Challenge is 

on Sat Nov 30. Swimmers who 

had registered for the original 

event on Nov 2 (which was postponed 

due to bad conditions) are 

able to participate without any 

extra cost. Other swimmers are 

also welcome to register online 

until 3pm on Friday 29, or at 

the beach on the day between 

8.30am – 9.30am. Briefing at 

9.40am. Info at oceanswims.com 

Newport Shopfest. Newport 

comes alive on Sat Nov 30 from 

8am with more than a dozen 

fresh fruit and produce stalls, live 

music and kids entertainment 

plus your favourite local businesses 

showcasing their wares 

right on their doorsteps. 

Young talent time. The third 

annual Art Therapy Exhibition 

hosted by One Eighty celebrating 

local young talent and an 

opportunity to support and raise 

funds for a future free from youth 

suicide will be held at Avalon 

Surf Club on Thurs Dec 5 from 

3pm-9pm. Tickets $10 online 

oneeighty.org.au or at door. Free 

entry under-14s. 

Scout Xmas trees. Visit an 

ATM to ‘be prepared’ (cash only!) 

to support the 1st Mona Vale 

Scout Group who will be selling 

fresh 6ft trees at Avalon Coles 

Express Service Station cnr Barrenjoey 

Rd and Avalon Pde on 

Sat Dec 7 from 6am; $65 each. 

Mega auction. Bid for the 

perfect gift or something you 

have always wanted (a spin in 

the latest Porsche GT3, anyone?) 

and raise funds at the same time 

for the Osteogenesis Imperfecta 

Society at a huge Charity Christmas 

Auction at Pittwater RSL on 

Sun Dec 1 from 2pm-5.30pm. 

Entry is free. 

Cruise to races. Round up 

your friends for fabulous day 

out at Gosford Race Day on Fri 

27 Dec travelling in style from 

Palm Beach Wharf to Gosford 

Wharf (and return) with Fantasea 

Cruising for only $65 per person 

includes admission and transfers. 

Groups welcome, NRMA 

Member benefits apply. Bookings 

9974 2411 fantasea.com.au 



News 

Mona selections a decade in 

Siblings Luka and Eliza Monnock 

certainly know the 

meaning of perseverance in 

surf sports: dedication and hard 

work has finally paid off for the 

Mona Vale SLSC duo, breaking 

into the Sydney Northern Beaches 

Branch team for the first time. 

Along with Zach Wasley, the 

trio becomes Mona Vale’s first 

Branch representatives since 

former beach sprinter and now 

rugby league star Tommy Trbojevic 

and Baylee Forbes made the 

team exactly a decade ago. 

“I was so shocked with selection. 

Just crazy!” was how Eliza 

reacted. 

Considering what Eliza has 

gone through, especially these 

past two years, little wonder 

Branch selection for the NSW 

Interbranch Championships at Bulli on 

December 7 and 8 is very special. “‘I have 

missed the past two Aussies because 

of injuries,” she revealed. “Last year I 

fractured my back (L5). I was actually 

training and running into the water for a 

board start and something just cracked... 

I didn’t find out until two months later. I 

missed Branch, State and Aussies. It was 

then all about physio and rehab.” 

The previous year Eliza broke a finger 

at training – the day before she was due 

to fly to Aussies. 

“I was on a wave on the board and 

my hand got caught in the handle and I 

snapped my finger!” she said. 

Since she first started out in nippers, 

Eliza admits there haven’t been 

SIBLING REVELRY: 

Luka Monnock with 

sister Eliza. 

many podium finishes over 

those years. But her interest in 

the sport never waned and she 

pays tribute to her former coach 

Marty Cowper. 

“Marty was with us for so 

long but he’s now moved up the 

coast,” she said. “Bryce (Munro) 

is now the head coach and dad 

(Hugh) is our board coach. Training 

is so much fun. We have such 

a good support group and it is 

really special how everyone is 

together. 

“I am just loving it. I am so 

looking forward to this new adventure 

and challenge. It is really 

exciting.” 

Eliza, now in her first year in 

under-19s, has also taking a real 

liking to the ski. “I don’t race 

kayaks but I train on them. It is 

something I picked up and it has helped 

me heaps,” she said. 

Younger brother Luka has been 

knocking on the door of representative 

selection for some time. But he actually 

wasn’t going to put a nomination in for 

the Branch team this year. 

“I really love ski paddling and I wanted 

to do the 20 Beaches ocean paddle,” he 



making 

said. 

But someone in the club twisted his 

arm and he decided to nominate. 

Luka clinched his selection with 

some impressive performances at the 

Branch selection carnival at Newport. 

“It means I will miss the 20 Beaches 

as it is on at the same time as Interbranch,” 

he said. “Don’t get me wrong – 

I am really pumped to be representing 

the Branch.” 

Luka said there were times when he 

was feeling down. 

“Yeah, certain stages when I was less 

motivated. But Marty and Bryce were 

really good with me,” he said. “They 

lifted me up when things weren’t going 

well... they were always there for me, 

making sure I was working hard at 

most training sessions.” 

Luka has moved into his first season 

as an under-17s competitor. 

“It’s great to see both of us finally 

make it. We’ve been competing since 

under-6s,” he said. 

Mona Vale’s third representative 

is Zach Wasley, making his debut in 

under-12s. 

“This was one of his goals and he 

just loves the sport,” proud dad Michael 

tells us. “He prefers the board but has 

SELECTED: 

Zach Wasley. 

worked hard on his swimming.” 

The Monnocks are not the only 

siblings in the Branch team. Newport 

have the Morris brothers (Zach and 

twins Jake and Mitch), the Doyle sisters 

(Emily and twins Kimberley and Katelynn) 

and the Maggs brothers (Conner 

and Noah). 

Josh Kerr, Brandon Bartlem, Isaac 

Smith, Blake Drysdale, Maddie Spencer 

and Alex Lefevre are other Newport 

representatives. 

SNB will be attempting to win a third 

title in a row. 

– John Taylor 

Book Review 

PEACE 

Garry Disher 

Text Publishing 

$29.99 

One of author 

Garry Disher’s 

specialties is Rural 

noir – combining the 

isolation of rural Australia with oldfashioned 

murders to create thrillers. 

Paul Hirschhausen is the only police officer 

in a small town of the South Australian 

wheatfields. He spends his time trying to 

keep the peace amongst usually well-behaved 

locals. However, his reverie is interrupted by 

the murder of a newly arrived resident and 

then the slaughter of horses – are the crimes 

connected? When police from Sydney turn up, 

he knows it’s going to be a long day. 

The beauty of this book is that the 

mundane nature of his everyday job, is just 

as fascinating as the crescendo of solving the 

murders. Disher draws a vivid picture of rural 

life while throwing in the spiciness of a good 

murder mystery. 

Peace is one of Beachside’s picks of 2019; as 

an interesting sidenote, without giving away 

the plot, the perpetrators in the story went to 

Barrenjoey High! – Michael Armstrong 

News 



News 

SEEN… 

The Clive Rogers Equestrian Ground bordering Warringah Rugby 

Park saw a return to its roots last month – it served as a temporary 

horse sanctuary during November’s ‘catastrophic’ bushfire 

danger alert. Concerned owners took advantage of Council’s 

short-term relocation plan, with more than 100 horses floated 

from properties in suburbs including Duffys Forest, Ingleside 

and Terrey Hills for short-term overnight stays in makeshift 

fenced off “stables”. Ingleside’s Juliana Brailey told Pittwater Life 

she transferred nine horses, staying overnight in a campervan 

to watch over them as they were kept out of potential harm’s 

way. She praised Council and the Narrabeen community for 

their kindness and hospitality. “The locals brought us water and 

iceblocks, and offered us shower facilities,” she said. “It was one 

of those times when community and people come together during 

a difficult situation and it really shone through and made the 

experience memorable.” Nice one. 

HEARD… 

Murmurs of unrest from Newport residents and local shop owners 

over alleged unauthorised building works to 321 Barrenjoey 

Road on the south-western tip of the Village and uncertainty 

over its proposed use – including rumours it is being fitted 

out to include accommodation for homeless youth. Pittwater 

Life’s attempts to contact the owners of the property went 

unanswered; however, Council told us: “In relation to allegations 

regarding the proposed future use of the venue as a Youth 

Refuge hostel, Council has been advised that the property will 

not be used as such. The premises will instead be used as a 

mental health counselling facility for local youth in the area.” 

Council also confirmed a succession of Stop Work orders relating 

to unauthorised building works had been recently issued on the 

property, with investigations ongoing. 

ABSURD..? 

Several outraged readers called us last month to report the “savaging” 

of Norfolk Island Pine trees between the road and the 

border fence outside the exclusive North Palm Beach Surf Club, 

Pacific Club and Cabbage Tree Club at South Palm Beach. The 

severe prune now provides Club members with an unrestricted 

and framed view of the beach and water. (The trees on either 

side remain untouched, with foliage to ground level.) We asked 

a Club committee member as well as NB Council if either party 

knew anything about it, or if any permit or application had 

been lodged for the work. 

Their responses were 

identical. Council said: 

“To ensure the safety of 

swimmers and to coincide 

with 2019/20 surf lifesaving 

season, Council staff 

pruned numerous Norfolk 

Pine trees at Palm Beach 

on Ocean Rd. This also 

occurred at neighbouring 

Whale Beach and has been 

a regular maintenance practice 

for many years.” There 

you go: it’s a safety precaution, 

allowing members on 

the decks of the three Clubs 

unfettered views of the surf 

so they can identify any 

swimmers in trouble. 



Pittwater News 

News 

Paving our streets 

with recyclables 

Northern Beaches Council 

will trial using asphalt 

containing plastics and other 

recycled materials on a select 

number of roads throughout 

the region. Science shows 

that reducing the heat in 

traditional black asphalt roads 

could help the environment 

by potentially reducing the 

ambient temperature in areas 

adjoining the roads. This 

reduces the ‘heat island effect’ 

where city areas are hotter 

than surrounding country 

areas. Council says ‘heat 

islands’ result in increased 

peak energy demand 

and higher consequent 

greenhouse emissions, high 

air conditioning costs and 

increased heat-related illness 

and mortality. The trial 

involves the use of Plastiphalt, 

which uses a combination of 

soft plastics, glass and waste 

toner from toner cartridges. 

The first trial using Plastiphalt 

was completed 18 months ago 

in Victoria; several councils 

which have trialled it so far 

are satisfied with the product 

and report the new asphalt 

looks no different to any new 

standard asphalt pavement. 

Mayor Michael Regan told us: 

“We will be monitoring the 

cost and performance of using 

Plastiphalt and any associated 

issues, such as micro plastics 

entering the environment.” 

Wakehurst Parkway 

hospital bus starts 

The new bus service between 

Pittwater and Northern Beaches 

Hospital commenced operation 

in mid-November. Local MP 

Rob Stokes announced the 

existing 155 bus service from 

Bayview Garden Village to 

Narrabeen has been extended 

hourly to Northern Beaches 

Hospital. It marks the first 

time the Wakehurst Parkway 

has been used as a scheduled 

public transport route. 

Passengers can take the 155 

from Mona Vale, opposite 

Village Park, to Frenchs Forest 

Road West, next to the main 

entrance of Northern Beaches 

Hospital. “The new service 

also provides a convenient, 

direct link between Mona 

Vale Hospital and Northern 

Beaches Hospital,” Mr Stokes 

said. Passengers continuing 

to Chatswood can transfer at 

Northern Beaches Hospital to 

the 136 service which travels 

past the same bus stop every 

15 minutes. Full timetable 

transportnsw.info 

Narrabeen Lagoon 

stocked with prawns 

They might not quite be 

ready for Christmas, but 

here’s something for seafood 

lovers to look forward to – the 

NSW Department of Primary 

Industries has revealed that 

half a million juvenile eastern 

king prawns were stocked 

into Narrabeen Lagoon last 

month. These prawns will 

reach catchable size over 

the summer holidays and 

into 2020. A Department 

spokesperson said the latest 

stocking would hopefully 

result in great prawning 

opportunities in the Lagoon 

over coming months. “As 

locals no doubt know, the 

Lagoon is currently closed, 

a situation which tends to 

Continued on page 24 



Curtain up on Performance Space 

Barrenjoey High principal Ian Bowsher 

says he’s thrilled the school’s new oncampus 

Community Performance Space 

is finally 

open, which 

will allow the 

delivery of 

high-quality art 

exhibits, drama 

and musical 

performances. 

Five years in 

the making, the 

$1.9 million 

dedicated 

facility, 

underwritten 

by a 

combination 

of local fundraising efforts plus State and 

Federal government grants, is a purposebuilt, 

architecturally designed theatre 

boasting state of the art audio visual 

equipment with tiered seating for 200 

people and an art gallery space. 

“The building supports the vision of the 

school to better showcase the talents of 

our students and the wider community,” 

Mr Bowsher said. “The exciting part of this 

build has been the genuine support from 

all areas of the community, from local 

member Rob 

Stokes to local 

businesses 

who are now 

able to utilise 

the venue. 

“The 

benefits it 

will provide 

to the school 

and the wider 

community 

are enormous 

as it will 

further 

Photo: Zoe Kemp support 

the development of our exceptionally 

talented performing artists, musicians and 

community groups.” 

Officials at last month’s opening included 

Mr Stokes, Mackellar MP Jason Falinski, 

members of the P&C steering committee 

as well as representative of the building’s 

Gold Sponsor Brown Bros Skip Bins, Wayne 

Brown. 

News 




Continued from page 22 

improve prawning as the tasty 

little crustaceans can’t escape 

out to sea.” They added that 

recreational fishers could use 

a hand-held dip or scoop net 

to target prawns in Narrabeen 

Lagoon – warning that drag 

nets or push/scissor nets were 

prohibited in these waters. 

Keoride trial 

extended 

Two years on from its 

commencement, Pittwater’s 

Keoride on-demand transport 

trial is being extended 

again due to its tremendous 

popularity. The Keoride pilot 

commenced in November 2017 

and is being extended into 

2020 to further investigate and 

refine the innovative service 

model. Its launch coincided 

with the commencement of 

the B-Line. Keoride operates 

between Palm Beach and 

North Narrabeen, connecting 

customers direct from their 

homes to B-Line hubs at 

Mona Vale, Warriewood, 

and Narrabeen. Local MP 

Rob Stokes said 200,000 

passenger trips had been 

completed since the service 

was launched, providing 

an efficient alternative to 

individual cars. “Keoride 

has revolutionised public 

transport in Pittwater 

and been one of the most 

successful on demand 

transport trials in the state,” 

he said. He added Pittwater’s 

challenging geography was 

well-suited to Keoride vehicles 

which could access areas 

not able to be serviced by 

traditional buses. Keoride will 

be reviewed prior to June 30, 

2020 to determine the ongoing 

approach to service delivery. 

Christmas clean-up 

Northern Beaches Wilderness 

Society invites you to join 

them at a community 

Christmas clean-up and 

morning tea at Jameson Park 

Reserve, The Esplanade, 

Narrabeen (meet near 

Jamieson Park Paddle) from 

8.30am to 10am on Sunday 8 

December. Bring hat, gloves 

and water. Contact Sydney@ 

wilderness.org.au or phone 

Charlotte 0412 434 757. 

Spark Tank winners 

News 

Six teams of young people 

won more than $4000 in total 

funding and professional 

business mentoring at the 

Avalon Rec Centre Annex 

recently. Fourteen youth 

ranging from 12 to 23 gave 

their business pitches in 

front of a packed house and 

a judging panel made up of 

prominent local businessmen 

and women. The business 

pitch event ‘Spark Tank’, 

similar to the TV show 

Shark Tank, was hosted by 

Share the Spark, an ACNCapproved 

charity that helps 

young people build resilience 

and learn life skills. Each 

participating team included 



North Narrabeen 

upgrade 

The clubhouse and amenities 

block next to North Narrabeen 

rockpool has been significantly 

upgraded by Northern Beaches 

Council in time for the 

busy summer swim season. 

Work commenced in March 

2019 and was completed in 

September this year. The 

detailed refurbishment 

involved upgrading the 

men’s and women’s toilets 

as well as the addition of 

an accessible amenity and 

at least one person they know 

who is going through a hard 

time. Director Kimberly 

Clouthier said every entry 

was either about helping 

the environment or helping 

people – “It was really heartwarming 

to see such selfless 

proposals.” The two top 

teams were Austin Turpin, 15, 

and Lucas Farrugia, 14, who 

pitched their business idea of 

family change room. The 

swim club on the upper 

floor was also refurbished 

to provide a new kitchen and 

undercover outdoor BBQ area, 

with additional room for 

storage and office space. A 

refreshed external appearance, 

undercover seating, a ramp 

and a walkway completed the 

project. 

Avalon Youth Hub 

secures Govt grant 

The Avalon Youth Hub 

has secured $35,940 in 

E-waste recycling; and Jovn 

Chung-Wright, 17, and Aethan 

Chung-Wright, 20, created 

vertical micro-green farms 

(both won $1250). Kimberly 

said any youth between 8-23, 

who feel they would benefit by 

spending time with someone 

who is passionate about what 

they do, can sign up anytime. 

More info sharethespark. 

org.au 

NSW Government funding 

to assist its operator, the 

Burdekin Association, with 

the delivery of its scheduled 

Podcast Project in 2020. 

Established in 2018, the 

Avalon Youth Hub provides 

access to a broad range of 

youth support services in 

one convenient location. 

Local MP Rob Stokes said: 

“Avalon Youth Hub is an 

integral service in our 

community and provides 

sustained and holistic 

support opportunities. 

This grant provides an 

important opportunity to 

increase discussion in our 

community about local 

youth issues and the many 

support services available – 

sometimes it’s necessary to 

try different ways to reach 

and connect with young 

people and this initiative 

is a fantastic idea.” * Read 

Avalon Youth Hub driving 

force Justene Gordon’s Life 

Story – see page 28. 


News 



News 



Diary gives seniors 

2020 legal leg-up 

Local seniors are being 

encouraged to pick up a copy 

of the NSW Government’s 

free 2020 Legal Topics for 

Older Persons Diary to help 

them understand their legal 

rights and navigate the justice 

system. The diary ensures 

seniors stay up to date on 

legal issues such as ‘scams’, 

insurance claims and elder 

abuse. Attorney General Mark 

Speakman said: “While anyone 

can be the victim of a scam, 

we know dodgy operators tend 

to target older people, which is 

why they need to know what to 

look for, so they’re not taken 

for a ride.” He added the diary 

contained vital information 

on a range of scams, including 

investment, dating and 

romance scams that use a 

variety of methods to con their 

victims, including phishing 

emails and fake phone calls. 

The diary also covers the issue 

of elder abuse and educates 

victims and families on how to 

identify and report it in order 

that any physical, financial 

or emotional abuse is dealt 

with immediately. The diary is 

available at MPs’ local offices 

and Council libraries; also 

order online at legalaid.nsw. 

gov.au 

Probus update 

Ever wonder what it’s like 

to be hoisted from a ship’s 

deck up into a helicopter in 

a raging storm? If not, this 

is the time to hear what it 

is like from someone who 

has. Pittwater Probus Club 

President John Porter and his 

wife Jan were among many 

that were rescued from the 

Cruise Ship “Viking Sky” in 

March this year. John will 

describe the frightening 

conditions on board and 

recount the dramatic rescue 

of passengers by helicopter. 

The meeting is at Mona 

Vale Golf Club from 10am 

on Tuesday December 12. 



Visitors welcome; more info 

Geoff Sheppard 0437 274 074. 

Loosely Woven 

concert 

Tireless Amnesty 

International advocate 

group Loosely Woven will 

present their Christmas 

musical production ‘Evening 

Primrose’ at the Avalon 

Baptist Peace Memorial 

Church, George Street, 

Avalon on Sunday December 

1 commencing 4pm. It 

will comprise a selection 

of mainly acoustic songs, 

folksy, gentle , stirring, 

moving or whimsical. The 

music is performed by 

experienced and engaging 

singers and musicians with 

a range of usual and unusual 

instruments including harp, 

melodicas, glockenspiel, 

harmonium, accordion, 

concertina and ukuleles. 

Free supper; all donations 

go to a great cause, working 

for human rights around the 

globe. Info 0417 069 472. 

