About Briar
Briar Jensen is a Sydney-based freelance travel writer. Her blog covers travel tips, reviews, insights and inspiration, travel accessories and gadgets.
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I love a hotel with character and the eclectic @so_auckland has it in spades. Ritzy communal spaces, comfortably elegant suites, a cheeky sense of style thanks to collaboration with @worldbrandinnz and genuinely cheery and engaging staff. A hip luxury Kiwi hotel. My story in the latest issue of @signatureluxurytravel (swipe left). #soauckland #signatureluxurytravel #hotelreview #nzmustdoHow good is this Cape York sunset? Taken from my accommodation at @capeyorklodge in Bamaga, the best quality accommodation option close to The Tip, the northernmost point of mainland Australia. And the great thing is, it is owned and operated by Bamaga Enterprises, which is a social enterprise that supports the community, so you know your dollars are staying within the community. #capeyork #bamaga #sunset_pics #exploretnqPearl farms always seem to be in picturesque locations, and this one is a stunner. Located on tiny Roko Island in the Torres Strait, they will pick you up from Seisia or Pundsand Bay on the tip of Cape York and transfer you to the island (a 20-minute boat ride) for a lesson on pearl production. The business is family owned and son Jason, a pearl technician, demonstrates how the pearls are cultivated, before giving us a sample of pearl meat (seasoned with salt and pepper). They also offer overnight accommodation in a couple of glamping tents, and who wouldn’t want to stay here with this view? Pity I was only on the day tour. @rokoisland @tropicalnorthqueensland #rokoislandpearlfarm #pearlfarm #capeyork #capeyorkpeninsula #islandvibesThere are always extra special moments in travel, and reaching the Tip of Cape York, the northernmost point of the Australian continent today was one of them. Thanks to @capeyorklodge for the tour from #bamaga to the tip, where you have the Arafura Sea on one side and the Pacific Ocean on the other and the Torres Strait in front. #thetip #exploretnq #capeyork #capeyorklodge #hostedHow clear is the water at Fruit Bat Falls in Cape York’s Northern Peninsula Area? I could see little black tadpoles nibbling algae from the rocks and tiny fish swimming by. I swam across to the falls for a back pummelling under the falls and climbed to the top for a lie in a rivulet for a fresh water spa. Simply awesome. To get there you can book a tour with @capeyorklodge in Bamaga or hire one of their 4WDs and drive yourself, but I recommend the former, as the sign to the falls is not easy to spot when you are concentrating on driving through corrugations and sand drifts. #capeyorkpeninsula #thisisqueensland #exploretnq #bamagaWhere the reef meets the rainforest is the catch cry of @tropicalnorthqueensland and what a fantastic perspective on the rainforest from @skyrailcairns a 7.5km Cableway in Cairns that travels above the forest, thereby not disturbing it. The shades of green are too many to count, with old and new growth and different textures catching the light in different ways. There are even palms growing out of the treetops, their seeds dropped up there by birds. #cairns #skyrailcairns #rainforest #exploretnq- My Tweets
Category Archives: Hawkesbury
Do Sydney’s Great North Walk one leg at a time
Fancy tackling the Great North Walk from Sydney to Newcastle, but don’t have the time to do the full 260km in one thru-hike and/or a bit nervous of getting lost along the way? That’s exactly how I felt. Billed as Australia’s … Continue reading
Posted in Australia, Events, Great North Walk, Hawkesbury, National Parks, New South Wales, Travel, Walking
Tagged Day hikes, day walks Sydney, Great North Walk, national parks
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Postcard of the week – Hawkesbury
I was eagerly anticipating the television mini-series of Kate Grenville’s bestselling novel The Secret River, a story of conflict between the First Australians and early European settlers, which recently aired on the ABC, both to see how the story played out … Continue reading
Posted in Australia, Hawkesbury, National Parks, Postcards, Sydney, Travel
Tagged Australia, Cowan Water, Hawkesbury, Hawkesbury River, Ku-ring-gai Chase National Park, sydney
2 Comments
Gift an experience: 10 Sydney experiences to inspire, excite and thrill
Can’t think of a gift for that special someone? Then give them an experience they will remember long after the Christmas tree has dropped its needles. Here are ten Sydney experiences for the grandkids to the grandparents, the adventure-lovers to … Continue reading
Posted in Adventure, Animals, Australia, Hawkesbury, New South Wales, Segway, Sydney, Travel, Travel Accessories & Gadgets
Tagged animal parks, family fun, Hawkesbury, jet boating, sailing, Segway, sydney, travel
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Sandstorm of Fairytales & Fables in Windsor
The Pied Piper of Hamelin, Narcissus, Gollum, Icarus and other fabled creatures have come to life under the shady jacarandas, oaks and pepper trees on the banks of the Hawkesbury River at Windsor, in Sydney’s northwest, for the 2nd Hawkesbury … Continue reading
Posted in Australia, Hawkesbury, Sydney, Travel
Tagged family fun, Hawkesbury, sand sculpting
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Ballooning in the mist
It might be the middle of winter, but getting up early and rugging up for a hot air balloon flight has its rewards as my son and I found out this morning on a flight over the Hawkesbury Valley with … Continue reading
Posted in Adventure, Hawkesbury, Sydney, Travel
Tagged family fun, Hawkesbury, sydney, travel
4 Comments
Pick me! Bite me! (Hawkesbury Farm Gate Trail)
‘Bite Me!’ screams the shiny red gala as I pluck it from the tree. I oblige, crunching into the crisp white flesh, juice dribbling down my chin. The flavour is far sweater and fresher than any store-bought apple I’ve tasted recently, … Continue reading
Posted in Food & Wine, Hawkesbury, Travel
Tagged Farmgate, Food and Wine, Hawkesbury, travel
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Sleeping with pioneers
I love it when people are passionate about what they do, and there are plenty of passionate people in the tourism industry. But there are some people whose personal commitment outshines others and Joyce Stepto is one of them. For a start, she … Continue reading
Posted in Accommodation, Hawkesbury, Travel
Tagged accommodation, Bed and Breakfast, cancer, Hawkesbury, travel
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