Hunter trains: There is a good service on the Central Coast and Newcastle line and the Hunter line.

Hunter weather: Cloudy with a possible chance of morning and afternoon showers in Newcastle (23 degrees), cloudy day in Raymond Terrace with possible morning and afternoon showers (22 degrees), Cloudy day in Maitland with possible showers (26 degrees) and a cloudy day in Scone with showers (32 degrees).

Hunter beachwatch by Dave Anderson:  Cooler onshore winds and conditions to pick up after yesterdays change.Swell swinging back to the South at 1.5 to 2m peaking with the tide.Winds moderate S/E to N/E. Tide low mid morning and choppy breaks off Merewether,Alley and Nobbys.Try the corners of Dudley,Caves and Catho to the south.One Mile and Fingal to the north. Sweeps to develop and swimming conditions to deteriorate and only go to patrolled beaches.Newcastle Bathes closed for cleaning and water temp 21C.

► THE arson squad has joined the hunt for the firebugs who put the lives of many Coalfields residents at risk on Wednesday after lighting the two bushfires which threatened to engulf parts of Kurri Kurri and Heddon Greta. More here.

► IT WAS the worst afternoon of Graham Smith’s life – his home alight as a bushfire raged around him. More here.

► Newcastle veteran Jarrod Mullen could face a long battle ahead of him to clear his name and return to the NRL, according to former ASADA chief Richard Ings. More here.

► A MAN stands accused of stalking young women on social media before gaining their confidence, organising a meeting and sexually assaulting them. More here.

► HUNTER students are one step closer to their dream careers, after securing places in their chosen undergraduate degrees. More here.

► ANYONE sampling live athletics for the first time at next week’s Hunter Track Classic will be so close they can almost feel it, organisers say. More here.

► HE was last seen at his John Parade home on Wednesday morning. Now Port Stephens police are seeking public help to find Edward King, 53. More here.

► Meet Miranda O’Brien. She’s horsey, she loves life on the land, and she’s on her way to creating a career in the equine industry. She also has a deep love for Maitland Show which stems from competing there over the years as well as her family’s involvement with the iconic event.  More here.

► The old American saying goes: “it’s hot enough to fry an egg on the sidewalk”. Two teenagers put that saying to the test in McKeachie’s Run in 40-plus degree heat on Wednesday. More here.

► A nation-wide parents group that offers support, information and a chance to give back to the community is set to launch in Maitland this Friday. More here.

► Take a look at these beautiful photographs of Dungog and surrounding areas. To include your picture in the gallery simply use #Dungog on Instagram. More here.

► A PORT Stephens couple couldn’t believe it when a $25,000 prize started back at them from a $2 scratchie. More here.

► CENTRAL Coast Council was delivering key infrastructure projects on time and on budget according to a recent progress report presented to the council. More here.

► Take a look at all of the reasons we love Scone. More here.

► A 16-year-old has allegedly gone on a stealing spree from multiple cars in Rutherford overnight on Sunday. More here.

► Residents of Clarence Town festooned their letterboxes with streamers and balloons last week as a farewell tribute to their much loved postie, Mary Flanagan. More here.

► From a live band and inflatable fun park to a makeshift beach, Singleton’s Australia Day celebration is going to be huge.  More here.

► THERE was a buzz in the air at St Joseph’s High School Aberdeen on Saturday. More here.

Need a national news snapshot first thing – well, we have you covered. 

►GOULBURN, NSW: Tales of devastating losses have been shared at The Loaded Dog pub after fires sweep through the region.  Employee Vicki Bowes said she heard of one landowner who had lost 200 head of sheep at Lower Boro: “He lost stock in the fire before Christmas. He had just replaced those and now he’s lost more in this fire.”...read the full story. 

►MELBOUNRE, VIC: Rainbow Serpent Music and Arts Festival organisers are calling for a fresh approach to recreational drugs laws after a horror weekend in Melbourne resulted in three deaths…full story here.

►SYDNEY, NSW: 40 years on the memories of the Granville train disaster are still raw for rescuers like Gerry Buchtmann who pulled both the living and the dead from beneath a road bridge that had collapsed onto two commuter train carriages in the nation’s worst rail disaster.

► WAGGA WAGGA, NSW: If it’s so hot outside you wouldn’t walk your dog, why would you race a horse? animal activists ask.  This comes after a full cart of races went ahead on Tuesday in temperatures above 40 degrees...catch up on the full story. 

►Properties have been damaged and other homes remained under threat as bushfires raged into the evening across the Hunter Valley and near the ACT...catch up on the latest here.

►A toddler has been taken to hospital in a serious condition after he was pulled unconscious from a backyard swimming pool in Sydney's west.  The boy is the latest victim in a string of water-related incidents this summer...full story here.

► 2016 has been declared the hottest year on record.  The World Meteorological Organisation said temperatures in 2016 were about 1.1 degrees higher than the pre-industrial period...That beat the 2015 record by 0.07 degrees.

► Now will Julian Assange be extradited to the US to face charges? Last week, the WikiLeaks Twitter account, widely believed to be run by Julian Assange, tweeted: "If Obama grants Manning clemency Assange will agree to US extradition.”  But he has in the past promised much more than he delivered.

►INDONESIA: Permadi Arya became famous – or infamous, depending on how you look at it – for his satirical YouTube videos lampooning extremism.  One of them, You are Shiite, sends up those who preach that only Sunni Muslims will be guaranteed a plot of land in heaven.  But not everyone was amused.

With two generations of leather tanning in her blood and a love of nature, taxidermy was a natural progression for Hillston local Cassandra Hall.

Her grandfather was a drover and the source of Cas’ skills in leather working.

Not scared to get her hands dirty as a child, Cassandra would go out hunting with him and help mount his prized catches.

Full story and photos here.