While stories on the pandemic were a constant - Macleay Argus readers were drawn by much more ... everything from new council works, real estate stories and brushes with slitherers and sharks.

We've been busy trawling through our annual audience statistics and compiled the following list of articles which resonated with you.

Snake season was upon the Macleay, the time of year when reptiles are out and about looking for food, to breed and the best spot to catch some sun.

For some people, it brings on fear and anxiety, knowing that the much-feared reptiles are active again, but Mid North Coast based snake-catcher Brenton Asquith says there is nothing to worry about, provided precautions are taken. READ STORY HERE

THE BRAVE knight had won his fair lady, but it took 43 years and meant he had to sell his castle.

A fully qualified stonemason and builder, Simon Herbert handcrafted 'Touchwood' from local granite, heritage bricks, sandstone blocks and local timbers.

The home reflected his particular interest in the Saxon period from the fifth century AD to 1066, basically from when the Romans left England up until the Norman conquest. READ STORY HERE

AS A result of the cabin replacement at Crescent Head Holiday Park, 13 'retired' cabins were sent to auction.

The online auction, conducted by Lloyds Auctioneers, gave members of the community the opportunity to bid on the iconic cabins. READ STORY HERE

A woman was bitten on the foot by a shark at Crescent Head while swimming in Killick Creek near the boat ramp.

One local who was nearby when it happened told the Argus her son saw the shark's fin in the creek.

"My son saw the shark in the creek and I saw it after the attack frolicking in the shallows at the entrance of the creek," she said. READ STORY HERE

It was only a couple of weeks back when the Bureau of Meteorology issued an initial minor to moderate flood warning for the Macleay River at Bellbrook, Kempsey and Smithtown. READ STORY HERE

For friends and family of Kylee-Ann Schaffer, the past 16 years have been a living nightmare since her disappearance on September 11, 2004.

Kylee-Ann was a social 19-year-old from Bellbrook, and at the time of her disappearance, she had finished her schooling at Kempsey High School, moved out of home and was renting her own place in town while working at Charcoal Chicken. READ STORY HERE

A Mid North Coast community was left saddened after a town's cenotaph was vandalised - likely with a hammer - in an act described by the local RSL as the height of stupidity. READ STORY HERE

In the run to Easter, authorities were imploring tourists to stay home, rather than travelling to the Macleay Valley - especially traditional tourist hotspots like South West Rocks and Crescent Head.

Local Members of Parliament and the police asked residents in metropolitan Australia to observe health directives and stay at home in order to protect the region's elderly and vulnerable residents. READ STORY HERE

KEMPSEY Shire Council began demolishing the old footbridge at South West Rocks.

While the new footbridge was opened in late 2019, work to remove the old footbridge was postponed as council's bridges team focused on urgent bushfire repairs. READ STORY HERE

Work to build a 45-metre long seawall along the foreshore of the South West Rocks Surf Life Saving Club to address foreshore erosion and improve safety and accessibility gets underway. READ STORY HERE

Argus history columnist Phil certainly caught the attention with this one.

He recounted two unwelcome events which occurred in 1907 - the coming of the bubonic plague to Kempsey, and a fire which destroyed a substantial part of the western side of Smith St, the town's commercial centre. READ STORY HERE

Cleo Schubert takes out an award that no one in the Macleay had ever won before.

"At the North Coast PSSA swimming carnival in Coffs Harbour, I was awarded senior girl champion and the and Most Outstanding Girl Swimmer of the Meet," Cleo said. READ MORE HERE

Kempsey resident Paul Silva said the Black and Indigenous Lives Matter rally in Sydney can bring solidarity to the Australian community following on from the current Black Lives Matter movement in America. READ STORY HERE

Michael (Mike) Davis has clocked off at of Dunn's Cranes, now Mid Coast Cranes, for the last time. "I'm keen to relax, travel with my wife in our van and enjoy my retirement with a fishing rod in hand," Mike said. READ STORY HERE

Five generations of a family come together - a super rarity, especially during COVID times - at The Rocks.

For Milton Matthews and his family - the rarity became a reality after the birth of Kye Watson. READ STORY HERE

Group 3 rugby league decides to cancel the 2020 season in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic, which brought enormous disruption for every sport in the Macleay. READ STORY HERE

A coastal freighter torpedoed by a Japanese submarine in WWII is found after all these years.

Then acting Minister for Veterans, Geoff Lee, said the SS Wollongbar II was confirmed by archaeologists from Heritage NSW after it was reported by the local community. READ STORY HERE

Pubs and clubs were in the cross-hairs of the Government's COVID-19 crackdown - but that just convinced a local publican to think outside of the beer crate.

Troy de Luca, the licensee at the Seabreeze Beach Hotel at South West Rocks, innovated by turning the seaside establishment into a convenience store. READ STORY HERE

Freakishly talented Gladstone teen Heath Lancaster could be anything - and everything.

Heath was one of a select few chosen to attend The Academy - a boot camp at Tamworth for people in the music industry. READ STORY HERE

Local man Wayne Carmady had been employed by NSW Corrective Services for just two years when he was involved in controlling a prison riot at Long Bay Gaol.

Wayne was working with another officer in the supermax prison block, Katingal, on the night of October 23 1986. It was a routine night for the two officers before they were made aware of a problem at the Metropolitan Remand Centre at Long Bay. READ STORY HERE