There’s something of an aviation theme to this trip. In three short days, we took ourselves from the earliest days of human flight, to the latest in military technology.  The RAAF base at Williamtown has a large collection of fighter aircraft on display, and their observation deck provides a means to view them in action as they take off and land.

Fighterworld features an almost complete collection of Australian fighters, from the biplanes and triplanes of the First World War, right up to the F111s and Mirages of more recent times, and everything in between. Unlike Temora, the planes are not in flying condition, but you can get right up close to them, and peer into the cockpits of some (though you can no longer climb into the cockpits, thanks to covid restrictions).

Our examination of the two hangars was punctuated by sorties to the observation deck every time we heard an engine fire up.  The aficinianados, with their huge telephoto lenses, had taken up residence, and we watched them for cues of when to expect something to happen.  At first we saw a few commercial aircraft and a couple of training Cessnas.  Then we saw two Hawks coming in to land – these planes are used to prepare pilots for flying Hornets.

A while later, another reverberation told us that more Hawks had just taken off. We waited for a while, knowing they would eventually circle back overhead and land.  Once that happened, we thought the fun was over. We’d just decided to head downstairs and grab lunch, when a huge roar filled the air. Wow! Not one, not two, but three F35s took off and flew right past; you could feel the noise in the pit of your stomach, and my legs were still a bit shaky as we descended the stairs. What a thrill!  These are the latest aircraft to join the RAAF, and they certainly would look terrifying to an enemy.  We saw two more take off before we left, and much later, saw them flying low along the coast at Anna Bay.  As we were having dinner tonight, we could hear them over Port Stephens, conducting night exercises.

After an ice cream break, we headed off for our final spot of local sightseeing. Stockton Dunes stretch for miles and miles, all the way from Newcastle, but they are best seen from Anna Bay, a short drive away.  It was certainly a “Wow” moment (another one) as we stepped out of the car and saw huge hills of fine white sand, looking like the desert of childhood imagination.  It’s a 10-15 minute walk across a stretch of vegetation, before you reach the dunes proper. From there, you have a real sense of freedom to explore – the sand boarders and 4WDers had left for the day, and we saw almost no-one.  There are no tracks to follow and no particular summits to conquer, so you just wander at will, checking out knolls and gullies, and leaving a trail of footprints which you know will be gone by morning. Neither of us had seen anywhere quite like it. We explored until the sky clouded in, before making our way back to the beach.

Port Stephens has been wonderful – no end of things to do and places to see, and enough that we didn’t have time for, to warrant another visit. Dolphin cruises, Fingal Spit, Tea Gardens … we’ll definitely be back.