The crab kings. Photo: Supplied by John Clarke.
STINKER: Fisherman became known as The Crab Man of Port Stephens
Old Westy mending nets. Photo: Supplied by John Clarke. The crab kings. Photo: Supplied by John Clarke. Part 2 – The crab kings IT’S hard to believe, considering today’s value, that crabs were once a big problem. There were heaps of crabs but no known market, and they really were a pest. They would tangle […]
LETTER: Petty squabbling won’t fix human-caused warming
DEAR News Of The Area, I WRITE in reply to Wayne Duesbury (‘Facts speak louder than a Google search’, NOTA, 4/9/26). Judging by the figures presented by Mr Duesbury, he is touting the views of a particular, long-discredited geologist, whose first book is one of the two in my long life (the other was ‘Mein […]
LETTER: Minimum tide records show a clear trend up
DEAR News Of The Area, THANK you for putting the information in the paper (‘Are our seas really rising?’, NOTA, 2/9/26) about how to find the tidal records in the paper. As someone who lives right next to an estuary and sees how varied the timing of low and high tides are each day, I […]
Courtesy of Gavin Little.
Champion riders chasing bucks and points at Stroud Rodeo
Courtesy of Gavin Little. Courtesy of Gavin Little. Courtesy of Gavin Little. Courtesy of Gavin Little. Courtesy of Gavin Little. RODEO competitors from across Australia will be chasing over $50,000 in prize money at the 51st annual Stroud Rodeo at Stroud Showground next Friday and Saturday, September 18 and 19. The 2026 event is shaping […]
Dolly’s Imagination Library is a legacy that gives fans solace
Anne Higgins (at right) sorting and cataloguing in Books & More Bookshop with literacy group volunteer, Barbara Fisher. The eye-catching, life-sized cut-out of Dolly Parton in the Books & More Bookshop. A RAY of hope has lightened the grief that descended on Dungog’s Books & More Bookshop following the news of Dolly Parton’s recent passing. […]
LETTER: Two readings from a century-long database are inadequate
DEAR News Of The Area I WRITE with reference to the opinion of Mr Michael Ferris (‘Are our seas really rising?’, NOTA, 27/8/26) and the comments made by Mr Iain Watt, may not be correct and that the seas are not rising. Mr Ferris cites his opinion and information is backed by a registered Oceanographer […]
Koala numbers down but you can help give them a safer future
THERE has been a rapid decline in koala numbers in some areas of NSW, and even more koala habitat could be lost unless we change how we manage our land and support koala conservation, according to Caitlin Orr, MidCoast Council’s koala project officer. Ms Orr recently addressed the Myall Environment Group during a gathering on […]
Young Westy at work. Photo: Supplied by John Clarke.
STINKER History: Miracle crabbers Old Westy and Young Westy
Young Westy at work. Photo: Supplied by John Clarke. Young Westy at work. Photo: Supplied by John Clarke. THERE were two fishermen by the name of “Westy Davis”. “Old Westy”, Alfred George, was born in Nelson Bay in 1890, enlisted in the First A.I.F in 1915 and was a member of the first group to […]
Hawks Nest Ladies Golf
Our 2026 Club Champions are Tanya Sinclair, Kristine McMahon and Elsa Jones. A Grade players Liz, Anne-Marie, Angela and Maxine were all smiles when they finished the championships. THE Hawks Nest Ladies Golf Championships wrapped up for 2026 last week, with the completion of Round 3 on Tuesday. 40 ladies played across 3 grades for […]