Georgie 

breaks 

record 

Congratulations 

to Northern 

Beaches local and 

Rowing Australia 

Women’s 8 

squad member 

Georgie Rowe, 

who unofficially 

broke the World 

Record in the 

5km ergometer 

time trial last 

month with a 

time of 16:54.2! 

Georgie, a 

previous surf 

boat rower, 

only moved to 

still water rowing three years ago and is on her way to 

trialling for the Olympic Team in March. Georgie is a 

Minerva Star under the Minerva Network initiative, with 

women supporting Australian women in the business of 

sport. She is being mentored by Bilgola local and CEO of 

Infrastructure Australia, Romilly Madew. 

More info minervanetwork.com.au. 

Vet 

on 

call 

with 

Dr Ben Brown 

I 

’m often asked by pet 

owners what they should 

feed their pets. With so many 

pet foods available and so 

much conflicting information 

around, decisions about 

nutrition can be difficult and 

confusing. 

Dogs and cats must be feed 

an appropriate, balanced diet 

specific to their needs and 

stage of life. This is critical to 

avoid health problems such as 

obesity and certain nutritional 

deficiencies that can cause 

musculoskeletal, neurological 

and gastrointestinal diseases. 

Some pets will also need 

specific diets to help them 

cope with existing disease. 

For example, many older cats 

suffer from kidney disease 

and specific prescription diets 

can help reduce the workload 

on the kidneys and have been 

shown to help kidney function 

in these pets. 

Certain life stages 

have specific nutritional 

requirements. Puppies and 

kittens must have the right 

balance of energy and calcium 

(among other requirements) to 

ensure correct development of 

bones and muscles. 

Unfortunately, it is very 

difficult to ensure pets 

receive adequate nutrition 

with home-prepared diets. 

A large independent study 

recently found that most 

home-prepared diets for 

pets are unbalanced and, 

without specific advice 

from a veterinary nutritional 

specialist, may be putting 

these pets at risk. Similarly, 

raw foods (particularly 

meats) can be dangerous 

for pets and owners due to 

contamination with bacteria 

such as Salmonella, E. coli and 

Campylobacter and, as such, 

are not recommended. 

Drop into one of our 

hospitals at either Newport 

or Avalon for a free veterinary 

nutritional consultation from 

one of our vets or vet nurses 

to ensure your pet is getting 

exactly what it needs. 

News 



Who 

Cares, 

Wins 

Life Stories 

Justene Gordon’s life vision 

is for a fair, honest, caring 

and supportive world... and 

she’s more than doing her bit 

at a local level. 

Story by Rob Pegley & Lisa Offord 

Born, bred and spending her whole 

career in community services on the 

Northern Beaches, perhaps nobody 

knows the Peninsula better than Justene 

Gordon. And probably nobody works 

harder than she does, to literally foster a 

sense of community locally. 

Justene cares about her community. It 

doesn’t take long to get a sense of that. She 

exudes a passion and enthusiasm when 

talking about Pittwater youth, and their 

struggles. 

If you ever wonder if titles such as Warringah 

Council Citizen of the Year or the 

Pittwater Community Service Award are 

deserved by the people who receive them 

(as Justene did in 2016 and 2018), then 

spend an hour chatting to Justene Gordon. 

You’ll see that she deserves all that and 

more. 

Although she’s far too humble to say as 

much. 

Born in Wheeler Heights and now living 

in Cromer, Justene’s life may have only 

moved a kilometre up the road, but she’s 

covered a lot of ground on the Beaches. 

Similarly in her working life, she started 

with the not-for-profit Northern Beaches 

youth support service Burdekin 20 years 

ago, and after a few detours is back there 

now as Executive Officer. 

“As a 17-year-old, when I thought about 

what I wanted my life to look like, I didn’t 

want it to be about sitting at a desk on a 

computer making money for other people… 

surely there had to be more to life,” 

Justene said. 

So the Cromer High student who described 

herself as a “very sullen and emotional 

teenager – I was probably struggling 

a bit with mental health issues but you 

didn’t really name any issues you had 20 

or 30 years ago…” considered what made 

her happy and what she enjoyed doing. 

“I was always the one sober at parties, 

looking after friends, counselling friends 

and being honest,” she said. 

“I stood up for my rights and was passionate 

about opportunities for women. I 

was proud to be voted ‘biggest feminist’ in 

Year 12, although it was only when I went 

to university that I learned that on the 

spectrum of being a feminist I was pretty 

pathetic. 

“University women had a whole new 

level of feminism, which I found interesting. 

“This solidified my desire for a fair, 

honest, caring and supportive world and 

a social work degree gave me the best and 

broadest opportunity to do this,” she said. 

With degree in hand and at age of 22, 

she joined Burdekin – “the first local job 

that came along” – and she married Angus, 

who she had met at Church. 

Burdekin’s remit was – and is – to 

provide a broad range of youth support 

services that help to prevent young people 

from becoming homeless. Hopefully providing 

prevention strategies, rather than a 

cure. Beds are available for people already 

homeless, but the emphasis is on repairing 

family relationships and giving youngsters 

coping mechanisms and living skills. 

Justene loved her role as a case worker, 

but after leaving to have three children, 

she wasn’t sure she’d ever return to the 

workplace (her mum had been a stay-athome 

parent, and her whole career was 

based around nurturing children). 

“To be honest, I found it a bit boring and 

needed more,” Justene shares. 

She started teaching Community Services 

at TAFE part-time so that she could be 

available for her children. Then she joined 

the board of Burdekin in 2008. Five years 

later she became the Chairperson. 

The timing proved important: there was 

a changing landscape in the welfare sector 

and for the first time, organisations were 

forced to tender competitively against 

each other. 

“I guess I learnt that the world of welfare 

wasn’t as kind and generous as I thought,” 

Justene says. “There were only so many 

contracts to be awarded and Burdekin 

missed out. The result was that we were 

facing closure. 

“I decided I didn’t want that to happen,” 

she adds. 

Supported by high-profile local MPs 

Mike Baird, Rob Stokes and Brad Hazzard, 

she took up the fight as President. 

“Rob Stokes gave me the bit of advice 

that changed things for me,” she shares. 



“He told me to work within the system. He 

made me realise that I couldn’t change the 

system, but that I could look for ways to 

fight within it.” 

Soon the government started backtracking 

on their harsh contract decisions, as 

they realised how much more organisations 

such as Burdekin were doing for 

their local communities. 

“We were contracted for 19 beds,” says 

Justene. “But in reality, we provided 52 

beds. And so by closing us down, a lot 

more people were becoming homeless 

again.” 

The government gave Burdekin funding 

to continue their work. In 2016, Justene 

resigned from the Burdekin Committee to 

take up the role as Executive Officer, and 

the organisation has gone from strength to 

strength. 

Justene is a major force behind the 

Avalon Youth Hub, set up to tackle youth 

mental health. 

Established in 2018, the NSW Government 

assisted with the initial fit-out and 

the Hub is currently supported by Northern 

Beaches Council and a generous philanthropist 

until June next year. Only last 

month Burdekin won funding from the 

NSW Government again – a further $36k 

from the Opportunities Grant Program to 

fund a 2020 Podcast Project, in which the 

Youth Hub’s message can be spread across 

the Beaches in an effective way. 

The Hub itself came about after the 

Principal of Barrenjoey High School, Ian 

Bowsher, approached Justene and asked 

for help in the area, after several young 

people had died at their own hands. In 

fact, adult suicide rates are always higher 

than youth rates in the area, but as Justene 

says, the ripple effect is much wider in the 

young community. 

“It’s so much more distressing when 

young people die,” says Justene. “And with 

social media, that message is spread so 

widely.” 

As the lead agency, Burdekin brought 

together different local youth and family 

related services to help young people 

struggling in the region. (“We’re small, 

nimble and responsive, with no red 

tape,” says Justene.) The results have 

meant that support has been provided 

to young people with their whole lives 

ahead of them. 

While mental health, drink or drugs are 

factors (and sometimes self-medicating 

short-term solutions to the pain), it’s actually 

a breakdown in families and communities 

that provides most casualties. 

Something Justene intuitively saw coming 

when she started out 20 years ago. 

“I could see a problem was coming,” 

Justene recalls. “The rate of divorce, both 

parents working – which of course is fine 

– was leading to a breakdown of the family 

structure. The community was changing, 

too. We’re all very busy and don’t always 

have time for each other.” 

Justene says we can all help by becoming 

‘Lighthouse Adults’ as she calls them. 

“When teenagers start to experience 

problems, it often becomes hard to talk to 

their parents,” she says. “That’s when they 

look to family friends, or friends of their 

parents for help. That can be any of us. We 

need to help in our communities.” 

You get a sense that relaxing isn’t a huge 

thing on Justene’s agenda. Between caring 

for her own kids (Owen 14, Heath 12 and 

Torah 7) and those in the community, her 

time is full. She loves watching the dramas 

of The Block and can be found at Bunnings 

or Flower Power at some point over any 

weekend. She plays a bit of softball, and 

she loves to watch her kids play sport. 

She admits that the emotions of her 

work can take a toll, but that these days 

she’s far more hands off in her senior role. 

Although not literally… 

“Some organisations have a ‘no hug’ 

policy, but that’s not us. These are kids 

without family and that’s not a policy we 

want. There’s a fine line with professional 

boundaries, but we like kids to know that 

we care.” 

* The Burdekin Association burdekin.org. 

au; Avalon Youth Hub avalonyouthhub. 

org.au; Kids’ Helpline 1800 55 1800 Lifeline 

13 11 14 or lifeline.org.au 

Life Stories 

CLOCKWISE FROM OPPOSITE: On Avalon Youth Hub 

turf; accepting the Pittwater Community Service award 

from Rob Stokes last year; with Youth Hub access team 

in 2018; Warringah Council Citizen of the Year in 2016; 

OMG is that a touch-tab phone with a cord?; speaking 

at the launch of the Avalon Youth Hub; Justene on her 

wedding day, with husband Angus. 



Photo: Rolex/Studio Borlenghi 

Jibe Talking Story 

We talk to some of the 

Pittwater skippers and 

crew competing in the 

75 th Sydney to Hobart 

Yacht Race – some for 

the first time, some 

for the umpteenth. 

Story by Ros Burton 

Special Feature 

Few could have imagined 

that the Cruising Yacht 

Club of Australiaorganised 

Sydney to Hobart 

Yacht Race which heard 

the starter’s gun for the 

first time in 1945 with only 

nine entrants in its lineup, 

would 75 years later be 

acknowledged as one of the 

world’s most challenging 

yacht races. 

This year, a billowing fleet 

of 170 boats will compete, 

most with strong lead-ups 

and preparations. 

It’s a Friday afternoon in 

October and Mark Richards, 

the 52-year-old skipper of 

‘Wild Oats XI’, the 100-foot 

super maxi owner by the 

Oatley Family, is at the Royal 

Prince Alfred Yacht Club. 

Since 2005, Richards has 

skippered ‘Wild Oats XI’ in 14 

Sydney to Hobart races and 

the boat has won line honours 

nine times, and the triple 

(line honours, corrected time 

and a new race record) twice. 

With him is helmsman 

Chris Links. The same age 

as Richards, he grew up 

at Taylors Point, has been 

sailing since he was eight 

and completed 15 Sydney to 

Hobarts. “Richo” and he did 

a shipwright apprenticeship 

together in the early 1980s, he 

tells me, and have sailed with 

or against one another ever 

since. 

In 2016, the year that the 

boat’s hydraulic keel ram 

broke, Links was down 

below. “I had just gone 

down and climbed into my 

bunk, and the boat tipped 

over,” he recounts. ‘Wild 

Oats’ withdrew from the 

race, as it had been forced 

to the previous year, when 

the mainsail tore. “We were 

doing 25 knots downwind 

and sailed into a 40-knot 

southerly. It was nighttime 

and we were pinned down, 

and we ripped the main 

trying to get it down.” 

But Links admits that 

the most devastating race 

occurred in 2017 when ‘Wild 

Oats’ was given an hour’s 

penalty, so despite having 

beaten ‘Comanche’, skippered 

by James Spithill, ‘Wild Oats’ 

ultimately lost the race, and 

the record for the fastest race 

time. 

“We dealt with it by doing 

a better job next year,” Links 

says. Indeed, ‘Wild Oats’ won 

line honours in 2018. 

The ‘Wild Oats’ crew came 

together from all over the 

world for a 10-day training 

camp at the beginning of 

November, before competing 

in the Cabbage Tree Island 

Race. 



“The Rolex Sydney to 

Hobart is the most exciting 

race of the year, and the 

build-up is a big part of it,” 

says Links. “We’re always 

trying to improve what we’re 

doing and how we’re doing it, 

and obviously the boat.” 

Mark Richards, who has 

been a member of the RPAYC 

for 35 years, started sailing 

aged six at Bayview Yacht 

Racing Association (BYRA). 

From dinghies he moved to 

yachts, sailing in 1986 and 

1987 Sydney to Hobarts, in 

two America’s Cup challenges 

and as a principal helmsman 

on ‘Wild Oats IX’ when it won 

the 2003 Admiral’s Cup. 

Richards admits he gets 

very nervous before the start. 

“It’s an integral part of it. 

There’s a lot of expectation, 

the front end of the fleet is 

pretty competitive and it’s a 

big responsibility,” he said. 

Since 2005 he says the 

competition has increased. 

“For the first 10 years ‘Wild 

Oats’ was up against one 

other 100-foot grand prix 

boat, but now we’re up against 

four, so it’s pretty tough. 

“The 75 th Sydney to Hobart 

Race is exciting. It’s a great 

milestone... it’s amazing when 

you think how it all started. 

It’s great to be a part of it.” 

Frank Walker, who has 15 

Sydney to Hobarts under his 

belt, did his first race in 1982, 

when a sextant and dead 

reckoning was relied on for 

navigation. 

“I went again in 1984 and 

we didn’t finish, as there was 

a big east coast low off the 

South Coast. There were 152 

starters and 106 retirements 

and a sailor drowned off 

Jervis Bay.” Walker didn’t go 

in 1998 when six lives and 

five boats were lost. 

However, he skippered his 

own boat for the 50 th race in 

1994, and was in heavy breeze 

crossing Storm Bay when 

water started pouring into 

the bow. The crew sent out 

a May Day, as they couldn’t 

work out where the water 

was coming in. It was a metre 

deep and over the top of the 

toilet, when they discovered 

the depth sounder skin fitting 

had broken, and they set 

about repairing it. 

This year he’s on a XP 44 

yacht, ‘XS Moment’, owned by 

Ray Hudson. 

“I’m the navigator and 

tactician, so apart from 

finding the way from A to B 

my job is make sure the boat 

is going as fast as it should 

be. For me the race is like 

being a short-handed sailor. 

I go to sleep for 40 minutes, 

then wake up to see what’s 

happening, and I think 

should be happening, and 

put my head down again. I do 

get tired, and the lead-up to 

the race is tiring because I’m 

studying weather maps, and 

working out which way we’re 

likely to go – and often that 

can’t be done until midnight 

on Christmas Day.” 

Someone who isn’t fazed by 

broken sleep and having to go 

on watch in the middle of the 


CLOCKWISE FROM OPPOSITE: ‘Showtime’ in racing mode; Katy MacDonald, 

Ian Edwards and Janelle Orth on ‘Wings’; ‘Pretty Woman’ in open water; tactician 

Steve McConaghy; ‘Wings’ will boast four women amongst her crew. 






night is 47-year-old Bayview 

resident Marcus Grimes, 

owner of the JV42 aptly 

named ‘Insomnia’. This will 

be his first Sydney to Hobart, 

but with two young children, 

he says, he’s used to waking 

up in the middle of the night. 

Stephen Dadour, the 

skipper of the Dehler 41 

‘Solutions’, is also doing his 

first Sydney to Hobart, and so 

are all his crew. He believes 

the challenge for this boat of 

first timers will be the race’s 

longevity and the discipline 

of maintaining focus over 

that time. 

“We’re under no illusions 

about what it’s going to be 

like out there,” he says, and 

is grateful for the technology 

which enables the crew to see 

what weather lies ahead and 

prepare for it. 

On the Farr 45 ‘Pretty 

Woman’, skippered by 

Richard Hudson, which won 

line honours in the Pittwater 

to Paradise Race in early 2019, 

are three graduates of the 

RPAYC’s Youth Development 

Program – Jess Angus, in her 

early 20s, 19-year-old Antony 

Hawke, and 25-year-old Alice 

Tarnawski. All doing their 

first Sydney to Hobart. 

Tarnawski grew up in the 

Blue Mountains; she was 

introduced to sailing at age 

11 by her cousin who lived at 

Newport. 

“I loved it and was hooked,” 

she says. Through school she 

and her father stayed with her 

aunt and uncle in Pittwater 

every weekend, and she 

sailed. 

She was in her mid-teens 

when she got into the RPAYC 

Youth Development Program 

and was with it until age 23, 

competing in events not only 

in Australia, but also in New 

Zealand, Europe, Korea and 

America. She sailed offshore 

races on ‘Pretty Woman’, 

including the Sydney to 

Southport. 

“The Sydney to Hobart is 

the longest offshore race I’ve 

ever done and managing 

fatigue is going to be the 

biggest challenge,” says 

Tarnawski. “As a newbie to 

ocean racing you tend to go 

hard early, but you don’t want 

to run out of stamina. It’s 

about making sure you get 

enough rest, and that you’re 

eating and getting enough 

fluids.” 

Skipper Richard Hudson, 

who turns 70 in mid- 

December, admits managing 

fatigue can be hard, and even 

when sticking rigidly to the 

watch system, people can get 

fatigued, and might need to 

miss a watch. 

“But because most of us 

have sailed together many 

times we know each other’s 

strengths and weaknesses.” 

At the time of writing, Mark 

Griffith’s Ker 40 ‘Showtime’ 

was leading Division 2 in the 

Sydney Blue Water Pointscore 

series. Mark has won multiple 

national and state titles, in 

classes including foiling A 

Class Catamarans, Hobie 

cats, sailboards and One 

Design yachts. Although 

he’d done a lot of ocean 

racing it wasn’t until last 

year that he did the Sydney 

to Hobart. Most of his crew 

sailed with him last year and 

are mostly from the RPAYC. 

But there are a few newbies 

including Sarah Crawford, 

who last year was one of the 

13-strong all-women crew 

led by skipper Stacey Jackson 

on the 66-footer ‘Wild Oats 

X’, racing under the name 

‘Ocean Respect Racing’ which 

finished sixth across the line, 

and second on IRC handicap. 

“‘Showtime’ is very fast 

downwind, so if we get 

downwind conditions for 

even part of the race I think 

we’ll do very well,” says 

Griffith. “We’ve got a good 

solid crew and we sail smart. 

We know we can win, but for 

the Sydney to Hobart race you 

ABOVE: Mark Richards has 

skippered ‘Wild Oats’ in 14 Sydney 

to Hobarts since 2005, during 

which time the boat has won line 

honours nine times. BELOW: Dave 

Suttie onboard ‘Pekljus’. 

need a lot of luck as well as 

skill.” 

A man who knows only 

too well that it takes luck 

and skill is professional 

sailor Steve McConaghy, who 

started sailing a Manly Junior 

out of Avalon Sailing Club 

when he was seven. This is 

his 21st Sydney to Hobart 

and he’s tactician and watch 

captain on the TP52 ‘Bush 

Paul Group’, owned by Ian 

Short. McConaghy has done 

five Sydney to Hobarts on 

TP52s, so understands these 

fast-high-end racers. He 

was on Syd Fischer’s TP52 

‘Ragamuffin’ in 2009 when it 



came third overall on IRC. 

“I’ve had four thirds 

overall, so one day I’ll get a 

second and a first,” he says 

with a smile. 

When I meet 74-year-old 

David Suttie at the Royal 

Prince Alfred Yacht Club he 

shows me his 50-foot Don 

McIntyre-designed boat 

‘Pekljus’. He’s racing under 

PHS, a performance handicap 

rating, and came first on 

PHS in this year’s Sydney to 

Southport Race and second in 

last year’s Sydney to Hobart. 

