Photo by Julie Garran




About a year ago we were in Australia and had rented a house at the beach at Malua Bay for two weeks. For four days my niece and her dog joined us, so we were on the hunt for beaches where dogs could be off-leash.








There’s this sweet dog





on Malua Beach





that tries to eat our sandals,





and on another day this little dog gets to run free for a bit,





but it’s not really allowed. Malua is an on-leash only beach.

At the north end of Broulee Beach where Candlagen Creek flows into the Pacific, a girl trains her dog to stand on a boogie board





but this too is an on-leash area.

We go to a couple of off-leash beaches that are not all that; small and a bit rocky, and not much room for frolicking.


Photo by Julie Garran




The best place by far is the south end of Broulee Beach; eight hundred off-leash metres of golden sand and gentle surf. What a dog fiesta this is!











I mean, how can you not laugh at a dog running on the beach? – Em Bailey





Happiness is a warm puppy. – Charles M. Schulz





The average dog is a nicer person than the average person. – Andy Rooney








No one appreciates the very special genius of your conversation as a dog does. – Christopher Morley


Photo by Julie Garran




The dog was created specially for children. He is the god of frolic. – Henry Ward








In order to really enjoy a dog, one doesn’t merely try to train him to be semi-human. The point of it is to open oneself to the possibility of becoming partly a dog. – Edward Hoagland











Why does watching a dog be a dog fill one with happiness? – Jonathan Safran Foer








Malua Bay, and Broulee Beach are situated on what was and always will be Aboriginal land; the land of the Yuin Nation.




Next post: Surf Lifesaving Australia – the biggest volunteer organization in the world.






All words and images by Alison Louise Armstrong unless otherwise noted
© Alison Louise Armstrong and Adventures in Wonderland – a pilgrimage of the heart, 2010-2024.