How a challenge during lockdown gave me a new view of my suburb

The rivalry between Sydney’s suburbs was unknown to me when I got off a plane with a backpack and a ponytail some two decades ago.

Where to live in my new town? I boarded with family for a bit in Manly and went flat hunting in Kings Cross before a short stay in Stanmore.

Boats moored at the Tunks Park ramp and (inset) a GPS-drawn “burbing” map of Cammeray.Credit: Stephen Saphore, Strava

But a random conversation at a barbecue sent me to the north side. “I live in Neutral Bay because it’s so handy for getting to anywhere else in Sydney,” a forgotten sage said. I crossed the bridge to the bay once designated for foreign vessels, and it’s been passport jokes ever since.

A few years later I shifted to Cammeray, a suburb nestled between freeway and harbour inlet, north of North Sydney but south of Northbridge.

The highlight of the ’hood at the time was the Epoque Belgian Beer Cafe, but Cammeray has been transforming over the years. It’s hard to plot a timeline of all the changes from memory – but the energy generated by a shopping square, a new primary school and an evolving main street have helped turn what began as a crash pad into my home.

Long Gully Bridge arches above Flat Rock Creek, linking Cammeray to Northbridge. Credit: Wolter Peeters

Yes, it’s still super easy to dash off in any direction, with major roads radiating from Cammeray’s doorstep. But when COVID arrived I developed an added appreciation for my immediate surrounds.

I’m a recreational cyclist, and lockdown restrictions encouraged me to scout out corners I’d seldom visited before, especially the steep slopes of the suburb’s east, where homes of various designs jostle for water views.

There is also the intriguing challenge that came into prominence during COVID, “burbing”, where one attempts to ride every bit of road in a suburb, with the results displayed on a GPS tracking app.

I’ve given it several goes over the years, and find it amazing that it takes me some 28 kilometres to travel around my 1.5 square kilometre suburb, what with all the cul-de-sacs, covert laneways and backtracking – and I invariably miss a few spots.

Best of all ... when I emerged from lockdown, the Herald’s HQ had followed me over the Harbour Bridge. A 2.5-kilometre commute after 20 years? Winning.

Cricketers enfolded in shades of green at Tunks Park.Credit: Nick Moir

Best cafe? Local powerhouse Maggio’s Cafe is a regular go-to, especially for baked goods and baguettes, and I’m also a fan of the adjacent Laneway Cafe.

Best restaurant? Good Food’s Scott Bolles writes that Cammeray is having a “mini hospo boom”, and for me the most exciting recent arrival has been the Indian cuisine at Don’t Tell Uncle.

Best beach, park or pool? Hands down, Tunks Park. A cosy water inlet backing onto a long sward of sports fields leading into a walking track, with Long Gully Bridge and its crenellated towers arching overhead. It’s a Sydney marvel.

First place you take visitors? The new Folly’s Bar & Bistro, on the old Epoque site, is a good place to convene – or settle in.

Perfect night out in your suburb? From Folly’s, there are at least half-a-dozen cuisines within a five-minute stroll. Upscale Italian at just-opened Nico? Modern Mexican share plates under umbrellas at Taqueria? Vietnamese at Nem Viet?

What would make your suburb better? Maybe a small bar?

Best secret spot in your suburb? Folly Point, on the easternmost tip of Cammeray, is a serene Middle Harbour lookout on a steep slope with benches among the trees and on the water’s edge. The nearby walking track to Primrose Park is a shady route through a dense parcel of bushland.

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