He says the boat will never 

do well on IRC, the rating 

under which most boats enter, 

that rates different designs 

of keelboats according to 

lengths, weights, drafts, rig 

sizes and sail areas plus 

additional features, and 

determines the winner of the 

coveted Tattersall Cup. 

‘Pekljus’ has a 12-man crew, 

including his son Robert, 

who is the leading forward 

hand. In the 2017 race Robert 

took a diamond ring with 

him, and stepping ashore 

at Constitution Dock, fell to 

one knee and proposed to 

his fiancée, Olivia Holtz, now 

wife, who had flown to Hobart 

to meet him. 

Down below David Suttie 

shows me the pie warmer, 

explaining that pies will be 

their staple food, as they can 

be eaten with one hand, but 

they’ll also have muffins, 

fruit, muesli bars, cups of 

coffee and plenty of water to 

ensure against dehydration. 

Suttie doesn’t get seasick, but 

says that some of the crew do, 

and despite applying patches 

or taking medication, in really 

rough conditions they are 

physically sick. 

The boat has a water ballast 

system, which enables over 

2000 litres of saltwater to be 

transferred from tanks on 

either side. This will be essential 

in 2021 when he plans 

to compete in the two-handed 

Sydney to Hobart Race. 

Last year Ian Edwards did 

his first Sydney to Hobart 

on ‘Wings’, a Dehler 46 he 

owns with his wife Lindy. 

‘Wings’, Edwards explains, is 

a fast cruising boat, rather 

than a dedicated racing boat. 

It has an oven, a fridge, a 

freezer, and even an expresso 

machine. I have visions 

of the crew whipping up 

cappuccinos, but he says that 

they take too much time and 

energy, especially if there’s 

heavy winds and the boat’s 

heeling, so a coffee’s “usually 

a straight black or white.” 

Although Lindy chooses not 

to do the long offshore races, 

their son Paul is one of the 

crew. There are four women 

on the boat for the Hobart 

race – Janease Graham and 

Katy MacDonald, who both 

have offshore skippering 

experience, Elyse Guevara 

and Janelle Orth, and are all 

of them are doing the race for 

the first time. 

As a young girl, Orth, 

now in her early 40s, lived 

in Vaucluse. On Boxing Day, 

she used to watch the boats 

heading down the coast from 

the cliffs at The Gap, and said 

to her sisters, “I’m going to 

be doing that race one day.” 

The grandfather of a friend of 

hers had a boat on Pittwater 

and she sailed on it during 

the holidays, then after school 

she moved to the Northern 

Beaches and worked for a man 

who closed his business every 

Thursday afternoon, and took 

all his staff sailing. 

Orth got married and had 

children and didn’t sail for 

nearly 20 years. When she 

got back into it she trained at 

Eastsail, before completing 

her competent crew, first aid, 

safety at sea and marine radio 

courses, and took up every 

sailing opportunity she was 

offered. Last year she sailed 

with yachtsman Tony Kirby 

from the CYCA in Rushcutters 

Bay on his Ker 46, ‘Patrice’. 

For over 10 years he has been 

raising money for the Kids’ 

Cancer Project doing the 

Sydney to Hobart. However, 

he recently sold ‘Patrice’ and 

won’t have a boat for this race, 

so with the encouragement of 

Janelle Orth, who had Stage 

Two cancer, but who made a 

full recovery, the ‘Wings’ team 

has taken on the Kids’ Cancer 

Project, and as it’s the 75th 

Sydney to Hobart are aiming 

to raise $75,000. (Donations 

at rolexsydneyhobart19. 

everydayhero.com/au/wings) 

This is a yacht race 

that requires guts, grit 

and determination, not to 

mention sailing skill and 

expertise. To participate in 

the Sydney to Hobart is an 

enormous achievement, to 

win an absolute triumph, 

and the best of luck to all the 

Pittwater crews heading south 

on Boxing Day. 




Carols & Church Services 2019 

Spirit of 

Christmas 

IN THE PARK 

Switch on the Santa Tracker – Saint Nick is 

headed for Mona Vale’s Village Park! This year 

the free fun begins at 6pm on Saturday December 

14 when the park precinct will come alive 

ANGLICAN 

with music and song, with a line-up of local 

Barrenjoey Churches 

superstars leading the audience in the traditional 

– St Mark’s Avalon 

tunes. Presented by The Rotary Club of Upper 

Beach 

Northern Beaches in partnership with Pittwater 

1 Kevin Ave 

Uniting Church, the Carols in the Park organisers 

Sunday 22 

promise a wonderful evening for the hundreds 

10am Carols Service 

of families who choose this event to share the 

Christmas Eve 

Christmas spirit. There will be plenty of food and 

5pm Family Service 

refreshments available. And Santa will make his 

Christmas Day 

usual appearance, arriving in spectacular fashion! 

More info rotaryuppernorthernbeaches.org 

9.30am Family Service 

or phone Annette on 0417 236 982. 

WHAT: Carols in the Park 

WHERE: Village Park, Mona Vale 

WHEN: Sat Dec 14 from 6pm 

AT THE BEACH 

The hugely popular Carols at the Beach, hosted 

by Avalon Beach Surf Life Saving Club, will be held 

on Saturday December 7. The relaxed event on 

the grass outside the club brings our community 

together for a night of singing – led by the sensational 

Jubilation Choir – celebration and fireworks 

all set against the spectacular backdrop of Avalon 

Beach. The evening also includes a market-style 

food fair from 4pm, a visit by Santa and other 

special guests. This event supports the club to 

purchase much-needed rescue equipment. 

WHAT: Carols at the Beach 

WHERE: Avalon Beach SLSC 

WHEN: Sat Dec 7 from 4pm; carols from 6-9pm 

BY THE LAKE 

Carols by the Lake 2019 hosted by The Link 

Church is on the 21st of December at 7pm (with 

pre-entertainment from 6pm) at Lakeside Park, 

North Narrabeen. It will be another great evening 

with carols, food trucks, Santa, fireworks and 

more! Get there early to claim your spot – bring 

family, friends and your best singing voice! BYO 

your own water bottle as they will have water 

stations positioned at the event along with other 

initiatives to make this event environmentally 

sustainable. It’s a free event. 

WHAT: Carols by the Lake 

WHERE: Lakeside Park, North Narrabeen 

WHEN: Sat Dec 21st pre-entertainment from 

6pm for 7pm start. 

CHURCH SERVICES 2019 

Barrenjoey Churches – 

St David’s Palm Beach 

1079 Barrenjoey Rd 

Sunday 22 

9.30am Carols Service 

Christmas Eve 

8pm Service 

Christmas Day 

8am Service 

Mona Vale Anglican 

Church – St John’s 

1624 Pittwater Rd, 

Mona Vale 

Sunday 22 

9am Service of Lessons 

and Carols 

7pm BBQ 

8pm Carols by 

Candlelight 

Christmas Eve 

5.30pm Family Service 

Christmas Day 

8am Holy Communion 

10am Family Service 

Sunday 29 


10am Family Service 

Narrabeen Anglican 

Church – St Faith’s 

5-9 Clarke St 

Sun 22 

8.30am Traditional 

Lessons and Carols 

Christmas Eve 

4pm Family Celebration 

6pm Family Celebration 

8pm Christmas Service 

with Communion 

Christmas Day 

9.30am Family Service 

Warriewood 

Anglican Church 

Auditorium 

at Warriewood Brook 

6-14 Macpherson St 

Christmas Day 

9.30am Christmas 

Service 

Newport Anglican 

Foamcrest Ave, 

Newport (next to Post 

Office) 

Christmas Eve 

6pm Children’s 

Christmas Play 

Christmas Day 


Service 

9.30am Family 

Christmas Celebration 

CATHOLIC 

Sacred Heart 

Mona Vale 

1 Keenan St 

Christmas Eve 

5pm Children’s Mass 

in Sacred Heart School 

Grounds 

9pm Sacred Heart 

School Grounds 

Midnight Mass (Carols 

from 11.30pm) 

Christmas Day 

8am, 10am, 6pm 

(Croatian Mass) 

Maria Regina Avalon 

7 Central Rd 

Christmas Eve 

6pm Children’s Mass 

9pm Mass of the Night 

(Carols from 8.30pm) 

Christmas Day 

9am Mass 

St Joseph’s, Narrabeen 

21 Lagoon St 

Christmas Eve 

6pm Family Mass 

Midnight Mass (Carols 

from 11.30pm) 

Christmas Day 

9.30am Mass 

St Rose, 

Collaroy Plateau 

4 Rose Ave 

Christmas Eve 

5pm Family Mass 

8pm Christmas Vigil 

Christmas Day 

8am Mass 

UNITING 

Pittwater Uniting 

Church Warriewood 

10 Jubilee Ave 

Tuesday 17 

7.30pm Service of 

Solace for those 

mourning loved ones 

Christmas Eve 

5pm Musical Service 

9pm Christmas Eve 

Service 

Christmas Day 

9am Christmas Service 

PRESBYTERIAN 

Pittwater Presbyterian 

Church Newport 

Robertson Rd 

Christmas Eve 

8pm Carols by 

Candlelight service 

Christmas Day 

9am Service 

* Check church 

websites for updates 

and more information 



Present 

company! 

Shop local this Christmas for a great 

range of gift ideas – you’ll also be helping 

local small businesses. 

Gift Guide 

Richards Shoes 

It is clear to see why Richards 

Shoes is a popular destination 

for families on the northern 

beaches. The spacious store 

has a great range of shoes for 

everyone, with brands perfect 

for the coastal lifestyle including 

Birkenstock, Taos, Gino Ventori 

and Diana Ferrari (for ladies); 

Florsheim, Merrell and Rocport 

(for men); and Clarks and Bobux 

(for the kids). And with owner 

Rod Hiscocks – whose family has 

been in the footwear industry 

for three generations – and his 

experienced staff, you know 

you will not only come out with 

a great-looking pair of shoes 

but with the correct fitting. Rod 

says thei r most popular gift 

purchases for Christmas are 

Birkenstocks for men, women and 

kids in many styles and colours 

– and when you mention this 

promotion in Pittwater Life you’ll 

receive a 10% discount! “Plus, 

if you’re purchasing shoes as a 

Christmas gift you get peace of 

mind, knowing we have an oldfashioned, 

full refund or exchange 

policy,” said Rodney. “And we’d 

like to wish all our loyal customers 

a Merry Christmas and thank 

them for their support.” Find them 

at Shop 4, 3 Bungan St Mona 

Vale. P: 9999 6065 

Avalon Shopping Night 

Remember when preparing for Christmas 

was a pleasure not a chore? How anticipation 

grew with every present bought and 

every ingredient planned? This year marks 

a return to the excitement of Christmas as 

the retailers of Avalon Village unite to host 

a late-night shopping event from 5-8pm 

on Thursday December 19. 

In response to community calls for 

more cheer, more atmosphere and more 

convenience, the shop owners, cafes and 

restaurants are working together to give 

locals and visitors every reason to avoid 

going way down ‘south’. 

Avalon Shopping Night is the highlight 

of activities already underway in the Village, 

an evening for the whole family as 

the streets will be alive with music, and 

almost every store and dining outlet open 

– many with special offers and hospitality. 

There will also be champagne and a free 

gift-wrapping station! 

“When we first started telling customers 

and friends what we were planning, the 

response was overwhelmingly positive. 

Many people prefer a local shopping 

experience because they are buying from 

members of their community,” said Madeleine 

Petersen, owner of Avalon Uncovered, 

and Avalon Palm Beach Chamber of 

Commerce Committee Member for Retail. 

“And once Belinda, from Salty Avalon, 

and Libby, from Beachside Bookshop and 

I started asking other retailers to join in 

extending their trading hours for one 

evening, we were delighted that everyone 

wanted to get involved. It’s more reason 

for our community to choose us for their 

Christmas present shopping. Plus, we 

couldn’t be more happy with the decorations 

the Council has installed this year as 

a result of local demand... it’s really starting 

to feel like Christmas in the Village,” 

she added. 

* For participating retailers and offers, 

visit Avalon Shopping Night Facebook 

page. 



Peninsula Reflections 

Do you need inspiration for 

Christmas gift ideas? Peninsula 

Reflections can help you design a 

beautiful frame to show off that 

special photograph, treasured family 

memorabilia, or artwork purchased 

whilst on that trip of a lifetime. Or 

maybe you have created an artwork 

for your loved one, and need a 

way to present it perfectly. Bill and 

Linda will assist you find the perfect 

framing solution that suits the art, 

your tastes, decor and budget. 

Design isn’t the only consideration 

when deciding how best to frame an item, 

preservation of your artwork is extremely 

important, and as Bill is a qualified Master 

Picture Framer, you can rest assured the 

materials and methods used in the framing 

process will keep your art in its best condition 

for many years. This year Peninsula Reflections 

will be open until midday on Christmas Eve, 

and happy to discuss your framing projects 

as soon as you can visit them. Or you can 

purchase a gift certificate for those lastminute 

gift ideas. So bring in your important 

piece and they will frame it for your special 

someone, for a truly outstanding gift. Suite 

2102, 4 Daydream St. P: 9979 4488 

Three Peaks Photography 

Professional landscape 

photographer Peter Sedgwick 

is back with great gift ideas 

at Warriewood Square right 

through until Christmas Eve. 

On display are more 

than 500 unique and 

beautiful images, 

with a full portfolio 

of work featuring all 

the Northern Beaches. 

Another portfolio 

showcases hidden 

bays and beaches of 

Pittwater, plus there’s 

imagery from the north 

coast, Central Coast, south 

coast, the Blue Mountains 

and a whole new section 

featuring the Kimberlys. If 

The Art Shop 


you purchase a framed print 

at one of the three standard 

sizes the framing can be 

done while you wait! Images 

can be purchased to suit – 

simply take a photo of your 

wall space, email it to peter@ 

threepeaksphotography.com. 

au and the image that you 

like can be digitally hung on 

The Art Shop Mona Vale is an independent 

art and design supplies store serving and 

supporting the creative community on the 

Northern Beaches. Along with an extensive 

range of materials for the artist, the student, 

the designer and the child The Art Shop is 

packed with creative and hard to find gift ideas 

for Christmas and the holidays. Beautiful books 

will inspire and fire the imagination. Paints, 

pencils, pens, brushes, easels, papers, journals 

and canvases and painting boards will bring 

ideas to life. A wide range of art and modelmaking 

kits for collage, print making, painting, 

bead making, candle making and more make 

for school holiday fun – as do wonderful 

wooden kits to make working models based 

on Leonardo’s 15th century drawings. This 

cool, colourful and peaceful space filled with 

inspiring and unusual gifts makes Christmas 

shopping a simple pleasure. If choosing is 

difficult, gift vouchers for any amount are 

your wall! Peter also offers 

one-on-one photography 

tuition, comprising a full 

day of learning (based on 

your needs), at Narrabeen. 

Plus he runs twoday 

workshops held 

locally or in the Blue 

Mountains. Gift Cards 

and Christmas Cards 

featuring our bays and 

beaches are available 

in two sizes. Gift 

Vouchers are available 

for all products – it’s a 

great way to give a gift if you 

can’t decide what to get! 

Find Peter in front of JB Hi-Fi; 

visit threepeaksphotography. 

com.au. P: 0409 049 745 

available. Located inside the arcade at 20 

Bungan Street, The Art Shop is open 9am to 

5.30pm Monday to Friday and 10am to 2pm 

on Saturday. P: 9979 6559 

Foleys Nursery 

Foleys Nursery is a family 

owned and run local business. 

They pride themselves 

on stocking the 

latest plant trends and the 

old favourites suited to the 

local area. Horticulturist 

Justin Foley says staff are 

their main asset. “They 

are friendly, helpful and 

knowledgeable, you could 

say a triple threat!” he 

said. Thinking of a gift this 

Christmas? Think plants… 

Foleys have a large range 

of water-savvy plants for 

both indoors and outside, 

a large selection of quality 

pots, soils and mulch, 

fertilisers and pest control. 

Come in and see their 

selection of Rhipsalis, the 

plant of the moment – and 

why not pick up a pot and 

macramé pot hanger while 

you are at it? Justin suggests 

succulents, peace lily 

or one of their herbs could 

be a great teacher gift. 

There might even be some 

sunflowers almost ready 

to flower. From December 

14th until Christmas if 

you spend $100 or more 

and mention this editorial, 

you’ll receive a bag 

of planting compost for 

free (one per customer). 

Planting compost is vital 

for drought-proofing your 

garden. So come on in to 

the nursery, open 7 days 

16 Macpherson St, Warriewood 

(entry via Brands 

Lane). P: 9997 8573 

DECEMBER 2019 37 

Gift Guide

Mona Vale Xmas Market 

The 11th annual Mona Vale 

Xmas Market is on Sunday 

December 8 – and being 

just a few weeks away from 

Christmas, the market presents 

a great opportunity to 

do all your Christmas shopping 

at the one place, surrounded 

by great live music 

all day and more stalls than 

you can poke a candy cane 

at! This year browse a great 

mix of market stalls selling 

everything from fashion, 

homewares, jewellery, gadgets 

and games to handmade 

Christmas cards and decorations 

– there is literally something 

for everyone. Local 

shops get involved by having 

Christmas sales on the day 

throughout the shopping precinct 

and elsewhere within 

the suburb. The market’s 

music area will be in fine 

form all day, with local bands 

and musicians creating a 

great vibe. There will be rides 

for the kids, with jumping 

castles, a huge bungee and 

mini Jeeps to drive around. 

It’s a great family friendly day 

out, where you can try some 

international flavours from 

the food trucks, and get your 

Christmas shopping done 

while surrounded by the 

sights, smells and sounds of 

the vibrant Mona Vale Xmas 

Market. It’s on at Village 

Park Mona Vale from 9am- 

5pm on December 8. 

Gift Guide 

Beachside Bookshop 

Have as much fun buying 

your books as gifting or 

reading them. Known for 

their great advice and 

friendly service, the team at 

Beachside has read hundreds 

of books in preparation to 

share their pick of the best 

books of 2019. From clever 

babies to adults who only 

read non-fiction, everyone 

(including yourself) on 

your gift list is covered. 

They also have a cleverly 

curated range of unique 

cards, including everyone’s 

favourite, Twigseeds. Drop 

in to pick a free copy of their 

catalogue and put yourself in 

the running to win the entire 

selection by buying a copy of 

Beyond the Bends Barrenjoey 

High School’s fundraising 

cookbook ($35 – all proceeds 

go straight to the school). 

Live in 2107? Beachside is 

offering free delivery on all 

orders over $100! There is 

also free customer parking at 

the door. P: 9918 9918 

RITZYROCKS 

Pink is ‘in’ for Renata of 

RITZYROCKS… she says 

it’s such a happy colour 

– which is why Renata 

can be seen around the 

Northern Beaches sporting 

her ultra-hot pink hair! 

“It brings such a smile to 

people’s faces and is a 

good conversation starter,” 

said Renata. In keeping 

with colour, Renata will 

be showcasing and selling 

a wonderful range of 

colourful Venetian Glass 

pendants, watches, rings, 

earrings and more unique 

ideas at the Mona Vale 

Xmas Market at Village Park 

on December 8. To see the 

range head to her website 

ritzyrocks.com.au. There’s 

something that’s bound to 

appeal for everyone – and 

prices are from as low as 

$25 (plus postage). 



Gift Guide 

Northern Suburbs Water Filters 

In this boutique outlet on 

Bungan Street, Mona Vale 

you’ll find gifts that are good 

for the environment, healthy 

for you, reusable – and 

friendly to your wallet! Their 

stainless steel bottles, picnic 

cups, water jugs and soda 

siphons are great stockingfillers. 

There’s something 

different for everyone! 

Their water filters make 

wonderful, healthy gifts 

for your family that give 

great-tasting, purified water 

year-round. They range from 

beautiful and decorative 

Palm Beach Fitness Studio 

After years in the gym space wilderness, the 

Palm Beach Fitness Studio (PBFS) is open for 

business to service the local community. 

Specialising in Personal Training, Director and 

owner Karen Walker is offering Pittwater Life 

readers a Christmas gift special. 

“Normally a one-hour personal training 

session costs $85, however our Christmas 

gift special is a discount of $20 per session 

making each one-hour session $65,” Karen 

said. (Offer expires December 23 this 

year.) Also, if you join PBFS in December 

you’ll receive a one-hour session FREE! 

