Blissed out ... The Byron at Byron Bay.
It's been a long time since Phil Lutton last stepped out in Byron Bay. He returns - older and very slightly wiser - to find the beachside haven still has what it takes to soothe the soul.
Clearly, I don't get out enough. In the meantime, somebody shifted the road.
The last time I went to Byron Bay was in the Easter of 2001. Along with my brother and one of my mates, we jumped in a two-door Lancer, zipped down the M1 from Brisbane and battled the traffic at the thoroughly non-bypassed beachside suburb of Tugun.
We were heading for the East Coast Blues and Roots festival, stopping at Mooball for hamburgers and camping in a friend's front yard in Bangalow, a pimped-out artsy village 15 minutes from the bay. Ben Harper was the headlining gig, although I was hanging out to see Buddy Guy and Keb' Mo'.
It should be viewed as no reflection on that weekend that it took me another eight years to return to the northern NSW coastal town, a vegetarian stew of candle-burning spiritualists, eco warriors, farmers, celebrities, surfers, backpackers called Anya and Sven and Armani-draped, crocodile-skinned old money types purring about in Benz drop-tops.
So I set off once again, this time with my wife in the passenger seat and two little ones strapped into the back for my return to Byron. Instead of seeing how much beer and passive smoke, of various sorts, I could consume in two days of live music, my goals were somewhat loftier. I still can't decide if this is a good or bad turn of events.
I had promised my three-year-old daughter, Eve, we would stop for a milkshake at a town that looks like a cow. Little did I know the renovated road south from Brisbane has since swerved the Friesian-themed Moo Moo Cafe in Mooball, as well as the swaying green canefields of Murwillumbah, leading to an endless and fruitless chant of "almost there" from a clueless driver.
We press on to Byron, impressed by the ease of the commute but more desperate for milkshakes then you can possibly imagine. Soon we arrive on a warm mid-winter afternoon to get our dairy fix in the town centre. A block away from the busy cafe stands the Northern Hotel, a grand patron for live music and a testament to the survival of old-fashioned boozers in chic surrounds.
A peculiar mix of locals and tourists mill about on the street, flipping through souvenir shops, making tracks for the water or simply going about their business. Dreadlocked John Butler clones walk past well-to-do mums having catch-ups over lattes. A few blocks away, the Pacific waves lap one of Australia's most famous beaches.
Such is life in Byron Bay. It all ebbs and flows with the spirits and the tides until the population surges a few times a year as festival goers ride in and ride out, heading back to the cities hypnotised by the natural beauty and wondering why they just don't move there for good, until they see the house prices.
I must confess to some anguish before my overdue follow-up visit, small and unpredictable children in tow and booked into a swanky resort five minutes from the centre of town.
I recall from my last dalliance that some residents can take themselves a tad seriously at times, a theory supported by abundant street press overflowing with introspective essays on the meaning of being a Byron Bay inhabitant and how the place can induce magical mid-life transformations.
Would Eve's Dora the Explorer backpack and Dorothy the Dinosaur socks be deemed too commercial for this utopia of green living? Should I have stocked up on hemp shirts and natural fibres before emerging into the winter rays? Would they know that on occasion, I don't always sort the recycling properly, or that my brother once ate whale in Japan?
We leave the melting pot of the bustling business district behind and my anxiety retreats as we arrive at The Byron at Byron, a sophisticated resort backing onto windswept Tallow Beach and engulfed by 45 acres of lush rainforest. Even the carpark feels tranquil.
Timber boardwalks carve out rickety paths to the villas, which radiate out from a decked central hub of an infinity pool, day spa and wellness centre and restaurant, which serves a breakfast buffet from which you will never want to leave.
The resort is a hotspot for couples on romantic breaks, boutique weddings and more recently, `babymoons' for first-time parents enjoying calm before the storm. To my delight, the staff welcome children with open arms - a nice touch not always apparent at higher-end properties.
During dinner on our first night, in between ordering potent and well-mixed cocktails, portable DVD players are offered up as a welcome distraction for fidgety toddlers. The peace afforded by a thoroughly engrossed three-year-old during the main course was infinitely refreshing.
Meanwhile, the affable Kiwi concierge - who I miraculously knew in a former life behind the bar in a London boozer - kindly relays constant Ashes updates to my table on secretive pieces of paper. This is what I call service.
You can hire bikes to peddle around the resort but walking is just as rewarding, giving you time to gaze at the Bangalow Palms and Paperbarks as you meander back to your suite. In the mornings, the first place in Australia to see the sun, whipbirds are nature's alarm clock.
It's worth getting out of bed to try the complimentary yoga on the sunbathed pool deck, or just relax with a coffee at an eco-retreat that makes you want trade in the car and up sticks to the beach.
Maybe Byron has a touch of magic after all.
The writer was a guest of The Byron at Byron Resort and Spa
If you're in Byron Bay ...
Do Get a spa treatment or facial at Rae's, a legendary boho getaway overlooking Watego's beach that looks like it should be perched in the Hollywood Hills. It's a hit with celebrities but it opens its exclusive doors to anyone wanting to treat themselves to an hour or two of pure indulgence. Stay for lunch or a drink on the beachside balcony. See www.raes.com.au
Eat You can't go to Byron Bay without a detour to Bangalow. The thriving village in the foothills of the hinterland has a main street full of boutiques and eateries housed in well-loved art deco buildings. Ate, run by culinary couple Seana Ryan and Shannon Debreceny, is a star of the vibrant dining scene, providing a relaxed yet refined setting for breakfast, lunch and dinner. Its upstairs counterpart, Satiate, is degustation-only fine dining recently awarded its first hat by the prestigious SMH Good Food Guide. See www.ate.net.au
Stay The Byron at Byron has 92 one-bedroom suites and is set in 45 acres of sub-tropical rainforest a short drive from Byron Bay's business centre. Their Spring Special, available until November 30, includes two nights, daily buffet breakfast, half-day bike hire and late checkout. See www.thebyronatbyron.com.au
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