Standing on the back step of the home he built by hand, 95-year-old Joe Woods gestures towards an ocean view now obscured by homes.
He holds up a photograph taken in the same location 60 years ago, when he had a clear view to the beach.
"That was taken because of a coal ship coming from Catherine Hill Bay," Mr Woods said.
"Looking now, I realise the photograph shows the path where the boys used to bring their surfboards and store them under my house.
Joe's photo collection has been digitised by his son, Colin Woods, who shares them online.
"I think it's just really good for people to know that wonderful history of the area, and of the migration paths that came from up from the west in Lithgow and from Cessnock for the miners," Colin said.
Settling by the sea
Mr Woods first came to Lake Macquarie, south of Newcastle, to work on the Wangi Wangi Power station in the 1950s.
He had learned his plumbing trade while working on the construction of a similar coal-fired power station at Wallerawang.
Mr Woods bought the Caves Beach property after the Wangi Wangi power station was complete.
He then worked on two more new power stations at Vales Point and Lake Munmorah.
The family home was an idyllic seaside location for Mr Woods, his wife Hettie and their three children.
It also became a destination for family members from Lithgow to visit.
Mr Woods remembers his nephew Lindsay Dukes and wife Wilma arriving at the home in a then-new, now-vintage Holden.
Then and now
Mr Woods's original images, taken in 1962 , have been rephotographed by the ABC at the same locations today.
They provide a series of nostalgic windows into a time when the village of Caves Beach had only 12 buildings and one road.
One of those buildings was George Harris's Ocean View Tea Room — the only building in 1962 to have a telephone connected.
Residents would appear outside their homes one by one until Mr Harris would gesture who the call was for.
Mr Woods remembers Caves Beach as a close-knit community in the '60s.
"When there was a special job on, like pouring concrete, the neighbours used to come and help," he said.
It could be slow work, with building materials often in short supply.
"I had a concrete mixer I'd made and I used to be able to loan that around," Mr Woods said.
Mr Woods said the family lived for almost three years in a prefabricated garage alongside a caravan and annex.
"I poured concrete piers to save using bricks when I got them," he said.
"On the right, you'll see a stack of steps.
"I made all the steps as well."
Million-dollar view
Working in construction with a wide variety of skills, including fitting and machine, meant Mr Woods was able to adapt and improvise.
"At the power station I built big steel tanks and when they were working in the tank they had big strong lights," he said.
"I used to have one of those strong lights hung up on the framework of the house so I could work at night, late.
"But I didn't work after nine o'clock."
In 1962, Joe paid $1,500 for his block of land.
This year a home nearby sold for almost $1 million.
"Transport to Sydney has improved a lot since I came here," Mr Woods said.
"Quite a lot of people move from Sydney up here and then travel to Sydney to work.