The new studio, nestled in the Barrenjoey 

Road shops and café precinct and sited in 

a boutique and convenient space where car 

parking is easy, features a blend of cardio 

and functional training equipment, to offer 

clients effective programming. In addition 

to Personal Training, circuit classes will also 

be scheduled, throughout the week. “Most 

people find self-discipline an obstacle to 

fitness so that’s where the Personal Trainers 

step in,” Karen explains. “Once a client 

commits to turning up, cancelling is not an 

option and neither is an ineffective session. 

Whilst my intention is for clients to enjoy 

sessions and classes, the main thing is that 

they see and feel results.” Karen is a fully 

qualified Personal Trainer who has lived in 

the area for more than 25 years. “I’m excited 

and looking forward to helping people 

pottery filters, portable bench 

top filters, under sink triple 

filters to the top-of-the-line 

reverse osmosis purifiers for 

those who want the best. All 

quality filters at discounted 

prices. 

“It is health that is real 

wealth and not pieces of gold 

and silver.” – Mahatma Gandhi. 

Jenny, Jan, Marita and Levi 

wish all their customers and 

readers a Merry Christmas and 

a happy, healthy New Year! 

Find them at 6/20 Bungan 

Street, Mona Vale. 

P: 9979 5855 

Ecotopia 

Retreat into nature with 

Ecotopia Australia – a curated 

emporium of functional 

and ethically made lifestyle 

luxuries. With an intrinsic 

commitment to quality over 

quantity, Warriewood-based 

Ecotopia is home to a range 

of products that promote 

ecological connection, 

calmness, grounding and 

gratitude on your daily 

journey through life. The 

range includes aromatics like 

sage and palo santo, journals, 

books, cards, games, music, 

crystals and jewellery 

together with natural health 

supplements, drinkware 

and eco bags. Exclusive 

to Ecotopia is the gift of 

nature to refresh and relax, 

SerenaScent®. Praised by 

Oprah Winfrey, SerenaScent® 

is a combination of the 

most effective plant-derived 

aromas reducing the impact 

of chronic stress on the 

body and mind. This unique 

combination creates a 

calming, relaxing and serene 

realise their goals, and improve their health,” 

Karen said. “Effective and efficient training is 

different today – and it only takes weeks to 

feel, and see, great results.” More info visit 

palmbeachfs.com 



atmosphere. Perfect as a 

gift or for personal use, it’s 

suitable for all ages and even 

pets. “Through what we eat, 

drink and think, we ultimately 

create the world we live in,” 

says Tracy Milenko, Founder 

and CEO. “Our human 

physiology needs time to 

absorb, digest and implement 

the new information. Ecotopia 

is your go-to destination 

for unique and exquisite 

products that not only look 

beautiful but help to ease 

the pressure on our fragile 

environment.” 

Find them at Unit 4/3 Vuko 

Place, Warriewood. 

P: 9999 0351 

Gift Guide 



Art Life 

Botanical, beaches on show 

Open Studios showcasing Julie 

Hickson’s sought-after distinctive 

art will be presented in two 

stages this summer, with the first 

on Sunday December 8 (10am 

– 3pm) perfect for ticking the 

Christmas present shopping list. 

There are framed archival 

prints (botanical and local 

beaches), Greeting Card Gift 

Boxes (botanical), tea towels in 

two designs as well as 2020 and 

Perpetual Calendars. 

Stage 2’s New Year Open Studio 

on Sunday January 6 will feature 

Julie’s vibrant artwork on canvas 

as always, plus ‘market goodies’ 

and a diverse collection of 

artwork for sale. 

Julie suggests you be early to 

snap up a bargain! 

Pictured: Framed archival print 

‘Avalon Beach’ $99 (left); Greeting 

Card Gift Box $49 (right). 

To view more of Julie’s work 

visit podandpod.com.au 

Art Life 

Principal with art interest 

Originally from the UK, artist 

Hilary Macorison has 

walked an interesting career 

path since she developed a 

passion for drawing at an 

early age. 

Prior to seeking a lifestyle 

change in Australia, Hilary 

– the summer feature artist 

at Eye Doctors Mona Vale – 

was a School Principal in the 

Yorkshire Dales. She explains 

a fostering of children’s creativity 

was the cornerstone 

of her school curriculum, 

and included organising and 

teaching art workshops for 

children of all ages in a variety 

of mediums. 

She taught for a year Down 

Under before pursuing art 

full-time, studying at Northbridge 

for a Diploma in Visual 

Art at TAFE and a Diploma in 

Fine Art. 

“Passionate about the environment, 

I was privileged to 

live offshore at Rocky Point, 

Lovett Bay for 10 years and 

my creative spirit was kindled 

in Pittwater with life evolving 

around water, bush and natural 

phenomena,” Hilary said. 

“I set up a studio and 

worked with charcoal and ink 

to satisfy my love of drawing 

and detail, exploring new 

techniques and materials by 

working both alone and with 

other artists using different 

mediums including oils, 

watercolours and inks.” 

Hilary says she is currently 

extending her charcoal and 

pencil work into pastels and 

remains obsessed by drawing 

and detail. 

“The process of experimentation 

with pastel, incorporating 

new materials and tech- 

niques, is both challenging 

and exciting. It extends into 

my current body of work with 

the vibrancy, intensity and 

richness of exploding colour.” 

Hilary won 1st prize at the 

recent Northern Beaches Art 

Society Exhibition for her 

work titled ‘Poppies’ (watercolour 

and pastel). 

View Hilary’s work from December 

1 in the rooms of Eye 

Doctors Mona Vale (suite 303, 

level 3, 20 Bungan Rd); from 

9am-5pm Monday to Friday. 


Palm Beach 

gallery open 

Palm Beach has a vibrant new 

gallery space – ‘Art Gallery 

on Palm Beach’, featuring a collective 

of 16 Sydney artists who 

specialise in a variety of disciples 

across different creative 

formations, including ceramics, 

bronze sculptures, fibre art, oil 

paintings as well as watercolour 

and mixed media. 

Organiser Vanessa Ashcroft 

says the gallery will seek to 

take advantage of the stunning 

location by mixing culture with 

the beach, fabulous restaurants 

and Barrenjoey Lighthouse. 

Find it at 1/1095 Barrenjoey 

Road; open Thursday to Sunday 

(10am to 4pm) 



Local artwork on The Block 

Eagle-eyed fans of renovation 

reality TV show The Block 

may have noticed the artwork 

gracing a hallway of the St Kilda 

terrace that won this year’s 

series (right). 

The artist who created the 

piece – Andrea Edwards – lives a 

lot closer to home. 

Elanora Heights-based Andrea 

told Pittwater Life winning 

‘Blockheads’ Tess and Luke 

chose her work through the online 

gallery Art Lovers Australia 

to complement their renovation. 

Andrea explained her abstract 

‘Pretty Place’ was inspired 

by the Australian landscape. 

Art has always been a part 

of Andrea’s life, evolving into 

a “real job” a decade ago. She 

said a major part of her practice 

was creating pieces inspired by 

nature that had individual ambience 

with a calming presence. 

“I make art for people to enjoy 

in the spaces they inhabit,” 

Andrea said. “I will often sit with 

pieces for a long while in my 

studio, observe how light plays 

on them to see how they ‘feel’. 

“I will only let the pieces go to 

a new home when it feels right.” 

Andrea’s creations are varied 

in size, colour, texture and 

treatment… just like nature. 

“From jewel-like hues of the 

coast, to muted velvety tones of 

our bush landscape…. exciting 

to contemplate, exhilarating to 

paint,” Andrea says. 

See more of Andrea’s work 

through the Art Lovers Australia 

and The Block Shop websites or 

visit her by appointment. Email 

andreaedwardsartist@gmail. 

Art Life 



Surfing Life 

Surfing Life 

Gifts to ride, to wear & 

to brag about to friends 

If you can’t surf the part, look the part this Christmas... 

My family used to whine 

about my surfing habit. 

They said they never knew 

what to get me for presents, 

aside from wax which seemed 

a bit chintzy at $1 a block. 

Those days are long past; 

for one thing, good wax now 

costs $5. But more to the 

point, if you want to buy a 

surfer a good Chrissy pressie, 

it’s way easier. Here’s some 

good stuff I found mostly by 

just wandering around some 

local surf shops. Do them and 

yourself a favour and have 

a wander round in there too 

– even if none of the below 

catches your fancy, you might 

see something else. Oh, and 

while I am not a super fan of 

wave pools (EXPERIENCES! 

below), the surfer in your life 

will totally want to try one. 

Merry Christmas! 

SURFBOARDS! 

We’re lucky around here, 

there’s a lot of good boardmakers 

and consequently a lot 

of good boards. I went down 

to the Onboard shop in Mona 

Vale and found four of ’em. 

Each would suit a different 

surfer at a different moment 

in their lives. 

CI ‘Happy’ Spine-Tek model: 

For the wild young thing! 

Great example of a modern 

high-performance board. It’d 

pretty much do anything you 

can do and more, though it’s 

probably a bit much for older 

or less skilled surfers. Spine- 

Tek is a highfalutin carbon 

fibre support system invented 

a couple of years back by 

an Australia-based company 

called Shapers Inc, and it 

spring-loads this board’s ultralight 

EPS/epoxy resin materials 

mix. So fun! Not cheap! $1100 

Tokoro ‘Project’ model: Wade 

Tokoro is a fabulous Hawaiian 

shaper and he is the master of 

what we call “hidden volume”, 

ie foam thickness that doesn’t 

get in the way of performance. 

The Project (above) is chubby 

and clearly a comfortable 

paddler, but the outline and 

rockers are all bent toward 

good surfing – beautiful little 

tweaked round pintail with a lot 

of curve. You could maybe go a 

little shorter than your normal 

board with this thing, and still 

be able to catch waves. Great 

for the 40-year-old who’s feeling 

sore in the mornings but 

who still wants to rip. $885 

T&C ‘Saint’ twin-fin: Twinnies 

keep flirting with a comeback. 

This thing harks back to former 

world champ Martin Potter 

and his T&C Saints of the 

1980s, and it’s a real alternative 

performance board; not a 

dull floaty Fish style board but 

something with extra spark 

and feel. You’d have to make 

sure you got the right fin set, 

but it could be just the board 

for you if you’re slightly bored 

with mainstream three-fin 

feels but haven’t turned into a 

hippie. $885 (clear, airbrushes 

extra) 

Christenson Carrera: There’s 

a 6’6” version of this board 

sitting in a rack way down the 

side back of the shop. I dunno, 

maybe they think it’ll scare 

the customers. It’s an authentic 

racer, all the lines drawn 

together to minimise drag 

while holding a fine edge of 

control in serious hollow surf. 

Chris Christenson makes big 

wave guns for the best surfers 

on earth, and the Carrera is 

a reduced version of those 

fearsome things. You wouldn’t 

ride it often, but you’d have 

it all your life. And when you 

weren’t riding it, you could 

just look at it and drool. $1155 

with Nick Carroll 

LIFESTYLE! 

Because surfing leads to other 

stuff, and most of it is cheaper 

than a surfboard... 

Yeti cooler gear: I can’t believe 

it’s taken this long for some 

smart Alecs to click on the fact 

that all surfers like cold drinks. 

First it was Hydroflask, now it’s 

Yeti, which has taken the whole 

vacuum-pack thing to another 

level. They make super-coolers 

that’ll keep ice ice for a week 

straight, and they make goblets 

and beer sleeves, sports 

flasks, and all kinds of stuff. 

There’s a gift for anyone in that 

range, and a family gift at the 

top end with the soft camper 

cooler. $45-$540, depending 

on what it is. From Beach Without 

Sand, North Avalon. 

Slowtide surf poncho. Once 

the smelly domain of core 

surfers trying to get changed 



PL’s DECEMBER SURF CALENDAR 

8-20/12: Billabong Pipe Masters, Oahu, Hawaii 

Biggest pro surfing event of the year and one in which numerous 

narratives are at play. You can see the narratives from a distance. 

There’s a world title up for grabs between the three great Brazilian 

surfers, Gabriel Medina, Filipe Toledo, and frontrunner Italo 

Ferreira, and the outside chance, South Africa’s Jordy Smith. There’s 

the comeback of the surfer who should have been world champ 

this year, John Florence, who dominated the first five events before 

heading off for knee surgery. There’s the duel between John and 

the great Kelly Slater for the last spot in the US Olympic surfing 

team. There’s all the surfers trying to make the cutoff for the 2020 

world tour. But all that pales next to the spot itself, Pipeline. If she 

wakes up and starts throwing chairs around the room, all those 

storylines will be rendered moot. Pittwater Life will be on the beach 

so we’ll wrap the whole show for you in January’s column. 

MY MASSIVE SUMMER FORECAST... 

OK, bold I know, but here we go. The effects of the stratospheric 

warming event to our south are declining, and with that goes the big 

energy from Southern Ocean lows, which kept the surf meter ticking 

through November. The NW monsoon that tends to pull moisture 

down across Australia and plays a part in feeding tropical surf 

energy is very slow to start this year. 

Still, December should see a classic early summer trough of low 

pressure form and re-form across the continent, running NW/SE and 

facing off against a Tasman Sea high. This is usually a precursor to 

the monsoon, but in December, for us at least, it’s likely to result in 

hot, dry days relieved by strong coastal northerlies and occasional 

thunderstorms. Very bleak surf outlook through this period – if you 

see a wave, catch it. January may see a change to some cooler 

damp weather coming in from the SE off the Tasman and breaking 

up those northerlies, though still not a lot of surf. 

Good news? Not many bluebottles in these wind patterns. Bad 

news? Not much overhead surf until February, when the monsoon 

shoulda kicked in properly and some kind of tropics action begins. 

Have a fantastic Christmas anyway! 

Nick Carroll 

Surfing Life 

out of a wetsuit in some 

carpark in mid-winter, the 

surf poncho was bound to 

evolve into something a little 

less rank. Slowtide is a very 

modern brand of apres-surf 

gear – towels etc – and they 

make very cool designed-up 

versions of the surf poncho 

(left), they’ll fit pretty much 

anyone and they definitely had 

a major edge on the three or 

four scary dirty old things in 

the back of my car. $99. From 

Glass Avenue, Newport 

EXPERIENCES! 

It’s the New Black as far as gifts 

go, right? If you’re not having 

an Experience, you’re barely 

living... 

An hour in a wave machine! 

Surfing is full of accidental 

experiences but one super 

strange, very non-accidental 

one will soon be appearing on 

the Australian surfing radar. 

That is the URBNsurf Tullamarine 

wave pool (above), 


designed by Spanish wave 

generating company Wavegarden 

and built by its Australian 

franchisee URBNsurf. It’s the 

first and only modern (i.e. actually 

generating rideable waves) 

wave-pool open to the public in 

Australia, and while it’s no Kelly 

Slater Wave Company monster, 

it’s something you’ll never have 

done before. Plus because it’s 

next to the airport, it’s pretty 

much a FIFO. We understand 

bookings will be open from 

January, unless you’re willing 

to bust out several thousand 

bucks for what they call a Foundation 

Membership. Otherwise, 

under $100 an hour at https:// 

urbnsurf.com 


Health & Wellbeing 


Dreaming of a ‘green’ Christmas? 

It’s a given that rubbish and 

waste is part and parcel 

of Christmas time, so we’ve 

pulled together five simple 

tips to take on board for 

environmentally friendly 

festivities. 

And don’t stress if things at 

your place aren’t 100 per cent 

eco-friendly – it’s far more 

important to relax, enjoy the 

fun stuff and have a laugh… 

’tis the season, after all. 

Choosing a tree. Fresh is 

best. According to Planet Ark 

it’s always best to buy a plant 

over a non-biodegradable 

plastic tree that will eventually 

end up in landfill. Disposing 

of a real tree is simple if you 

have a mulcher and council will 

do a pick-up in the New Year. 

The greenest option is to make 

your own arrangements with 

branches, or grab a potted 

Australian native pine that can 

be used year after year. 

Decorations. Clean Up 

Australia says when it comes 

to decorations, go for natural 

organic materials. If you 

see something you want in 

durable glass, porcelain or 

ceramic, make sure you love 

it enough to want to display 

it for years to come. The big 

ones to avoid? Polystyrene, 

plastic and foil. Want to 

brighten up your place with 

lights? Choose LED and only 

turn lights on for a few hours 

at night, to reduce your 

carbon footprint and save 

your power bill. 

Gifts. Shop wisely and 

choose physical gifts that you 

know the recipient needs or 

will truly appreciate. Wrap 

gifts in recycled paper or get 

creative with fabric, or pop 

presents in reusable boxes. 

Consider buying experiences 

as gifts, such as art or tennis 

lessons or tickets to a live 

show. Give generously to 

charitable organisations or 

volunteer your time – giving 

not only makes you feel good 

about yourself it enhances 

your connection with others. 

Make sure any unwanted 

presents are put to good use 

by donating them to local 

charity shops. 

Food. The primary reason 

for food waste is overbuying, 

so plan ahead. Think about 

what you’ll actually need and 

how many people you’ll be 

feeding, write a shopping 

list – and stick to it. Consider 

how you can use leftovers 

for meals the next day. 

Shop local, visit the fresh 

food markets and/or try the 

bespoke delivery service 

Bundlfresh (see our food 

pages) to reduce emissions 

and support local businesses. 

Compost bins, worm farms 

and chickens are a great way 

to reduce food waste. If you 

don’t have room contact the 

local Community Gardens in 

Avalon and Newport to see if 

they will take your food waste 

to turn into compost. 

Recycle. We know despite 

our best efforts there will 

be more paper, plastic and 

bottles to be disposed of 

over the holidays. Chances 

are you will probably also 

need to think about how to 

get rid of those old phones, 

shiny electronic toys and 

batteries. You can take used 

batteries for recycling to 

Battery Business (see p3); 

small electrical appliances 

are accepted free of 

charge at Kimbriki; mobile 

phones and accessories 

can be recycled through 

MobileMuster; Peninsula 

Senior Citizens Toy Recyclers 

fix used and unused toys 

and donate to families 



doing it tough and Lifeline 

Northern Beaches accepts 

good quality book donations 

which you can drop at one of 

their retail stores. It’s good 

to know all soft plastics 

(that can be scrunched up 

into a ball) can be recycled 

through specialised REDcycle 

collection containers at 

Woolworths and Coles 

supermarkets. – Lisa Offord 

*Thanks also to Northern 

Beaches Council for some of 

these tips. For more info, go 

to the council website for its 

A-Z guide on how to recycle 

or how you can reuse a whole 

heap of different things. 






Include medication on 

your holiday checklist 

December can be a great 

opportunity to take a 

well-earned holiday. What 

should you bring in relation 

to medication? A pharmacist 

will consider a wide range of 

factors, such as what medications 

you take, what medical 

conditions you have, any allergies, 

where you are going, what 

activities you are doing, and 

how long you are going for. 

It is common for pharmacists 

to categorise the major 

topics of discussion to help 

assist you more effectively. 

Vaccinations require full 

clarification. This will vary 

depending on the area you 

visit and the activities being 

undertaken. The World Health 

Organisation outlines the 

recommended vaccines for 

each region around the world. 

There are some countries 

where access is only permitted 

if suitable vaccinations 

have been administered. This 

can include Yellow Fever, 

Hepatitis A and B, Typhoid, or 

Cholera, to name a few. 

Anti-malarial medication 

should be considered for the 

area of travel due to the longterm 

health issues caused by 

contracting malaria. It would 

be recommended to see your 

doctor to determine your current 

immunity and what would 

be necessary for your travel. 

Motion sickness and nausea 

is a very common condition 

when travelling. Being prepared 

can help ensure an enjoyable 

journey. A very effective and 

well-tolerated treatment is a 

compounded scopolamine 

transdermal cream. It takes effect 

quickly and is enhanced by 

avoiding the stomach, allowing 

continued application when 

feeling unwell. 

Due to dry recirculated air, 

flights can result in infection 

from airborne bacteria. Nasal 

sprays with antibacterial and 

moisturising ingredients are a 

great option to help minimise 

such contractions. Hand 

sanitisers can also be useful 

in minimising the intake and 

spread of bacteria. 

