Islands

There are islands galore off the coast of Queensland.  We have plans to visit a lot more of them in future.

Water Sports and fishing are popular on Bribie Island

Bribie Island can be reached via bridge.  There is a great little Fish and Chip Shop on Bribie Island.

You can walk out to King Island (from Wellington Point) at low tide.  Most dogs love it but not our princess Molly.

Lady Elliot Island is a fantastic day trip.  This coral cay is small so you can easily walk from one side to the other. Small planes (did) leave regularly to/from Brisbane or Bundaberg to  Lady Elliot Island.

The water is extremely clear around Lady Elliot Island

Diving or Snorkelling is a must on Lady Elliot Island.  We were snorkelling with Manta Rays and Turtles (as well the fish and coral).  There are also birds galore as there are no predators.  

When the tide went out, we could no longer snorkel on this part of Lady Elliot Island,  instead, we went on an informative guided reef walk.  It is a brown reef and very healthy..

South Stradbroke Island is only accessed by boat or ferry.  You can hire push-bikes to get around the island.  Some people stay at Couran Cove for a few days but we enjoyed a day trip.  There is a very enjoyable virtual reality at the bike hire shop.

A pristine beach on South Stradbroke Island.  We took a picnic for the day but there is a restaurant at Couran Cove.

We like to take the car on the ferry to North Stradbroke Island so we have more freedom to drive around the island.
Brown Lake is a sand lake and is crystal clear.  It is the tea tree surrounding the lake, which gives the water a brown tint.

We have seen fish, turtles, dolphin and whales from the Gorge lookout on North Stradbroke Island. Next time we shall take the binoculars for a better look.

The Point Lookout Beach on North Stradbroke Island is patrolled by Lifeguards and is popular with swimmers and surfers.

It was a lovely 5km walk into Blue Lake on North Stradbroke Island.  We enjoyed it but probably wouldn't do it again.

Many people take their boats over to Peel Island, which was previously a quarantine island.

Wear Surf Shoes while walking around Peel Island

A man-made reef to protect Peel Island (North Stradbroke Island in the Background)

The only thing on Peel Island is the remains of the prior Leper Colony (and mosquitos)

The typical red rock of Coochiemudlo Island (Victoria Point in the Background)

There is a lot of driftwood on Coochiemudlo Island

Coochiemudlo Island has both mud and sand beaches.

St Helena Island contains ruins of Queenslands first penal settlement.

We still have many many islands to visit in Queensland.  Next on the list are Fraser Island, Moreton Island, Fitzroy Island and Lady Musgrave Island.

Do you have a favourite Queensland Island?

Amity Point

Amity Point was the starting point for a 12-kilometre walk along the beautiful squeaky clean beach to Point Lookout.

Amity Point is a small sleepy town on the North West tip of North Stradbroke Island, where fishing and water sports are popular.

Explorer and Surveyor, John Oxley named it Amity Point after the brig Amity, which he sailed on at the time of establishing the Moreton Bay penal colony.

Amity Point is home to the Quandamooka People
(meaning People of the Sand and Seas)

To get to North Stradbroke Island, it is necessary to get the ferry from Victoria Point.   Once you arrive at North Stradbroke Island, there is a bus service available from the ferry at Dunwich to Amity Point and also Point Lookout.  The day pass costs about $10.00 (make sure that you have cash).

We prefer to take the car, which is a higher ferry cost but gives the freedom to visit other places, such as Brown Lake or Blue Lake.

Alex relaxing with a coffee and enjoying the serenity at Amity Point.
We take a picnic and a thermos of coffee on our day trips.

We started walking along the beach at Amity Point, not realising that there were limited access points to get back to the road.  Many Four-Wheel Drive Vehicles drove towards us and we met several people camping and fishing on the beach.

We had the beach to ourselves most of the time.

It was an easy walk along the beach and I love the feeling of waves rushing in and splashing around my ankles and then the sand moving under my bare feet as the waves disappear out to sea.

The ocean was so clear that we saw fish in the breaking waves.

A very relaxing afternoon if you enjoy walking and the ocean.  Don't forget to take drinking water, a snack and sunscreen.

Sharon xo

St Helena Island

When I was at school, I hated history! It was boring!  Why learn about the past?  I felt that the present and future were more important, so I didn't want to concentrate on history!

