Within a 90-minute driving radius from Newcastle there are more blue waterways than blue collars. In fact, the surrounding Hunter Valley and adjoining Barrington Coast are a nirvana for all manner of craft.

Not surprisingly, the area has one of Australia's highest per-capita ratios of boat ownership.

But the pinnacle, arguably, are a trio of lakes named Myall, Smiths and Wallis, all within a stone's throw of one another near Forster-Tuncurry. They're not just good - the district dubs itself the Great Lakes Shire.

Starting with the Myall, it's one of the few waterways left untainted by development and largely uncluttered by boats. Unfortunately, though, it was badly scarred by flooding in March this year, with many campgrounds and roads remaining closed.

Some three months later, the National Parks and Wildlife Service says it's "progressively" reopening these, albeit the rate of progress seems pretty darn disgraceful.

The good news, though, is that you can reach the upper lakes by navigating the Myall River from Port Stephens. You're looking at around 30 nautical miles from Tea Gardens, at its mouth, to Bungwahl in the northern reaches.

Long expanses of the river have 4-knot limits, allowing you to soak in the scenery and watch your steering. Depth is little more than a metre or so in some parts, and there may still be some floating debris about.

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Around Tamboy, the river enters the first of three Ramsar-protected lakes, allowing you to truly immerse yourself in the tranquillity of a freshwater paradise, where only the whisper of wind through casuarina trees can be heard.

Shelly Beach is the place to head if secluded, white sandy swimming beaches are your thing. Once it reopens, there are 15 camping spots allocated at Shelly, with pre-booking a must, but you can also comfortably anchor in anything from sou'easters to nor'easters.

Nearby Smiths Lake is a top fishing spot, brimming with flathead, flounder, whiting and blackfish across its copious sand flats. When the entrance to Smiths Lake is open to Sand Bar beach, you can add jewfish to the list.

The lake itself is relatively small and shallow, to the point of being scarcely navigable in the eastern sections. A kayak is the go, or it's not unusual to see anglers just standing in the middle of the lake.

A boatshed cafe called Frothy Coffee is next to the lake's main boat ramp, covering two of life's essentials in one place. And if the fishing fails, there's always Smiths Lake Butchery.

Wallis Lake is the capital of the Great Lakes. Fed by Wallamba River, Coolongolook River and Pipers Creek, the waterway is 25 kilometres long and measures 99 square kilometres.

It's apparently one of NSW's top three producing estuarine fisheries and accounts for 80 per cent of NSW's commercial crabs, while also being tailor-made for sailing and paddling.

Cape Hawke Harbour on the seaward side has a marina and boat ramp, along with a fishing co-op where you can bag a fresh kilo of prawns. Upstream, local boating legend Graham Barclay sells rack-fresh oysters direct to the public.

Wallis offers excellent skiing opportunities on Wallamba River, particularly around the Discovery Parks Forster resort, however wakeboarding was banned from the river since 2011.

Nearby Cape Hawke lookout offers 360-degree views along the coast from the top of a dedicated tower, perfect for whale watching. Better still, there's Whoota Whoota lookout in Wallingat National Park off Lakes Way, near Smiths Lake.

In short, it's a region so close to suburbia, yet so far ahead of other holiday destinations in terms of natural beauty. In coming months, in this occasional series, we'll explore Lake Macquarie and Port Stephens.

Among our region's many boating legends, past and present, one man stands alone in my mind. Actually, he's more crouched than standing, right leg behind left, carving an imperious turn on a water ski bearing his name. Fred Williams.

An icon of skiing and skiboat racing, as Mark Richards is to surfing, the great man is turning 90. And to celebrate, champion water skiers and racers are gathering for a reunion bash this weekend at Forster-Tuncurry - restrictions permitting.

A carpenter by trade, Fred's first water ski venture came when he steamed two veranda palings into shape before nailing on sandshoes to create ski bindings.

He followed this with Australia's first water ski factory at Forster, known as Ski-Ace, which later expanded to Belmont in 1970. The company became Australia's largest ski producer and third largest in the world, while also manufacturing wetsuits.

The 'Black Max' ski, particularly, was highly prized for its ground-breaking tunnel. Prince Charles even rode one, apparently.

While living in Belmont, Fred also made a mark in sailing. Few can forget the race he organised between his A-Class Scow and the 18-Footer Tia Maria, albeit it proved a one-sided affair in Peter Sorensen's favour.

And in 1981 Fred chartered Helsal II for an ambitious crack at winning line honours in the Sydney-Hobart race, ultimately finishing third out of almost 160 starters. Legend.

Happy birthday Fred.

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