Statistics show that diarrhoea 

is the leading health 

issue for international travel, 

affecting up to 70% of travellers. 

Products are available 

that are high in antibodies to 

prepare our immune system 

to fight unwanted bacteria. 

Other agents that can help 

treat unwanted symptoms include 

probiotics, and formulas 

for rehydration, indigestion, 

nausea, vomiting, and 

stomach cramps. 

Pain relief needs to be 

considered depending on the 

trip planned. Air pressure 

changes on flights can cause 

severe pain, and specific ear 

plugs are available to relieve 

the pressure. Ear drops can 

with Andrew Snow 

also be purchased for pain or 

swimmer’s ear. 

Cold and Flu preparations 

can be very handy. This 

includes nasal preparations, 

throat lozenges, gargles, cough 

mixtures, and natural remedies. 

Allergies can be quite 

common due to different 

foods and environments 

experienced whilst away. Oral 

antihistamines and cortisone 

creams can be useful. For patients 

with risk to anaphylaxis, 

adrenalin injections should 

be carried at all times. 

Other products to consider 

include antibacterial agents 

for open wounds, sleeping 

agents, sunscreens, moisturisers, 

insect repellents, and 

travel sized toiletries. 

It is highly recommended 

to consult your pharmacist 

when planning your next trip 

to ensure you have all the vital 

medical needs on hand to 

keep you well on your journey. 

Pittwater Pharmacy & 

Compounding Chemist at 

Mona Vale has operated as 

a family-run business since 

1977. Open seven days; drop 

in and meet the highly 

qualified and experienced 

team of Len, Sam and Amy 

Papandrea and Andrew 

Snow. Find them at 1771 

Pittwater Rd; call 9999 3398. 



Some procedures to help 

get your lips in sync 

Usual requests we receive 

are to add volume or bulk 

to the lips; this can be 

upper, lower, both or certain 

areas of the lip, for example 

accentuating ‘cupid’s bow’. 

Various materials are used, 

with synthetic fillers the 

most common. These can be 

permanent or temporary. It is 

often considered to be good 

practice to have temporary filler 

first to asses the outcome and 

volumes required. (The biggest 

problem with permanent filler 

is that if there is a problem, it is 

then a permanent problem.) 

Using the person’s own fat 

is also often performed. With 

this technique, low-pressure 

liposuction is used to harvest 

the fat. Lower pressure 

preserves the fat cells and is 

less damaging. The fat is then 

prepared and injected back 

into the lips. Some fat is usually 

absorbed so it may need to be 

repeated. Once stable and the 

fat has “taken”, like a skin graft, 

it is then a permanent result. 

Fine lines that radiate 

outward from the lips are 

usually filled with filler 

injections. These lines 

may be problematic with 

lipstick which then “bleeds” 

away from the lip surface. 

Accentuating the vermillion 

border, lip to skin junction, 

alone can help with lipstick 

bleed. Deeper vertical lines 

can be individually injected. 

Cupid bow and the philtral 

columns, vertical lines below 

the central nose, can be 

enhanced. Upper lips have 

with Dr John Kippen 

more anatomical features muscle-relaxing injections to 

than the lower lips. 

reduce the downward pull of 

Some fine lines can be treated the muscle – especially DAO 

with muscle-relaxing injections. (depressor angular oris). 

Very small volumes can also be Nasolabial folds are the 

used to accentuate a pout. Small creases of the upper lip that 

volumes are needed so as not to extend from the nostrils down 

influence speech. 

to the corner of the mouth. 

“Gummy smiles”, where too Nasolabial folds and marionette 

much gum shows with smiling, lines respond well to being 

can be improved by relaxing filled. 

the muscles that pull the lip Not really part of the lip but 

up. These injections are placed in the area and also commonly 

near the nostrils. 

requested for improvement, 

Down-turning of the 

is dimpling of the chin. The 

commissures, outer corners mentalis muscle causes 

of the mouth, may give the puckering or dimpling of the 

look of a sad face. Marionette overlying skin. Muscle-relaxing 

lines are the lines that descend injections help in this area. 

from the corners downwards. Surgical procedure can 

The commissures are usually reduce lip volume, reduce 

treated with a combination of upper lip height (especially of 

fillers to bulk up the area and Continued on page 50 







the skin in cases of long lips) 

and narrow the nostrils or nasal 

base. Nasal tip movement with 

smiling or talking (animation) 

can either be relaxed with 

injections, or surgically 

improved. The corners of the 

mouth can also be surgically 

lifted. All surgery in this area 

has the risk of visible scars. As 

with all surgery, all the other 

risks also apply. 

A careful assessment and 

precise placement of fillers 

or muscle relaxing injections 

usually has very favourable 

results. A full list of risks and 

complications will be discussed 

at the time of assessment. 

Our columnist Dr John 

Kippen is a qualified, fully 

certified consultant specialist 

in Cosmetic, Plastic and 

Reconstructive surgery. 

Australian trained, he also 

has additional Australian and 

International Fellowships. 

He welcomes enquiries; email 

doctor@johnkippen.com.au 

Inpatient building takes shape 

Things are on the up and up at Mona Value 

Hospital, with another new building rapidly 

taking shape. 

This recent image shows the construction 

of the inpatient building which will house a 

specialist unit to care for patients at the end 

of their lives. 

Situated on the far eastern side of the 

campus the building will accommodate a 

dedicated 10-bed inpatient palliative care 

unit– the first of its type on the Northern 

Beaches – and a 10-bed inpatient geriatric 

medical unit providing specialist services for 

older people. 

Taking advantage of the magnificent 

coastal surrounds, the building has been 

designed to have a less clinical look and feel 

than acute hospitals, with the aim of providing 

a welcoming environment for patients 

and families in challenging times. 

Construction is expected to be completed 

in mid-2020. – LO 








Making life easier at 

the click of a button 

Older Australians do not Battaerd to help people with with chronic diseases and 

want to downsize after chronic diseases and to cater assist with day-to-day living. 

retirement unless they are 

forced to by major life events, 

a new report has found. 

About 65 per cent of 

homeowners aged 65 to 74 

chose to stay put rather than 

downsize from 2001 to 2016, 

according to the Australian 

Housing and Urban Research 

Institute. 

It is this type of research 

that prompted two northern 

beaches locals to launch a 

new one-stop online shop 

designed help seniors 

maintain their independence 

within the comfort and 

security of their homes. 

The ecommerce store 

bettercaremarket was founded 

by healthcare professionals 

Erik Louwerens and Wim 

to Australians preference to 

age in the family home, rather 

than downsize or move into 

aged care. 

The bettercaremarket 

website has a variety of 

practical solutions to assist 

people to better manage their 

health and wellness and daily 

tasks within their home, Mr 

Louwerens said. 

“Our offering is an extension 

of independent lifestyle and we 

are here to help find practical 

products people don’t realise 

they needed.” 

Mr Battaerd added: “Minor 

modifications to a home can 

make a big difference.” 

People can browse the 

website to uncover myriad 

products that can help people 

The online store includes 

aids to assist with mobility 

and travel, the prevention 

and protection from falls and 

fitness gear for improved 

strength and balance. 

There is also a variety 

of medical equipment 

such as health monitoring 

devices, pain management 

aids, breathing, continence 

products, wound 

management and body care. 

Their website 

(bettercaremarket.com.au) 

also has unique and hard-tofind 

life-style support aids 

including a range of personal 

grooming and gardening and 

nifty kitchen gadgets to make 

all the daily tasks, once took 

for granted, easy again. – LO 



Hair & Beauty 

Diagnosis first step to 

better skincare regimen with Sue Carroll 

New research has emerged 

fine dehydration lines, wrinkles, is being used as prescribed and 

to suggest that women 

pigmentation, rough texture not left in the bedside drawer 

aren’t happy with their 

and help protect the skin from or bathroom vanity. Skincare 

skincare. The findings demonstrate 

damaging environments. needs to be supported with a 

the need for a profes- 

Recommending a simple yet healthy lifestyle, and your de- 

sional diagnosis of your skin, 

synergistic regimen will also sired results can be fast-tracked 

which can be supported by 

help provide the results you are with professional in-clinic 

cosmeceutical grade skincare 

looking for. An active cleanser, treatments. Begin your journey 

for use at home. 

an enzyme-based toning lotion, 

with professional skincare that 

The independent survey 

antioxidant-rich serum, has been prescribed for you 

was released by nutraceuticals 

rejuvenating nightly serum with and you will be on your way to 

company Entity Health, 

alpha-hydroxy acids and Vita- 

attaining your skin goals. 

which revealed most Australian 

min A, nourishing refined oil 

women feel their skincare 

and physical-based sun protect- 

Sue Carroll of Skin 

products don’t give the full 

ant will not only support skin Inspiration has been a qualified 

Aesthetician for 33 years. 

results they claimed. The study 

moving forward but will also 

surveyed a group of 1010 

help repair or improve existing Sue has owned and 

women and was designed to 

damage. 

operated successful beauty 

understand how they thought absolute need for quality skin As the findings suggested, 

great skin is a journey and 

clinics and day spas on 

about the effectiveness of their advice, thorough consultation, 

and accurate diagnosis 

the Northern Beaches. 

skincare products for different 

damage will not be repaired 

skin concerns. 

that is easily understood, and overnight or with a single-use. info@skininspiration.com.au 

Majority (83%) said the above all, a clear differentiation 

When you purchase a product, www.skininspiration.com.au 

products claimed better results 

between consumer versus you need to ensure the product 

than the ones they experienced, 

professional-grade skincare. 

while 34% admitted their Clients and patients require 

skincare improved their skin’s education that will cut through 

quality. However, this leaves the marketing hype, buzzwords 

almost two-thirds saying skin and trends of consumer/ 

conditions – including dryness, supermarket products, which 

dullness, pigmentation or rosacea 

of course, as the research 

– were not improved. demonstrates, never live up to 

With meaningful advances their claims. If you have suffered 

having been made in the 

poor results at the hands 

skincare industry, women can of ineffective skincare, you are 

consider options beyond topical not alone. Great skin is a journey, 

therapies. 

not a quick fix, and just 

Inside-out methods, such as because an ingredient is trendy 

natural supplementation, are doesn’t mean it will work for 

becoming increasingly accepted you. Results are achievable with 

and taken up as an alternative the correct products, or components, 

method of addressing particular 

a sound understand- 

concerns such as skin spots, ing of their use and in some 

skin dullness and pigmentation. instances, in combination with 

The research also highlighted clinical treatments. 

specific areas of concerns for In my professional opinion, 

different age groups, providing with 35 years of experience in 

useful but surprising insight. the aesthetic industry, clinical 

For example, 22% of under- grade skincare products incorporate 

30s and just 16% of over-60s 

active compounds 

wanted to treat dullness. Also, and intelligent ingredients in 

17% of under-30s were hoping higher percentages that are 

for a reduction in pigmentation, not commonly seen in department 

with 24% of those in their 30s 

stores and supermarkets. 

were hoping for the same – Ingredients like peptides, plantbased 

compared with only 10% of 

stem cells, growth fac- 

those in their 50s and over-60s tors, sophisticated antioxidants, 

respectively. 

Vitamin As and many more, will 

The response from this new assist in increasing collagen 

research further highlights the and elastin synthesis, reducing 



Health Hair & Wellbeing Beauty

Business Life: Money 

Business Life 

‘Ok Boomer’: examining 

the new Generation Gap 

In this age are parents and 

their children experiencing 

the same old generation 

gap, or are we in some 

sort of all-out war on intergenerational 

wealth? 

I ask this question after one 

of the millennials in our office 

sent me a tongue-in-cheek 

ABC article headed ‘Baby 

Boomers going bankrupt 

on Grand Designs is like 

revenge porn for a houseless 

millennial’. Admittedly 

this amusing piece was written 

by comedian and writer Jack 

Gow but buried as an opinion 

piece in the ABC news website. 

Passing on this article 

was oh-so-funny because I 

had recounted watching an 

episode of Grand Designs 

Australia the night before 

featuring a house at Byron Bay 

where the owners mumbled 

their building costs as being in 

the range of $3.5 to $4 million 

and a check of our property 

database showed the land 

cost to be $3.3 million. The 

thing was that same property 

database showed they sold 

the house in December 2012 

for $5.6 million all the while 

extolling the virtues of their 

masterpiece to architect Peter 

Maddison in September 2012 

probably knowing the agent 

was parked out the front 

waiting for a signature on the 

agency agreement. 

So, the millennials 

apparently find a $1.4 million 

headline loss on a property 

refurbishment to be hilarious. 

But according to the media 

they also seem to find 

anything that adversely affects 

the older generation to be 

pretty funny – to the point 

there’s now a term they trot 

out whenever the ‘oldies’ start 

to complain about the kids – 

“Ok Boomer!” 

Now before we go on, 

I’m no boomer, boomers 

are those post-war babies 

are born between 1946 and 

1964. I’m happy enough to be 

brimming over with middle 

age with the post-1965 class 

of Gen-Xers. ‘Ok Boomer’ as a 

mindset has finally found its 

way here from the US via New 

Zealand where it was quoted 

as a retort in parliament 

and is now firmly part of the 

conversation in Australia. 

Writing in the The 

Sydney Morning Herald 

recently, columnist Tony 

Walker stated: “The housing 

boom is the Baby Boomer 

Klondike. I’m talking about 

a period of supercharged 

wealth accumulation that 

has produced the sort of 

intergenerational-riches bulge 

that has distorted the benefits 

of a record-setting economic 

expansion to the advantage 

of one generation and the 

disadvantage of others. You 

would be hard-put to argue 

that, if not intergenerational 

theft, this was not an 

intergenerational provocation 

driven by the most favourable 

giveaway tax regime for an 

entitled generation in the 

Western world.” 

with Brian Hrnjak 

And this seems to be the 

view shared by many in the 

media, that the wealth accrued 

to the so-called boomer 

generation has always been 

at the expense of those who 

follow. But wait a minute, 

wasn’t this what the May 

election was at least partly 

about? 

In November, Aaron Patrick 

in the Financial Review 

reporting about the Federal 

election post-mortem wrote: 

“Franking credits would 

become one of Labor’s most 

potent election failures, 

perhaps the most damaging. 

There were three reasons 

the policy had such a big 

impact: Bowen’s perceived 

arrogance towards its victims; 

the perception that many 

more people would be affected 

than were; and concern 

among many voters for their 

parents or grandparents, or 

for themselves in their future 

retirement. The policy’s impact 

was intergenerational, and 

reinforced Labor’s image as a 

democratic socialist party that 

was more interested in income 

redistribution than wealth 

creation.” 



Bowen’s solution of course 

was to arrogantly propose to 

tax the life out of the Boomers 

all the while appealing to 

later generations, ultimately 

something that the electorate 

just didn’t buy into. 

Walker in The Sydney 

Morning Herald article 

mentioned above concludes: 

“OK, Boomer; it’s time to yield 

some ground.” But in doing so, 

Walker, like Bowen, discount 

the impact of time on all 

generations. 

The following comments 

about the extension of lifetime 

milestones are from a brief 

published by the ARC Centre 

of Excellence in Population 

Aging Research in November, 

2019: “Longer median lives 

are, in turn, associated with 

longer adolescence and later 

ages of leaving studies and 

starting work. For example, 

the median age of starting 

any work was 16 in 1966, but 

18 in 2016; and the age of 

starting full-time employment 

increased from age 16 to age 

25 over the same period. Also, 

as is well documented (e.g., 

ABS 1994), the typical age at 

which women first become 

mothers increased by eight 

years over the last 50 years. 

Marriage, which is associated 

with new household formation 

increased by 4 years, to 

age 31. The potential delay 

in house purchase sits in 

this context. In fact, house 

purchases were made later 

in life in the 1960s (age 27), 

compared to the 1970s (age 

24), before homeownership 

become more widespread. The 

typical age at which people 

become homeowners has 

since shifted by 9 years, from 

24 to 33. The typical age of 

paying off the mortgage has 

also been deferred, from age 

52 to age 62. While the typical 

age at which Australians leave 

the labour force has surged 

by four years just since 2001, 

to age 64, the rate of increase 

has not matched changes in 

other life events. In fact, it 

may need to increase further 

to accommodate later home 

purchases and delayed 

mortgage repayments.” 

The ARC research can be 

interpreted in many ways. Part 

of the research that seems 

to attract most attention is 

dedicated to an argument 

calling for the re-introduction 

of death duties as a means 

of improving the lot of 

pensioners who rent. 

But before we go proposing 

an array of policy solutions 

to address the ‘problem’ 

of the Boomer generation 

relative to those that follow, 

we may want to be sure that 

improvements to health, 

education and technology 

are not playing out as the 

research suggests to delay 

many of life’s milestones. 

That’s the first impact of 

time on our generations. The 

second impact of time is 

very straightforward – the 

first Boomers will reach their 

life expectancy targets in 

approximately 2033 and the 

wealth will start to spill over 

to the second and subsequent 

generations. 

Ultimately war between the 

generations is quite pointless, 

as time will fix all. 

Business Life 


Brian Hrnjak B Bus CPA (FPS) is 

a Director of GHR Accounting 

Group Pty Ltd, Certified 

Practising Accountants. Offices 

at: Suite 12, Ground Floor, 

20 Bungan Street Mona Vale 

NSW 2103 and Shop 8, 9 – 15 

Central Ave Manly NSW 2095, 

Telephone: 02 9979-4300, 

Webs: www.ghr.com.au and 

www.altre.com.au Email: 

brian@ghr.com.au 

These comments are of a 

general nature only and are 

not intended as a substitute 

for professional advice. 


Business Life: Law 

Business Life 

Crime fiction: the truth 

is not always stranger 

And so to December: so 

much to do, so little 

time, and all must be 

concluded before the festive 

season. Why? There is no 

logical reason but the lazy 

hazy days of summer beckon. 

Despite the demands, 

perhaps in an idle moment, 

as you browse the literary 

supplements of the Saturday 

broadsheets or The Spectator 

or similar journals, your 

mind can turn to the books 

you might like to read if not 

possess in the holiday season. 

The peninsula is wonderfully 

serviced by Bookoccino and 

Beachside Bookshop in Avalon 

and Berkelouw in Mona Vale 

– and of course one can go 

online to the Book Depository 

or Hatchards in London. 

Some acquaintances 

circulate a list among family 

and friends. Others leave it 

under a magnet on the fridge. 

All in the hope that when the 

post-prandial rest occurs, the 

nominated works might be 

close at hand. 

A colleague always 

maintained: “the best law is 

found in crime fiction” – a view 

with which we agree. 

As with many things, crime 

writing has fashions. Some 

years ago, The Times stated: 

“We still feel fond of Sherlock 

Holmes but Agatha Christie’s 

genteel contrived murders 

(known to Americans as 

‘cosies’) are fatally out of style.” 

In a dismissive note, the 

paper suggested that a plot 

is passé which places middle 

class ladies and gentlemen in a 

pre-war drawing room attended 

by a butler who at appropriate 

intervals drops hints which 

ensures the redoubtable Miss 

Marple or Hercule Poirot can 

neatly identify motive and the 

murderer. 

One wonders if this is correct 

today, with the rise of Hercule 

Poirot and Miss Marple on pay 

television and free to air. 

While Agatha Christie was 

of another era, she was not 

without some experience 

upon which to draw in her 

construction of plots. She 

had a knowledge of poisons 

acquired when working as a 

hospital dispenser during World 

War I. Then her marriage to 

archaeologist Max Mallowan 

took her to digs in Syria and 

Iraq. 

It is interesting to note that 

several writers of crime fiction, 

such as Agatha Christie, also 

have experience to draw upon 

in plot construction. 

Gianrico Carofiglio from Italy 

is a novelist and former antimafia 

judge in the Italian city of 

Baria. His first novel ‘Involuntary 

Witness’ (translated by Patrick 

Creagh) is about corruption, 

with hero Defence Counsel 

Guido Guerrieri; it has been 

made into a television series. 

From Poland, Marek 

Krajewski is a lecturer in 

classical studies at the 

university of Wroclaw who has 

written many works which 

have as their hero policeman 

Eberhard Mock. The first in the 

series, ‘The End of the World 

in Breslau’, is said to kick off a 

ferocious odyssey. 

