Welcome to the wonderful waterways of Port Stephens and particularly North Arm Cove.
A great many of us came to North Arm Cove because of the access, scenic quality and relative peace of the place and its waters. The north shore of Port Stephens offers great opportunities for fishing, kayaking (kayaks are a must have in NAC!), waterskiing, sailing or just knocking about in boats from canoes to offshore yachts. The increase in moored powerboats and yachts in the past 10 years has been incredible, and many of the owners are not necessarily locals, coming from places as far afield as Forster and Sydney - WHY?
North Arm Cove offers excellent shelter from almost all winds apart from South/South-East, and is generally much less affected by bad weather than the southern shore, with its wide bays and long exposed fetches for wave buildup. At present there is no limit on mooring space, while most of the recognized mooring areas in the southern areas are congested and have waiting lists of some years. The word is spreading as we are now seeing cruising yachts (Australian and International) spending some time in the Cove. A number of our current residents "discovered" NAC by boat and eventually built or bought houses here.
Fame Cove, immediately east of North Arm, has been a nationally recognized safe haven and anchorage since its discovery in the late 1700s, when coastal ships supporting the initial start of the AA Company at Carrington used it for shelter. The Fame Cove peninsula was declared National Park in 1994 and many local community groups have been fighting to have more of 400ha waterfront lands reserved for public use. A series of developers have attempted to bring "progress" to this beautiful and unique area with only environmental damage to show as a result. If you have the opportunity to visit Fame Cove you should do so (it is only accessible by boat).
We have some ideas for the "On the Water" section of the website, including mooring areas, a chart of nearby waters, fishing spots (if you can believe them!), a list of contact numbers of moored vessel owners, and more. Any input or ideas would be appreciated.
