What better way to celebrate a close friend’s birthday than an epic BBQ and picnic? Whilst there was only a little bit of walking involved this particular day, it had still had all the ingredients to qualify for a post:
- Walking
- Amazing food
- Better company
- An event to remember.
Getting There:
Tambourine Bay Park is a hidden gem of a spot located right in the metropolitan heart of Sydney. You should have no problems finding this serene and green patch of well-maintained parkland, just plug the name in to your favourite navigation app and away you go. Parking is available at the southern cul-de-sac of Tambourine Bay Road. A couple of things to keep in mind though:
- There are two BBQ’s at this park which are not available for bookings, but are available on a first-come-first-serve basis. The BBQ’s were immaculately clean when we used them, so please remember to leave them as you find them.
- There is a small amenities block right at the entrance to the park; the facilities were clean with water and soap available
- There is a dog off-leash area in this park, so don’t be surprised to see Border Collies zipping around; those with small children or a general unease around dogs might want to reconsider this particular picnic spot.
This park is probably what you picture in your head when you think “picnic spot”. It does not get too busy, has ample shade-cover and multiple areas where one can throw down a picnic blanket and have a lounge.
The Eats
The food for this particular picnic adventure was mostly home prepped. Snacks around brunch-time consisted of cast-iron baked dukkah focaccia served with home-made yoghurt and truffle oil dip.
Lunch was a simple hot-plate BBQ with steak, onions, and salads. But the real winner of the picnics eats was the all-star birthday cake made by none other then the very talented Restile. Here we had a five-layer dark chocolate, coffee and salted caramel mascarpone mousse and walnut praline masterpiece, with a signature moustache cake-topper to boot.
The Hike
The term ‘hike’ is not really applicable here, think ‘leisurely post-lunch stroll’, and credit where credit is due, this short walk delivers some pretty unique scenery in hitting your daily 10,000 steps.
The walk starts from the park itself, and wraps around Tambourine Bay. It was low-tide as we walked and super-shallow bay had seemingly lost half its volume and exposed its mud-bottom. Here the well-formed trail deviates north, and remains on the western side of Tambourine Creek. The creek crossing gives you two options, one is a small timber-log footbridge which spans the tiny tributary, and the other much-cooler of the two, is the naturally formed sandstone bridge. Here, the sedimentary rock has been eroded by millions of years of rainfall events, which has left a large slickensided penetration in the rock formation, and a pretty cool photo opportunity.
Walking along the eastern side of Tambourine Creek, you will witness a sea of Calla Lillies; we were fortunate enough to see many in bloom. The trail does not loop around, and you will have to simply pivot on the spot when you reach Dettman Avenue at the end of the trail and make your way back to the park.
I think the significance of this Saturday had many facets. This event had been planned almost six-weeks in advance, as the first gathering of our friends after the lifting of COVID-19 lockdowns. We are fortunate to be a close-knit group of friends, and most of us are used to seeing each other very regularly. Having that privilege (and it really is a privilege) taken away for almost four months had (and I think I speak for everyone) taken a toll. We had seen each other since the lifting or restrictions, but this was our first planned event. The weather had also been forecast to dampen our spirits, but the sunshine gods favoured us and catered what can only be described as Sydney spring bliss. There are other reasons why this was a particularly big day for me personally, but I won’t bore you with those details. All in all, I would describe the day as perfect.