Liza Marklund from Sweden 

is a journalist and columnist on 

the Swedish tabloid Expressen; 

she is a co-owner of Sweden’s 

largest publishing house and 

is a UNICEF Ambassador. She 

is regarded as the ‘godmother’ 

of modern Scandi noir and has 

as her heroine investigative 

reporter Annika Bengtzon. 

Antonio Hill lives in 

with Jennifer Harris 

Barcelona and is a professional 

translator of English language 

fiction into Spanish; he has 

a prolific output of Inspector 

Hector Salgado novels. 

Perhaps his most noticeable 

book is ‘The Summer of Dead 

Toys’ (translated by Laura 

McGloughlin). 

Carl Valdemar Jussi Adler- 

Olsen is a Danish publisher, 

editor and entrepreneur as 

well as an author of thrillers 

which feature Carl Morck, 

a burnt-out policeman, and 

his offsider Assad. The 

latter undistinguished but 

described as possessed of an 

astonishingly counterintuitive 

intellect, which intrigues 

readers. 



Of course, there is John le 

Carre (real name David John 

Moore Cornwell), who during 

the 1950s and 1960 worked 

for the Security Service and 

the Secret Intelligence Service. 

His works ‘Tinker Tailor Soldier 

Spy’ and others have been 

made into television series 

and film. His latest work 

‘Agent Running in the Field’ 

has a touch of Brexit and has 

been published in time for 

Christmas. 

Today crime writers, 

particularly the female ones, 

continue to apply knowledge 

gleaned in another life or in 

preparation for another life. 

The late PD James – a former 

nurse, health administrator, 

civil servant in the criminal 

division of the Home Office; 

and Governor of the BBC 

– remained faithful to the 

classic detective formula with 

poet and Metropolitan Police 

Commander Adam Dalgleish. 

A style of tough crime 

writing which puts aside 

snobbery and nostalgia for 

realism and social concern 

is found in the writing of 

American Sara Paretsky 

with her pistol-packing 

V I Warshawski; or Linda 

Fairstein’s Alexandra Cooper, 

Manhattan’s top sex crime 

prosecutor. (Fairstein was head 

of the Sex Crimes Unit of the 

Manhattan District Attorney’s 

office from 1976 until 2002.) 

Scottish writer Manda Scott, 

a veterinary surgeon, has 

weighed in with Orla McLeod 

of the Special Branch working 

against drugs on the mean 

streets of Glasgow; she has an 

extensive list of thrillers. 

Perhaps if she has published 

in time for the holiday 

season, Patricia Cornwell’s 

heroine – medical examiner 

Kay Scarpetta – may be the 

companion of choice for 

that post-prandial rest. Like 

Christie, Cornwell has become 

as famous a celebrity as her 

main character. 

In crime writing, science 

and technology add to 

the complexity of human 

endeavour. Whereas once 

motive and opportunity 

appeared easily ascertainable 

and within our purview, today 

the reader can be stumped by 

the absence of the murderer 

from the scene or proximity of 

the crime by being in another 

continent or hemisphere – a 

mobile phone call made from 

any place at any date or time 

can be the means of delivering 

death. 

So while crime writing may 

change with society, one hopes 

that it does not become too 

realistic or so serious as to 

worry or overly engage our 

holiday readers. 

Trouble is, one can’t be too 

sure. Now it is published in 

The Sydney Morning Herald 

– “Be careful, they can see 

what you’re thinking... Brain 

scans reveal how you think 

and feel, and even how you 

might behave.” Now there’s 

something for detective fiction! 

Comment supplied by 

Jennifer Harris, of Jennifer 

Harris & Associates, Solicitors, 

4/57 Avalon Parade, 

Avalon Beach. 

T: 9973 2011. F: 9918 3290. 

E: jennifer@jenniferharris.com.au 

W: www.jenniferharris.com.au 

Business Life 



Trades & Services 


AUTO REPAIRS 

British & Swedish Motors 

Call 9970 6654 

Services Range Rover, Land Rover, 

Saab and Volvo with the latest in 

diagnostic equipment. 

Narrabeen Tyrepower 

Call 9970 6670 

Stocks all popular brands including 

Cooper 4WD. Plus they’ll do all mechanical 

repairs and rego inspections. 

Barrenjoey Smash Repairs 

Call 9970 8207 

barrenjoeysmashrepairs.com.au 

Re-sprays a specialty, plus 

restoration of your favourite vehicle. 

Commercial specialist. 

AV INSTALLER 

Chase AV 

Call Erin 0429 336 606 

End your frustration with a suite of Savant 

products to bring you stress-free 

TV and music. 

BATTERIES 

Battery Business 

Call 9970 6999 

Batteries for all applications. Won’t 

be beaten on price or service. Free 

testing, 7 days. 

BOAT SERVICES 

Avalon Marine Upholstery 

Call Simon 9918 9803 

Makes cushions for boats, patio and 

pool furniture, window seats. 

BUILDING SERVICES 

Rob Burgers 

Call 0416 066 159 

Qualified builder provides all carpentry 

needs; decks, pergolas, carports, 

renos & repairs. 

CLEANING 

The Aqua Clean Team 

Call Mark 0449 049 101 

Quality window washing, pressure cleaning, 

carpet washing, building soft wash. 

Martin Earl House Wash 

Call 0405 583 305 

Pittwater-based owner on site at all 

times. No travellers or uninsured 

casuals on your property. 

HouseWashing 

NorthernBeaches.com.au 

Call Ben 0408 682 525 

Softwash experts; window cleaning, pressure 

& gutter cleaning. Pittwater resident. 

CONCRETING 

Pavecrete – All Concrete 

Services 

Call Phil 0418 772 799 

pavecrete@iinet.net.au 

Established locally 1995. Driveways 

plus – Council Accredited. Excavation 

service. 

DRAFTING 

Grey Gum Drafting 

Call James 0451 662 411 

info@greygumdrafting.com.au 

Experienced draftsman who is also 

a licensed builder. We understand 

your vision and create plans that 

work within your budget and building 

requirements. 

FLOOR COVERINGS 

Blue Tongue Carpets 

Call Stephan 9979 7292 

Family owned and run. Carpet, rugs, 

runners, timber, bamboo, vinyl, tiles, 

laminates; open 6 days. 

FLOOR SANDING 

Pittwater Eco Floor Sanding 

Call 0425 376986 

Floor sanding & polishing; staining & lime 

washing; installation & repairs; 

rejuvenation; decking and outdoor 

timber. Call for your free quote. 

GARDENS 

Graham Brooks 

Call 0412 281 580 

Tree pruning and removals. Reports 

regarding DA tree management, 

arborist reports. 

Precision Tree Services 

Call Adam 0410 736 105 

Adam Bridger; professional tree 

care by qualified arborists and tree 

surgeons. 



Special Branch Tree Services 

Call Jason 0439 964 538 

Qualified arborist; 20 years’ 

experience all aspects of tree work 

Avalon and surrounds. Fully insured. 

Call to arrange quote. 

GUTTERS & ROOFING 

ABC Seamless 

Call 9748 3022 

Local roofing & guttering experts. 

Free quotes. 40 years’ industry 

experience. Fully licensed, insured & 

extensive warranties. 

Cloud9 G&R 

Call Tommy 0447 999 929 

Prompt and reliable service; gutter 

cleaning and installation, leak 

detection, roof installation and painting. 

Also roof repairs specialist. 

Gutter-Vac 

Call 1300 654 253 

Professional; courteous vacuum cleaning 

of commercial; domestic gutters, 

roofs, solar panels and downpipes. 

Also EnviroClean, environmentally 





friendly mould; moss treatment for 

roofs, paths, driveways; walls. 

HANDYMAN 

Onshore Handyman Services 

Call Mark 0415 525 484 

Tick off your wish list of repairs and 

improvements around your house and 

consider the job done! 

KITCHENS 

Seabreeze Kitchens 

Call 9938 5477 

Specialists in all kitchen needs; design, 

fitting, consultation. Excellent trades. 

MASSAGE & FITNESS 

Avalon Physiotherapy 

Call 9918 3373 

Provide specialist treatment for neck & 

back pain, sports injuries, orthopaedic 

problems. 

PAINTING 

Contrast Colour 

Call 0431 004 421 

Locals Josef and Richard offer a quality 

service; tidy and reliable, they’ll help you 

choose the best paint. 

AJJ Painting & Decorating 

Call 0418 116 700 

Andrew is a master painter with 30 

years’ experience. Domestic and commercial; 

reasonable rates, free quotes. 

PEST CONTROL 

Predator Pest Control 

Call 0417 276 962 

predatorpestcontrol.com.au 

Environmental services at their best. 

Comprehensive control. Eliminate all 

manner of pests. They provide a 24- 

hour service. 

PLUMBING 

Pure Plumbing Professionals 

Call 9056 8166 

Zero dollars call-out – and you approve 

the price before they begin. 24/7 

Emergency Service. 10% pensioner 

discount. 

RENTAL 

Hey Pete 

Visit Heypete.com.au 

What’s lying around your garage? Help 

sustainability and list it for rent – and 

earn cash! 

RUBBISH REMOVAL 

One 2 Dump 

Call Josh 0450 712 779 

Seven-days-a-week pick-up service 

includes general household rubbish, 

construction, commercial plus 

vegetation. Also car removals. 

UPHOLSTERY 

Luxafoam North 

Call 9999 5567 

Local specialists in all aspects of 

outdoor & indoor seating. 

Custom service, expert advice. 

Essyou Design 

Call Susan 0422 466 880 

Specialist in day bed and outdoor 

areas. Reliable local service. Offering 

domestic & commercial. 

DISCLAIMER: The editorial and advertising 

content in Pittwater Life has been provided 

by a number of sources. Any opinions 

expressed are not necessarily those of the 

Editor or Publisher of Pittwater Life and no 

responsibility is taken for the accuracy of 

the information contained within. Readers 

should make their own enquiries directly 

to any organisations or businesses prior to 

making any plans or taking any action. 


Antique 

General 

Store 



the 

good 

life 

clubs & pubs 62 

food 

crossword 

64 

67 

Showtime 

The gift of music 

Presenting three great gift ideas for Christmas and beyond… 

Music subscription. It is 

one of Pittwater’s hidden and 

valuable gems – four concerts 

of varied and inventive classical 

music throughout the year 

featuring acclaimed artists – 

for only $80. 

Our very own Peninsula 

Music Club always manages 

to attract amazing Australian 

and international guests who 

regularly perform at major 

venues around the world to our 

little place of paradise. 

Big name artists who have 

previously presented intimate 

concerts at St Luke’s Grammar 

School in Bayview on a Friday 

night or Sunday afternoon 

include renowned classical 

pianist Simon Tedeschi, 

legendary flautist Jane 

Rutter and Canadian Violinist 

Alexandre Da Costa. 

Annual membership of the 

Peninsula Music Club is just 

$80, which covers all four 

concerts throughout the year. 

And, once the 2020 program 

is finalised there is also an 

option to buy single concert 

tickets for just $25. 

Sparkling wine suppers or 

afternoon tea are served after 

each performance where the 

audience can meet the artists. 

Students under 18 years of 

age are admitted free when 

accompanied by an adult. 

More info 

peninsulamusicclub.com.au 

repertoire, plus some of best 

emotive Australian pieces we 

all know. 

Tickets to this special 2pm 

show on February 23 are on 

sale now at glenstreet.com.au 

Motown at the bowlo. Plenty 

of people love the opportunity 

to get down and dance and 

here’s a chance for them to do 

it nice and close to home. 

This terrific 10-piece 

powerhouse groove band will 

go all Motown at Avalon Bowlo 

just after Christmas. 

Locals can enjoy a night 

of dance-groove versions of 

hits from The Temptations, 

Stevie Wonder, The Supremes, 

Marvin Gaye, Martha and the 

Vandellas, The Four Tops, 

Jimmy Ruffin, Fontella Base 

and JR Walker. 

This impressive group features 

some of Australia’s top singers 

and musicians, including Kimi 

Tupaea, Evelyn Duprai, 

Franchesca Appolis, Pat 

Powell and more, plus special 

guest Chris Raggatt. 

Concert is Friday December 

27 from 6.30pm. Tickets ($33) 

are limited, so you will need to 

snap them up quickly! More 

info avalonbowlo.com 

Showtime 

gardening 

travel 

68 

72 

Australian Tenors. Five 

of the best tenor voices in 

Australia, The Australian 

Tenors will bring a sensational 

program with romance, 

excitement, warmth and 

humour to our very own Glen 

Street Theatre early next year. 

The magnificent voices 

of Murray Mayday, Lorenzo 

Rositano, John Donohoe, 

Martin Buckingham and 

Gaetano Bonfante will be 

backed by the Southern Cross 

Orchestra and supported by 

Opera Australia’s soprano 

Giuseppina Grech. 

The concert program spans 

all genres of the classical tenor 


Dining Clubs & Guide Pubs 

Clubs & Pubs 

December's best functions, music gigs, events and dining news... 

Come and 

see The 

Real Thing 

ROCK 

SURVIVOR: 

Russell 

Morris. 

Wind back the clock to the 

early 1970s and pre-FM 

radio was thick with the tones 

of Aussie rock talent and local 

hits – and none was more 

prominent on the airwaves 

than Russell Morris, who 

seemingly has always found 

a way to reinvent himself over 

his 50-plus years in music. 

Morris – who plays Pittwater 

RSL on December 21 

– broke through with iconic 

psychedelic single ‘The Real 

Thing’ which topped the 

charts in 1969, with follow-up 

hits ‘Sweet, Sweet Love’ and 

‘Wings of an Eagle’ in 1971, 

before he headed overseas 

with moderate success. 

However, the 1980s saw him 

mix hard-working pub rock 

gigs with a foray into musicals, 

with roles in The Rocky Horror 

Show (as Riff Raff) and in 1992 

in Jesus Christ Superstar (as Simon 

Zealotes, alongside John 

Farnham and Kate Ceberano). 

Today, Morris is in demand 

at clubs and music festivals, 

on the back of a remarkable 

trilogy of new blues material 

records. 

He regards himself as 

fortunate. 

“Most artists who have had 

past hits yearn to be current, 

with something new that people 

embrace,” he tells Pittwater 

Life. “This rarely happens but 

in my case I was very lucky. 

“The past seven years have 

been phenomenal as I have 

played on many festivals, 

something that would have 

been out of my reach without 

the blues trilogy.” 

Morris released the first of 

his ‘Australian story’ albums, 

Sharkmouth, in 2012, following 

up with Van Diemen’s 

Land (2014) and Red Dirt – Red 

Heart (2015). 

“Sharkmouth was conceived 

after seeing an article in the 

Sydney papers, about old-time 

gangsters,” Morris explains. 

“Once the album was completed, 

I had so many songs, 

and stories screaming to be 

written. 

“So the first album was all 

about back streets, the second 

was the bigger picture for 

Australia – world wars, unions, 

bigger scene stories. And the 

third was the recognition of 

60 thousand years the original 

Australians lived here – while 

also saluting the dry heart.” 

Not one to remain still for 

long, Morris released the 

album Black And Blue Heart 

(produced by Powderfinger 

front man Bernard Fanning) 

last February. 

“It was building a bridge, 

and a salute from blues, going 

back to my beginnings,” he 

said, adding the track ‘Ain’t No 

Angel’ was a tip of the hat to 

Steppenwolf. 

Indeed, Morris says there’s 

no avoiding his roots, and he 

continues to respect and pay 

homage to his early success (“I 

still get a thrill hearing those 

songs on the radio”) – albeit 

with a twist. 

“Playing old songs is similar 

to being a professional ballroom 

dancer— the dance is 

the same, but a different partner 

adds different nuances,” 

he says. 

“At Pittwater RSL there will 

be a bit of the old, a bit of the 

new, and a bit unexplored…” 


* Tickets pittwaterrsl.com. 

au; more info russellmorris. 

com.au 

Pittwater RSL 

Assorted eateries 

82 Mona Vale Rd Mona Vale 

Join Pittwater RSL now for 

FREE! *All current Dee Why 

RSL Club members receive 

FREE reciprocal loyalty 

membership. Simply join us 

at $15 for 3 years and receive 

$15 worth of FREE Customer 

Treasure points. 

At Pittwater RSL the motto 

is: “Welcome to your place!” 

Their new Burger Bar – Monkey 

Bun – is now open! Treat yourself 

to a stacked burger, tender 

wings or loaded twister fries. 

Monkey Bun just introduced 

Thirsty Thursdays! $5 drinks 

and a Live DJ from 8pm until 

late every Thursday. 

Sports 365 Bar has more 

than 20 screens for all your 

sporting needs, hosting all major 

sporting events. Sports 365 

has free pool Fridays, plus TAB, 

Sportspick & Beer tubes! Head 

there and check it out! 

Did you know Pittwater RSL 

has Free Live music every Friday 

and Saturday evening? Upcoming 

ticketed events include 

Burlesque Spectacular (Saturday 

Dec 7), Forever Diamond (Saturday 

Dec 14) and Aussie music 

icon Russell Morris (Saturday 

Dec 21). See their website for 

ticketing and other details. 

Looking for the perfect 

venue to hold an end-of-year 

event? Look no further – Rock 

Lilly Events has you covered, 

with flexible packages, versatile 

spaces and personalised theming. 

Contact the team today! 

Join Pittwater RSL for Devonshire 

Tea on Sunday 5th January 

11am – 12pm. $15pp – with 

all proceeds raised donated 

directly to Northern Beaches 

Women’s Shelter. Bookings are 

essential on 9997 3833. 

pittwaterrsl.com.au 

Avalon 

Beach RSL 

Bistro 61 

1 Bowling Green Lane 

Avalon Beach 

Avalon Beach RSL’s Bistro 61 

is a great place to head for 

a local meal, offering tasty 

modern Australian dishes at 

affordable prices. 

Don't miss the 'Very '90s 

Xmas Party' featuring Kid 

Kenobi from 8pm on Saturday 

December 14; tickets available 

online only! 

Take advantage of their new 

#AVRSL MEMBER MONDAY. This 

brand new weekly promotion 

includes $5 drinks all day for 

members, plus a $15 Roast 

Meal special (lunch and dinner) 

and $10 chicken wings available 

to all! 

There are great music 

acts in December, including 

Battlesnake (Fri 6th; free), That 

Old Chestnut (Sat 7th; free); The 

Brights (Fri 13th; free); Rebecca 

Johnson Band (Fri 20th; free); 

Nativosoul (Friday 20th; free); 

and the monthly Karaoke Party 

(Fri 27th; free). 

And now available for free 

download – the new Avalon 

Beach RSL Club App. Earn 

rewards, prizes and member 

points by logging in daily. 

See what's on, check out 

events, view menus and more! 

Bistro 61 is open for 

breakfast from 9am to 

11.30am. Open for lunch 

and dinner seven days, with 

extensive outdoor dining areas, 

Bistro 61 offers a variety of 

specials (lunch and dinner) 

during the week, including 

$12 tacos (Tues), $15 Chicken 

Schnitzels (Wed), 2-4-1 pizzas 

(Thurs), and a $20 burger + 

beer (Fri). 

Seniors are well catered for – 

there are daily Seniors specials, 

including beer-battered 

flathead – plus they do a $5 

kids meals on Sundays! (There’s 

a playground, too.) 

avalonbeachrsl.com.au 

Royal Motor 

Yacht Club 

Salt Cove on Pittwater 

46 Prince Alfred 

Parade, Newport 

The Royal Motor Yacht Club, 

Broken Bay was officially 

opened in 1928. Over the past 

91 years, RMYC has grown 

from a modest two-storey 

establishment into a magnificent 

clubhouse sitting 

proudly on the shores of 



This Month... 

Sydney’s beautiful Pittwater. 

Become a member today and 

start enjoying all the RMYC 

has to offer. 

RMYC’s restaurant Salt Cove 

on Pittwater is under Executive 

Head Chef Jeff Turnbull. Offering 

affordable meals and generous 

servings including a variety 

of starters, seafood, burgers, 

grills, salads and woodfired 

pizzas. 