However, over time,  I have become more and more interested in history.  Now, I feel that it is very important to know where we came from and how we got to where we are.  Everything that happened in the past has shaped where we are now.

Blacksmith

There are no convicts in my family history, but I still enjoy learning more about penal settlements and such.  It amazes me how much we have changed in such a relatively short period of time.

This is what prompted our visit today to St Helena Island.   The island, in Moreton Bay,  is now a National Park but was a Penal Establishment from 1867 - 1932.   Not much remains of the original establishment.  The guides (dressed as prisoners and a warder) kept us entertained with their stories and antics.

You can find out more about St Helena Island,  here and here.

We boarded the ferry at Manly marina and about 20 minutes later we were on St Helena Island.  We were provided with a guided tour of the historical sites on the island and lunch; about 5.5 hours in total.

Cat O' Nine Tails at Manly Marina

My tips;

• There is not much shade or shelter so make sure that you are wearing sunscreen and a hat.  
• Take some water and snacks (the provided lunch was not very satisfying).

Limestone Kiln

Prisoners Cemetery

Shark proof swimming pool

Museum

Can you see the Kangaroo?
They roam St Helena Island

Coochiemudlo Island

Norfolk Beach - Coochiemudlo Island
Click on the pictures for larger view

We would like to explore all the nearby islands while we are living in Queensland.  Coochiemudlo Island is a small island close to Victoria Point.  Very Close.  The passenger ferry leaves every 30 minutes at a cost of $10.00 per adult return (at time of writing).  Alternatively,  you can take your car over for $55.00 return (includes passengers) but the vehicle ferries are less frequent and we were told that coming back can be difficult if you have not booked as everyone waits for the last ferry!

Amity Traders Ferry from Victoria Point to Coochiemudlo
and return
Note:  Cash only

"Coochie" is only a small island (about 5 square kilometers) so we didn't take our car. We were on the island in under 10 minutes!  It is a good thing that my daughter had cash on her as credit cards are not accepted and the purchase of tickets is completed on the ferry (about 1/2 way across)!

Map of Coochiemudlo Island  - Click to enlarge
Note the number of facilities around the Island

 As everyone embarked from the ferry, the majority of people made their way to the nearby "Main Beach", where there were many boats and water activities for hire.  As all the picnic tables and barbeques along the foreshore were being used, we decided to go for a walk to the other side of the island (just over 1 km) to Morwong Beach.   Our kids (young adults) were not impressed as there was more mud and mangroves than sand.  This is not what they expected from Queensland beaches, so we were soon walking again and made our way to Norfolk Beach.

Melaleuca Wetlands

Morwong Beach
(and Mangroves and Mud)

The easiest way to get to Norfolk Beach is to follow the path to the right when you get off the ferry.  Go past the "Kiosk" and the "Redrocks Cafe" and the path will take you to Norfolk Beach, which was lovely.  There are limited places that dogs are allowed on Coochiemudlo Island so it was a good thing that we decided to leave Molly at home on this occasion!

There are easy walking tracks all over Coochiemudlo island

It continues to surprise me, the number of "tourist friendly" facilities that the QLD government have installed.  There are picnic tables, barbeques, taps and toilets all over the island (refer to the map).

Tip:  Although the BBQs are usually clean,
we take aluminium foil in our backpack

I am not much of swimmer but could soon be convinced to change my mind while in Queensland!  The water is very warm!  In Victoria,  it is never warm enough for me to go swimming as the water is so cold but the water in Queensland is a very comfortable temperature!

Norfolk Beach - On closer inspection, the 'rocks' were clumps
of oysters growing! 

We had a very enjoyable and relaxing day.  Alex and I will go back (without children) to walk around the entire island and explore some more.

Norfolk Beach

Norfolk Beach

In summary:

Pros:  
A small island that can be walked around if you are fit.  Quieter and less populated than many of the other beaches that we have visited.

Cons: 
You need to take all your own supplies as there is not much there. There are prettier beaches in Queensland.

Coochiemudlo Island...."had been known to generations of Aboriginal
 families as Kutchie Mudlo, the place where they obtained the red ochre
stones used as body decoration and as the pigment for shields and skins"
Jones EF 1993

Main Beach - East Foreshore

Main Beach - West Foreshore

I would like to know the story about the Thong Tree!
Were these left behind and washed up on a beach?