Friday night music kicks off 

in the Lounge Bar (level 1) from 

5.30pm to 8.30pm. There are 

some great acts performing 

during December including: Phil 

Simmons (6th); Eric lewis (13th); 

Jack Evans (20th; and Jack Derwin 

(27th). 

THE PERFECT WATERFRONT 

WEDDING VENUE 

Located on the shores of Pittwater 

on Sydney’s Northern 

Beaches, the Royal Motor Yacht 

Club offers a spectacular setting 

for both your wedding 

ceremony and wedding reception. 

Contact Michelle on (02) 

9997 5511 or email michelleb@ 

royalmotor.com.au 

There are so many reasons 

to drop into RMYC and experience 

the most idyllic location 

on Pittwater! 

BECOME A MEMBER TODAY 

Social members – $180. 

Boat Owner membership – $620 

(initial joining fee $500). 

royalmotor.com.au 

Club Palm Beach 

Barrenjoey Bistro 

1087 Barrenjoey Road, 

Palm Beach 

In December, make your way 

to Club Palm Beach, located a 

short stroll from Palm Beach 

Wharf, for great dining for the 

whole family. 

It's the Directors' shout on 

Friday December 20! Head 

down from 4.30pm for festive 

drinks (member's badge 

required). 

There are monster ham 

and turkey raffles on Sundays, 

Wednesdays and Fridays until 

December 22. Win a Christmas 

feast! 

Also in December, chef has 

prepared a special Christmas 

menu featuring delicious 

turkey, ham plus roast 

seasonal vegetables with a hot 

Christmas pudding and custard 

for dessert (just $22.50pp). 

Every Wednesday there's 

family trivia from 7pm, with 

great prizes! 

Barrenjoey Bistro is open 

for lunch (11.30am to 2.30pm) 

and dinner (6pm to 9pm) 

seven days. The Bistro serves 

top-value a la carte meals plus 

daily $13.50 specials of roasts 

(Mondays), rump steak with 

chips and salad (Tuesdays), 

chicken schnitzel with chips 

and salad (Wednesdays), 

homemade gourmet pies with 

chips and salad (Thursdays) 

and tempura fish and chips 

with salad (Fridays), except 

public hols. 

The Members’ lucky badge 

draw is held Wednesday and 

Friday night (every 30 mins 

between 5pm to 7pm), and 

jackpots by $100 each week. 

Enjoy Trivia Night from 

5.30pm on Wednesdays, plus 

Bingo 10am on Fridays. 

The club has a courtesy 

bus that makes regular runs 

Wednesdays, Fridays and 

Saturdays from 4.30pm to 

9pm. Ring to book a pick-up. 

clubpalmbeach.com.au 

Dee Why 

RSL Club 

932 Pittwater Rd, Dee Why 

Located in the heart of the 

Northern Beaches, this club 

boasts contemporary surroundings 

and an expansive 

menu offering across its 

bars, restaurants and function 

spaces. 

It’s all about Johnny’s 

Jumbo Prawns this month at 

Dee Why RSL. Available for 

lunch and dinner, every day 

throughout December, dine on 

five delicious salt and pepper 

jumbo Yamba tiger prawns, 

served with steamed snow 

peas and rice from only $29. 

The club also presents 

terrific entertainment acts. In 

December, catch: Christmas 

Comedy Cracker (Sunday 

1st, $32); and Never Ending 

80s (Friday 6th, $35). 

Free music includes Shade 

of Red (Fri 13th) and JJ Duo (Fri 

20th). 

Enjoy the heart of Italian 

culture with antipasto, pizza, 

pasta and contemporary 

cuisine Italian at Aqua Bar & 

Dining. 

Flame Lounge & Dining 

is currently closed and will 

relaunch in late 2020 as part 

of the club’s current redevelopment. 

Join or renew your Dee Why 

RSL members for 10 years for 

only $20 throughout December 

– and enjoy a free Festive 

Feast complete with turkey, 

ham and all the trimmings, 

pudding and wine, valued at 

$23! 

Check out their website for 

the latest menus and specials. 

deewhyrsl.com.au 

’80s v ’90s 

Never Ending ’80s serves up 

the best hits of the ’80s and 

’90s in a song-for-song ‘battle 

of the decades’. Live on stage 

at Dee Why RSL Friday Dec 6. 

Tickets $35. For 18+. 

Burlesque 

spectacular 

A blend of cabaret and burlesque 

with artists performing 

pieces with movie and stage 

themes, decked out in stunning 

costumes to bring some 

‘ooh la la’ to Pittwater RSL on 

Dec 7. 

A lot like 

Christmas 

Musical theatre pros Danielle 

Barnes and Scott Irwin will 

share Christmas favourites 

mixed with hits from classic 

musicals at Glen Street Theatre 

on December 17; $29. 

Dining Clubs & Guide Pubs 

Nativosoul 


This distinctive band of indie 

rock ‘souldiers’ generates a 

booty-shaking rhythm with 

raw energy and skilful arrangements. 

Friday Dec 20 

at Avalon RSL from 8.30pm. 

Free. 


Food Life 

Food Life 

Recipes: Janelle Bloom Photos: Adobe 

Take a fresh approach 

to Christmas feasting 

Another Festive Season looms on the 

Northern Beaches: can there be a 

better place to be at this time of year? 

The days are longer and full of sunshine, 

the sand warm beneath our feet – and the 

holidays are within reach! Heading into 

December, Christmas food (what to order, 

what to serve, hot and/or cold, seafood, 

Chargrilled 

peaches 

with brie & 

prosciutto 

Serves 8 (as starter) 

8 firm, ripe peaches; halved, 

stones removed 

olive oil cooking spray 

200g brie, sliced 

200g prosciutto 

2 tbs caramelized balsamic 

(see Janelle’s Tip) 

Micro herbs, to garnish 

1. Rub the cold barbecue grill 

with oil, then preheat to 

high temperature. Spray the 

cut side of peaches with oil. 

Barbecue 4-5 minutes or 

until charred. Remove to a 

serving platter. 

2. While the peaches are warm, 

top each with brie and 2 

slices prosciutto. Secure 

with a toothpick. Drizzle 

with caramelized balsamic. 

Sprinkle with herbs and serve. 

Janelle’s Tips: #1 – If serving 

as an entrée, scatter some 

rocket or baby spinach onto 

plates. Top each with 2-3 

assembled peach halves, 

drizzle with caramelized 

balsamic and serve with 

chargrilled sour dough. #2 

– You can buy caramelized 

balsamic or to make your 

own, combine 3 tablespoons 

balsamic vinegar and 3 

tablespoons treacle in a 

small saucepan, bring to boil 

stirring, boil gently 5 minutes 

until thick and syrupy. (Don’t 

over boil; it will thicken on 

BBQ or traditional) is top-of-mind for us all. 

Yes, we have our favorites that appear every 

year but it’s always nice to surprise family 

and friends with something new. That’s the 

brief I worked to this month, so I hope these 

recipes work a treat – if not specifically for 

Christmas, then at some other time during 

summer. A Merry and safe Christmas to all! 

cooling). Cool and pour into a 

jar. #3 – For different flavours 

you can switch the peaches for 

nectarines or mango cheeks. 

Smoked salmon 

avocado & 

orange salad 

Serves 8 (as entrée or as 

a side salad) 

200g baby spinach 

30g baby beetroot leaves 

3 avocados, peeled, chopped 

4 navel oranges, peeled, 

segmented 

400g smoked salmon 

Micro herbs, to garnish, 

optional 

with Janelle Bloom 

Crisp bread, to serve 

Orange vinaigrette 

4 tbs extra virgin olive oil 

2 tbs orange juice 

3 tsp horseradish cream 

1 tsp finely chopped red chilli 

1 tsp caster sugar 

1. For the vinaigrette, combine 

all the ingredients in a 

jar. Season well with salt 

and pepper, shake well to 

combine. Refrigerate until 

ready to serve. 

2. Just before serving, 

combine the spinach, 

baby beetroot leaves, 

avocado and segmented 

orange pieces in a large 

bowl. Shake the dressing 

and spoon half over the 

salad. Toss gently to coat 

then arrange on serving 

plates. Top each plate with 

salmon and scatter with 

herbs. Spoon a little of the 

remaining dressing over 

each plate and serve with 

crispbread. 



For more recipes go to www.janellebloom.com.au 

Marinated barbecue 

turkey breast 

(Serves 8) 

1.8-2kg boneless turkey 

breast, skin on 

12 small onions, peeled, 

halved 

Fresh thyme & capers, to serve 

Marinade 

100ml olive oil 

1/3 cup apple juice 

3 tbs honey 

1 tbs seeded mustard 

2 tbs Dijon mustard 

6 garlic cloves, peeled, sliced 

1 small red chilli, deseeded, 

finely chopped 

½ cup sage leaves 

1 tbs thyme leaves 

1. For the marinade, whisk 

oil, apple juice, honey, 

mustards and salt and 

pepper together in a bowl. 

Stir in the garlic, chilli and 

herbs. 

2. Cut the turkey breast, 

crossways into 8 thick 

steaks. Place into a large 

ceramic dish in a single 

layer. Place the onions in 

a separate bowl. Spoon 2 

tablespoons marinade over 

the onions and the rest over 

the turkey, turn to coat. 

Cover and refrigerate 4 

hours or overnight. 

3. Preheat a barbecue plate 

or grill (with hood) on 

medium-high. Remove the 

turkey and onions from 

the marinade. Pour the 

marinade into a saucepan. 

Bring to the boil over high 

heat, boil gently 5 minutes 

then pour the marinade into 

a greased roasting pan. 

4. Place the onions on a 

large sheet of baking 

paper, spoon over a little 

marinade, then wrap in a 

parcel to enclose. Wrap 

parcel in foil. Barbecue 

the onions for 15 minutes, 

turning after 8 minutes. 

5. Spray turkey pieces lightly 

with oil, barbecue for 3-4 

minutes each side or until 

golden. Transfer to the 

roasting pan, turn to coat in 

the marinade. Remove onions 

from their parcel and place 

into pan with the turkey. 

6. Place a greased stainlesssteel 

rack on top of 

hotplate. Reduce heat to 

medium (temp should be 

180C). Place roasting pan 

onto of the rack, close the 

hood and barbecue for 20 

minutes or until juices run 

clear when turkey is pierced 

with a skewer. Transfer 

turkey to serving plate. 

Cover loosely with foil. 

Stand for 15 minutes before 

serving. Top with thyme 

and capers to serve. 

Janelle’s Tip: You can 

barbecue the whole turkey 

breast in one piece if you like; 

follow the steps above, sear 

the fillet for 5 minutes each 

side then follow Step 6 but 

barbecue for about 1 hour 

(temp should be 180C). 

Barbecue pumpkin 

salad with 

pomegranate & 

walnuts 

Serves 8 

1kg Kent pumpkin, peeled 

olive oil cooking spray 

1 pomegranate 

100g baby rocket 

2/3 cup walnuts, roasted 

Dressing 

4 tbs extra virgin olive oil 

2 tbs red wine vinegar 

1 tbs pomegranate molasses 

1 tsp Dijon mustard 

1. Slice the pumpkin in 1cmthick 

pieces. Place one-third 

in a single layer on a large 

microwave safe plate. Cover 

with damp paper towel, 

microwave 3-4 minutes until 

hot, pumpkin should still 

be firm. Slice onto a tray. 

Repeat twice with remaining 

pumpkin. 

2. Preheat barbecue to 

medium-high. Spray both 

sides of the warm pumpkin 

with oil and season. 

Barbecue, in batches for 

3-5 minutes each side until 

tender. Remove to a serving 

platter. Cool to room 

temperature. 

3. Roll the pomegranate on 

the bench to loosen the 

seeds. Score around the 

centre, tear open. Hold 

pomegranate half over a 

bowl, seeds facing down 

and tap the skin with a 

wooden spoon, squeezing 

a little to release the seeds 

and juice. Remove and 

discard any white pith. 

Add pomegranate seeds, 

rocket and walnuts to the 

pumpkin. Season and toss 

gently to combine. 

4. Combine all the dressing 

ingredients and any juice 

from the pomegranate in a 

jar, shake well to combine. 

Just before serving spoon 

over the salad. 

Janelle’s Tip: You can prepare 

the salad to the end of Step 3, 

four hours ahead, but place 

the rocket leaves onto of other 

ingredients, don’t toss. Cover 

with damp paper towel and 

wrap and keep in the fridge. 

Toss gently and dress just 

before serving. 

Turn the page for a scrumptious Xmas dessert! 

Food Life 



Food Life 

In Season 

Cherries 

Food Life 

Aussie Cherries are 

available late November 

through to the end of 

February and are the 

quintessential summer fruit. 

Plus, what’s a Christmas feast 

without the vibrant colour of 

cherries, so much a part of 

the traditional red, white and 

green trio? 

Buying 

If you possibly can, taste 

cherries before you buy them. 

Always look for shiny, firm, 

plump cherries with fresh 

green stems. Avoid bruised or 

marked/blemished fruit. 

Storage 

Keep cherries, unwashed 

and stems attached, in a 

container, loosely covered for 

up to 5 days in the coldest 

part of fridge. Rinse in a bowl 

of iced cold water before 

serving. They freeze well, too. 

Rinse, pat dry, and freeze 

them in airtight plastic bags. 

You can do this keeping the 

stems and pits intact, or 

pitted. 

Nutrition 

Fresh cherries are a rich 

source of antioxidants. 

Also In Season 

December 

This month, look out for an 

abundance of great fresh 

fruit including Apricots; 

Raspberries, Blueberries, 

Blackberries, Strawberries; 

Cherries; Lychees; Mangoes; 

Watermelon; Peaches, 

Nectarines and Pineapple. 

Vegetables in excellent 

quality 

And quantity include Hass 

Avocadoes; Beetroot, Green 

& butter Beans; red, yellow 

and orange Capsicum; Mini 

Qukes & Cucumber; Radish; 

Corn and Tomatoes. 

Janelle’s Tips: 

#1 – You can 

replace the 

water in the 

compote with 

raspberry vodka 

for adult version! 

#2 – You 

can make the 

compote 3 days 

ahead; keep in a 

jar in the fridge. 

Summer berry cherry cheesecake jars 

Makes 8 

200g white chocolate, 

chopped 

½ cup pouring cream 

375g block cream cheese, 

chopped, at room 

temperature 

1/3 cup caster sugar 

2 tsp vanilla extract 

300ml sour cream 

250g plain biscuits 

100g butter, melted 

Cherries, to serve 

Berry compote 

500g mixed berries 

250g cherries, halved, pitted 

3 tbs icing sugar 

1. For the berry compote, 

combine berries, cherries, 

sugar and 2 tablespoons 

water in a saucepan. 

Bring to simmer over 

medium-low heat, stirring 

occasionally. Simmer gently 

10 minutes until berries 

soften and syrup thickens 

slightly. Pour into a bowl, 

refrigerate until cold. 

2. Combine white chocolate 

and cream in small 

saucepan. Stir over low 

heat until smooth. Beat 

cream cheese, sugar and 

vanilla with an electric 

mixer until smooth. Stir in 

sour cream, then fold in 

white chocolate mixture. 

3. Combine the biscuits 

and butter in a bowl, 

mix. Spoon a heaped 

tablespoon into the base 8 

jars. Spoon over the cream 

cheese mixture (using onethird). 

Top with a one-third 

of berry compote. Repeat 

layers twice finishing with 

a sprinkling of biscuit 

mixture. Secure lids and 

refrigerate 4-6 hours. Serve 

with extra fresh cherries. 



Pittwater Puzzler 

Compiled by David Stickley 

1 DOWN 

28 Take a dip in the ocean (4) 

29 Correct errors (5) 

ACROSS 

1 Bargains found at discount stores (5) 

4 Moving air that cools down the coast 

on a hot day (4) 

6 Elegant and stylish (4) 

10 A burrowing monotreme covered 

with spines and having a long snout and 

claws for hunting ants and termites (7) 

11 Plants that naturally belong to a local 

area (7) 

12 Horizontal plane of the ocean’s 

surface (especially that halfway between 

mean high and low tide) (3,5) 

13 Charity footrace (3,3) 

15 Understand, usually after some initial 

difficulty (3,2) 

16 Came out into view (7) 

18 A conveyance that transports people 

or objects (7) 

19 A field of study or sphere of action (5) 

22 Not far away (4,2) 

23 Modified form of netball where young 

players can learn the game (8) 

25 Having no definite colour (7) 

26 Alive but not active or growing (of 

seeds) (7) 

27 An acquaintance or fellow worker (4) 

DOWN 

1 Equestrian discipline (8) 

2 In reality (2,5) 

3 Australia’s biggest yacht race (6,2,6) 

4 Destination of the Big Swim that starts 

at Palm Beach (5,5) 

5 How many schools Pittwater Primary 

Schools Sports Association represents (4) 

7 Hung around, like a drone (7) 

8 Type of small plane once operated by 

Aquatic Airways at the location currently 

known as The Boathouse (6) 

9 Bushland area in Bilgola Beach that has 

a walking track and lookout (7,7) 

14 Popular vote on an issue (10) 

17 Brought in from overseas (8) 

18 Bridge with multiple arches (7) 

20 Upcoming competition among 

creative types set in an around Newport 

Village (3,4) 

21 A person whose n ame is not given (6) 

24 Crab’s pincer (4) 

[Solution page 70] 

Pittwater Puzzler 



Garden Life 

Garden Life 

Delight With so in many the amazing varieties, 

colours our fuchsias of hydrangeas look bright with Gabrielle Bryant 

Elegant 

Always a 

Fuchsias 

favourite 

were 

for 

Christmas named way colour, in the hydrangeas 

16th 

century, 

are 

after 

flowering 

German 

their 

heads 

herbalist 

off! 

Dr 

They 

Leonhart 

look wonderful 

Fuchs. 

The 

in 

fuchsia 

the garden, 

family 

brightening 

has many 

the 

different 

semi-shaded 

species 

areas 

– from 

and 

glowing 

tall-growing, 

in the 

to 

full, 

hedging, 

protected 

sunlight. 

variegated 

Once 

or red 

the 

leaved 

older 

varieties 

ones, weeping 

were either 

or dwarf 

pink 

ones 

or 

blue 

– but 

depending 

the easiest 

on 

to 

the 

find 

soil, 

are 

additional 

the fuchsia 

lime 

hybrids 

will deepen 

that have 

the 

been 

pinks 

developed 

and blueing 

over the 

tonic 

past 

(sulphate 

400 years! 

of aluminium) will 

heighten 

Some of 

the 

these 

blues, 

showy 

but the 

new 

shrubs 

named 

will add 

varieties 

wonderful 

will 

maintain 

colour to 

their 

the shadier 

colour. 

parts 

White 

never 

of the 

changes. 

garden, while 

There 

others 

are 

hydrangeas 

will grow in 

of 

full 

every 

morning 

size from 

sun. 

the 

Some 

tiny 

cascade 

dwarf Piamina 

and tumble 

to the 

tall 

and 

traditional 

others, often 

Mop 

labelled 

Heads. 

as 

With 

tropical, 

so many 

will grow 

to choose 

into bushy 

from 

it 

upright 

is almost 

shrubs 

too difficult 

more than 

to 

a 

decide. 

metre tall 

There 

– best 

are 

to 

the 

check 

delicate 

the 

lace 

label 

caps, 

carefully 

the huge 

when 

blooms 

you buy 

new plants. There are dozens 

of varieties available in every 

colour. 

The elegant pendulous 

flowers of fuchsias may look 

delicate, but they are not. 

You must plant upright 

fuchsias either in dappled 

light, under taller shrubs and 

trees, or in an east-facing 

garden that catches the 

morning sun. Make sure that 

the position is sheltered from 

any wind that would damage 

the clusters of delicate, 

cascading flowers. 

Before planting, prepare 

the soil by adding some 

of the traditional mop heads, 

the cone-shaped flowers of 

hydrangea paniculata bushes 

compost. Make sure that the 

drainage is good. Fuchsias 

need to be watered at least 

twice a week if grown in 

the sun. Also, they need to 

be fed with a slow-release 

fertiliser every three months 

and they will love you if you 

feed them fortnightly with a 

liquid fertiliser for flowering 

plants. 

As your fuchsia grows, 

pinch back the growing tips 

after three sets of leaves, to 

that can be two metres tall. 

The recently introduced 

smaller growing Picotee 

varieties with two-tone flower 

heads are hard to leave behind 

and if you have a semishaded 

wall, the climbing 

encourage new side shoots. 

hydrangea petiolaris is just 

The more the plant branches 

beautiful. 

out, the more flowers you 

Hydrangeas are forgiving 

will get. 

plants that are easy to grow. 

As flowers finish, remove 

They like regular water and 

them to prevent seed pods 

any good garden soil. Mulch 

developing, and you will have 

the roots with compost to 

flowers all summer long. A 

keep them cool and feed 

light pruning in early autumn 

them in early spring to get 

will keep the flowers coming 

them going. Grow them in 

until winter sets in. 

pots, or in the garden; bring 

Trailing fuchsias are better 

them inside when in flower 

planted in pots, baskets or 

or cut the blooms – they last 

tumbling over walls. 

well in water. 

When the 

bough 

breaks… 

Cherry branches of Guava a 

trees – but you 

sweet surprise 

must take care. 

In If full you flower block the in my veggie 

garden natural is water my Cherry Guava, 

sometimes course that known as a Strawberry 

runs Guava. down This delightful 

evergreen the tree by shrub never fails to 

produce artificially a heavy tying crop of cherry 

guavas plants into early the autumn. 

hollows It is a small, that pretty tree with 

rounded, allow the glossy tree green leaves 

that to drain only grows away the to about rain, you 

three will undoubtedly metres in height. cause Keep the it 

trimmed bark to into rot and shape eventually after fruiting. 

branches The delicate will become fluffy flowers 

are weakened creamy white, and break growing off. close 

to the In the branches. last storm They I have are followed 

seen by this the happen tangy with flavoured, a very 

sweet, beautiful berry-sized, giant ficus. cherry Old red 

fruit trees that should are high be protected. in vitamin C. 

Unlike For example, the taller-growing there is a deciduous 

poinciana yellow guava street that tree needs that is 

local 

cooking, almost 50 the years fruit can old and be eaten I 

raw am straight very afraid from that the it tree is now or 

used endangered in cooking, – as jellies, you can drinks, 

sauces see, it or now jams. has a blocked 

water You should course protect between the major fruit 

from boughs. fruit fly with a fruit fly bait. 

Get into the 

‘swing’ of Xmas 

It is time to relax and enjoy 

your garden. Look at your 

outdoor seating requirements 

– the shops are full of 

amazing chairs and tables. 

Hanging cane egg chairs have 

been trendy for the past few 

years and now the ‘Swing 

Seat’ is back. Nothing is more 

peaceful than swinging in a 

seat for two, sheltered from 

the weather with a roof to 

shade from the sun – makes a 

great Christmas present too! 

72 68 DECEMBER 2017 2019 


I 

know there 

is aesthetic 

appeal to having 

orchids and ferns 

growing on the

Consider 

flowering 

trees for 

good shade 

This month, let’s take a look at the 

Native Frangipani (hymenosporum 

flavum), and Illawarra Flame Trees 

(brachychiton acerifolius). 

As summer begins, inspect your 

garden. Do you have enough shaded 

areas to keep you cool on the hottest 

days? Over the past decade, leading 

garden commentators 

have turned away 

from promoting 

some of the 

most beautiful 

native flowering 

trees. Seemingly 

everywhere, 

Councils and 

landscapers have 

been planting 

lilly pillies and 

tuckeroos. They have 

forgotten the most 

A blaze of 

wonderful 

waratahs 

Scarlet waratahs are the 

emblem of our state of New 

South Wales. Their bright red, 

torch-like flowers light up the 

bush in spring. However, there 

is a misconception that they 

are difficult to grow. Follow a 

few steps and your waratah 

will flourish! 

Waratahs need protection 

from wind that can burn the 

huge red flowers. Although 

they enjoy the morning sun, 

they need an undisturbed 

home that gives their roots 

some shelter. They need welldrained 

sandy soil – wet feet 

will kill them. 

Their natural home in the 

bush is under a canopy of 

trees. Also, when you buy your 

new waratah, make sure that it 

is upright and not pot-bound. 

Circled roots will never thrive. 

Dig the ground well before 

planting and add plenty of 

compost or rotted leaves; 

plant the new waratah making 


decorative and colourful native trees. 

Native Frangipani is a fast-growing 

tree that in late spring and early 

summer is covered in golden flowers 

that glow against the bright green 

foliage and fill the air with the 

fragrance of frangipani. It is a slight 

tree that is perfect for dappled shade 

without blocking all the sun. 

The Illawarra Flame tree 

should be planted hand in 

hand with violet jacaranda. 

The colour combination of the 

two together is unrivalled. As 

does the Jacaranda, the flame 

tree drops many of its huge 

shiny green leaves before 

bursting into fiery brilliant 

orange flower. The flame tree 

is a rainforest tree that is 

underestimated as a garden 

or street tree. 

sure that the roots have been 

gently freed, with the small 

swelling at the base of the 

stem remaining at soil level. 

This is called a ‘lignotuber’ 

and it is where that new 

shoots will appear from. 

Firm the soil well around 

the roots and water in with 

Seasol. Waratahs are prone to 

root rot, so it is a good idea 

to water with Yates Anti Rot to 

settle it in. 

Once established, feed with 

Bush Tucker or any slowrelease 

native plant food. 

Don’t over fertilise; waratahs 

rarely need feeding. 

Christmas gifts 

for gardeners 

It is always easy to find gifts for garden 

lovers. And with the return to the 1970s 

bringing indoor plants back into fashion, 

the possibilities this year are endless. 

The plants are the same but the 

containers are different. Glazed ceramic 

pots were the fashion then but have been 

replaced now with glass, timber and 

natural fibres, both for cut flowers, table 

decoration and plants. 

Small terrariums are easy for your busy 

working friends to look after; if you have 

green fingers they are easy to make. Small 

jars, bowls and glasses are easy to find at 

the charity shops. Hanging baskets of ferns 

or trailing plants are great for the balconies 

of units. Look for a retro macramé hanger, 

they are back in vogue again! 

Pot plants can always find a place in any 

home. Choose from scarlet anthuriums, 

colourful cordylines, white peace lilies, 

orchids or ferns, potted hydrangeas, 

succulents or palms, poinsettias and 

crotons. 

Trowels, seeds, fertilisers, gloves and 

pots are always welcome gifts. 


Garden Life

Garden Life 

Jobs this Month 

Garden Life 

December 

Make your property safe 

following the bushfireravaged 

lead-in to 

summer. Clean any leaves 

from gutters and paths. Have 

a long hose permanently 

attached to a tap near the 

house. All firewood should 

be stored away from the 

house. It’s a good idea to 

keep some tennis or softballs 

handy; in case of fire they 

can be used to block the 

downpipes so that gutters 

can be filled with water. But 

above all in December: sit 

back and enjoy your garden! 

This month and the next are 

the best! 

Think native 

Remove all seed heads 

from South African native 

agapanthus plants to stop them 

straying into the Australian 

bush. And clean up fallen palm 

seeds as they drop – they are 

painful under bare feet and act 

as rollers under shoes, causing 

falls that can injure. 

False beauty 

Don’t wait to see the pretty 

white butterflies in the veggie 

garden – that means lots of 

green caterpillars which will 

chomp their way through your 

vegetables! At the first sign, 

Ground 

cover 

Mulch will save 

precious water 

by holding in the 

moisture – plus, 

it looks good and 

keeps down the 

weeds. Ground 

cover plants will 

do the same. In 

shady beds plant 

ajuga, lamium, 

plectranthus or 

the native violet. 

In sunny beds 

brightly coloured 

gazanias, pig face 

or golden sedum 

give colour all 

through the hot 

summer months. 

spray with Yates success. It 

will eliminate caterpillars but 

it is harmless to birds and 

beneficial insects. 

Aussie Xmas 

If you buy a living Christmas 

tree it will only be happy 

indoors for a couple of 

weeks. I recommend you 

don’t move it inside until 

the week before Christmas. 

Traditional pine trees are 

expensive, why not have 

an Aussie Christmas and 

decorate a lilly pilly or a West 

Australian ‘Woolly Bush’ 

(adenothus Silver Streak). 

Tomato care 

Tomato plants grow fast and 

are very greedy. Feed them 

with Harvest fortnightly. 

Protect them from fungal 

disease by removing all the 

lower leaves at the first sign 

of yellowing. Control mildew 

with Eco Fungicide. 

Longish lawns 

If you are going away, resist 

the temptation to ‘scalp’ the 

lawn. It might eliminate the 

lawn growing too long while 

you are away but if there is a 

heatwave the lawn will burn; 

under stress from the heat, it 

may struggle to recover. 

Seedling tip 

It’s time to plant out 

supermarket seedlings. Many 

of the seeds can remain in the 

tiny peat pots and be planted 

straight into the garden or 

a larger pot. Others – such 

as onions, beetroot and 

radishes – need to be divided 

before planting out. Once the 

seedlings have four leaves they 

are ready to move on. 

Beware bargains 

Make the most of the plant 

sales across the region’s 

nurseries at the end of 

December – but don’t be 

tempted by plants that are 

pot-bound, as they take a long 

time to recover. 

Table decoration 

Decorate your Christmas table 

with flowers. White daisies 

and scarlet geranium are a 

perfect combination. Highlight 

the colour with bright green 

parsley or basil leaves. And 

use small vases that don’t take 

too much room. 

Crossword solution from page 67 

Mystery location: ELVINA BAY 



Times Past 

MAIN: The wharf and boatshed under construction, 

circa 1946, with camping grounds visible. 

ABOVE: One heck of a place to park a seaplane! 

Local landmark’s journey 

from seaplanes to seafood 

Although it might seem to 

some that the building 

currently occupied by 

The Boathouse Palm Beach has 

always been there, its history 

is a relatively recent one. 

Aub Allen built what was 

originally a boatshed in 1947 

on Crown Land, a year after 

the wharf was constructed. 

Aub used it as the location 

from where he could operate 

his fishing boat hire business 

and it may have been the 

proximity of the Palm Beach 

camping area that provided 

the bulk of his business 

during the 1950s and 1960s. 

The Beacon Store which stood 

opposite (and has since been 

demolished) preceded it by 

some 10-15 years; it also 

benefitted from the popular 

camping area. 

Victor and Carmel Walton 

visited Palm Beach in the early 

1970s and saw the potential of 

the area as a base for seaplane 

flights, around the Peninsula 

and to the Peninsula from 

Sydney Harbour. 

They took over the lease 

of the boatshed and after 

connecting gas to the 

premises, moved in full-time 

in 1975. 

In December that year 

Captain Vic Walton formally 

began operations as Aquatic 

Airways with a Cessna 185 

floatplane VH-FGC which 

carried three passengers. 

Some golfers referred to the 

hole nearest the boatshed as 

the ‘aeroplane hole’. 

Business literally ‘took off’ 

to such an extent that only 

two years later another Cessna 

was purchased. This Cessna 

VH-FVW 206 was a larger 

plane and could carry five 

passengers, enabling Vic to 

cope better with the increased 

demand. 

Eventually he was 

conducting a daily commuter 

service to Rose Bay and 

another service to Port 

Stephens on Fridays. He also 

ran ‘restaurant flights’ to 

Cottage Point, Berowra Waters 

and Peats Bight. 

Prior to this, Sid Parsons 

and his wife had begun a café 

selling mainly local fish and 

chips from the boatshed. In 

1975 they moved out when the 

Waltons took over the main 

lease and Carmel began the 

popular ‘Carmel’s by the Sea’. 

She retired from the café 

in 1998 and its lease was 

taken over by a local woman, 

Jackie Burns, who ran it until 

2008. The Waltons sold the 

main lease which they had 

previously purchased from the 

receivers after Aquatic Airways 

ceased when Vic died in 1993. 

A group of three – Greg 

Paramor, Nick Burton-Taylor 

and Rick Hutchens – bought 

the lease and have held it since 

2008. ‘Carmel’s by the Sea’ 

then became The Boathouse. 

Also on the same site, Adam 

Hillier runs the Barrenjoey 

Boat Hire which Russell Walton 

had begun as Barrenjoey 

Boating Services in the late 

1990s, with self-drive boats in 

all shapes and sizes. 

TIMES PAST is supplied 

by local historian 

and President of the 

Avalon Beach Historical 

Society GEOFF SEARL. 

Visit the Society’s 

showroom in Bowling 

Green Lane, Avalon 

Beach. 

Times Past 



Travel Life 

Travel Life 

Affordable adventure 

on Vasco de Gama 

Newport Travel is excited 

to announce the arrival of 

‘Vasco da Gama’ into Sydney 

on December 1. 

Vasco da Gama is part of the 

Cruise and Maritime Voyages 

(CMV) fleet of five smaller, 

classic ocean-going ships 

which have been beautifully 

restored, with the aim of 

making affordable, adventure 

cruising accessible to all. 

The freshly refurbished 

Vasco da Gama is the latest 

ship of the CMV fleet to be 

based in Australia for the 

summer season. Onboard, 

travellers experience a country 

club-like ambiance with 

friendly personalised service, 

and the ship boasts a wellearnt 

95 per cent customer 

satisfaction rate. 

Vasco da Gama holds just 

1,220 guests, yet boasts two 

swimming pools, a state-ofthe-art 

Wellness Centre and 

Spa, a two-tiered theatre and 

five comfortable bars and 

lounges. 

For the culinary inclined, 

there are six dining venues 

featuring international 

cuisine and the ‘Chef’s 

Table’ providing a gourmet 

degustation menu and insights 

into the workings of the galley. 

Vasco da Gama is suitable 

for first-time cruisers through 

to experienced travellers; for 

singles, couples and multigenerational 

families. 

Solo cruisers will love having 

their own spacious cabin 

(with 40 to choose from) for a 

generous supplement of just 

25 per cent. There are special 

welcome cocktail parties as 

well as get-togethers to meet 

other fellow travellers. 

Newport Travel’s Chris Riou 

said that being a smaller ship, 

Vasco da Gama could fit into 

small harbours unreachable 

by bigger ocean liners and so 

could offer truly innovative and 

adventurous itineraries. She 

said the Australian ports of call 

would include Phillip Island, 

Kangaroo Island, Esperance, 

Geraldton and Kuri Bay to the 

north of Broome. 

“Newport Travel is hosting 

an audio-visual presentation 

and talk on December 10 with 

CMV cruise’s Faye Larrarte who 

will share her experience of life 

on board the Vasco da Gama 

as well as the special features 

and itineraries of the other 

ships in the CMV fleet: Astoria, 

Marco Polo, Magellan and 

Columbus,” Chris said. 

* For more info or to register, 

call Natalie on 9997 1277 or 

email natalie@newporttravel. 

com.au 



Northern Europe beauty 

will fascinate & delight 

It’s hard to adequately 

describe extraordinary 

landscapes; but when you sail 

through enchanting fjords and 

forgotten archipelagos, you 

won’t need words – you’ll be 

left speechless. 

And Travel View’s Karen 

Robinson said that when you 

explore the countries of the 

region, where few will ever 

visit, the lasting memories of 

your experience will be of its 

“dramatic scenery and curious 

communities”. 

“With fewer than 350 guests, 

a Windstar ship is large enough 

to pamper, yet small enough 

to explore secluded coves and 

docks in the heart of charming 

villages, sparkling cities and 

remote islands of Northern 

Europe,” Karen explained. 

“You will fully immerse yourself 

in these amazing northern 

European destinations and 

travel beyond tourist hotspots 

to remote fjords, raging waterfalls, 

and small fishing villages. 

“High on the to-do list is to 

enjoy a soak in Reykjavik’s milky 

Blue Lagoon, visit Guilfoss Waterfall, 

Pingvellir National Park 

and take in the vibrant capital 

and charming old quarter with 

its iconic colourful wooden 

houses and narrow streets. 

“Don’t miss out on a trip up 

to Perlan, with its viewing deck 

offering fabulous panoramic 

views over Reykjavik. And when 

you visit the island of Heimaey, 

the Pompeii of the North, you’ll 

discover there is plenty to do 

and see on this charming island 

from visiting the largest colony 

of Atlantic puffins, admiring 

volcanoes and the island’s rich 

geological history.” 

She added you should take 

some time to venture out to the 

island’s famous waterfalls and 

surrounding glaciers. 

Elsewhere, navigate the long, 

narrow, stunning waterways 

through high mountainous 

terrain to arrive in Seydisfkordur, 

known for its breathtaking 

cascading waterfalls and small 

traditional riverside town; and 

visit Hengifoss Waterfall, one of 

the highest waterfalls in Iceland 

sculpted by basalt lava surrounded 

by layers of lava and 

natural red clay. 

“With mind-blowing scenery, 

bubbling hot springs 

and action-packed Glacier 

Canyon River Rafting, there is 

something for every traveller 

in and around Akureyri,” said 

Karen. “See one of the world’s 

most spectacular waterfalls, 

Godafoss Waterfall, also known 

as Waterfall of the Gods’, just a 

45-minute trip outside of town, 

and if you need a break from all 

your adventures, sit back and 

relax in the natural geothermal 

waters of the Myvatn Nature 

Baths outside Akureyri.” 

For the adventurous, Karen 

recommends visiting Snæfellsjokull 

National Park which is 

full of regal glaciers, lava fields, 

waterfalls, caves, calderas, and 

basalt cliffs. “You’ll be armed 

with flashlights and helmets before 

entering the lava caves full 

of history, geological fascinations 

and many folklore stories 

to be told by your local guide.” 

* More info call Travel View 

on 9918 4444 (Avalon) or 

9999 0444 (Long Reef). 

Travel Life 



Travel Life 

Travel Life 

Best of New Zealand 

food, wine – and view 

America’s Cup in style 

If you’re looking for a oncein-a-lifetime 

experience, you 

can’t go past taking in the 

action and excitement of the 

America’s Cup from a vantage 

point like no other. 

With Auckland the venue 

for the 36th America’s Cup in 

2021, join acclaimed yachting 

expert – and member of the 

winning crew of Australia II 

in 1983 – Rob Brown OAM, 

onboard PONANT’s Le Bellot, 

as he hosts sailing’s most 

exciting bespoke cruise event. 

Racing is scheduled to take 

place mid-March with Auckland 

set to be abuzz with events 

and celebrations that cater to 

true sailing enthusiasts as well 

as those keen to take in the 

enviable atmosphere. 

“Berthed in Auckland 

for the prestigious event, 

passengers will be provided 

with breathtaking views of 

the racing, almost like you’re 

right there in the thick of the 

action,” said Gail Kardash of 

local travel agency TravelView 

– who is privately chartering Le 

Bellot for the occasion (March 

8-15) with an itinerary catering 

to lovers of gourmet food 

and wine, and ultimate sailing 

enthusiasts. 

“Embarking in Lyttelton, 

you’ll cruise to Picton to 

experience New Zealand’s 

iconic Marlborough vineyards 

and the stunning South Island,” 

said Gail. “From there you’ll 

head to Tauranga, located in 

the Bay of Plenty region of the 

North Island. You’ll then head 

to Auckland for a three-night 

berth, where you’ll be able 

to experience the vibrant 

atmosphere of the America’s 

Cup as it’s happening and 

discover all the fun and 

adventure Auckland has to 

offer.” 

The limited capacity of 

just 92 staterooms aboard 

Le Bellot means that guests 

are presented with a unique, 

welcoming atmosphere and a 

more personal and attentive 

service. 

“This is a true all-inclusive 

experience that will leave you 

wanting for nothing,” she said. 

“Experience the ultimate in 

luxury as you consume the 

very best gourmet offerings 

thanks to the ship’s on-board 

chefs and sommeliers – all at 

no extra cost.” 

Guests will also indulge 

in an open bar, Hermès 

bath products, free Wi-Fi, 

gastronomy, access to all 

common areas including 

fitness room, steam room, 

solarium, lounges and theatre 

– just to name a few. 

Book now – demand has 

been high and they are already 

50 per cent sold (prices from 

$7,800pp twin share). 

* Want to know more? Attend 

a special information evening 

on Wednesday January 15 

(6pm) – call 1300 885 215 to 

reserve your place.

Pittwater LIfe December 2019 Issue

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