Tony and Kim Outdoor Adventures

POVERTY POINT, COOLOOLA NATIONAL PARK. QLD

One of our secret campsites is Poverty Point in the Cooloola National Park. The Cooloola National Park is an incredible diversity of landscapes, stretching from the North Shore of the Noosa River, through open wallum heathland, to mangroves along Tin Can Bay. There are tropical rainforests, crystal clear lakes and mammoth coloured sand dunes, including the Carlo Sandblow. There are stunning beaches framed by high dunes, wildflowers, woodlands, Blackbutt forest, tranquil lakes, waterways and rainforest.

You’ll require vehicle permits when travelling within the Cooloola National Park. Those permits extend travelling north of the Noosa River to Middle Rocks, south-east of Rainbow Beach. Also travelling along the Freshwater track between Bymien and the beach, the Pettigrew Road, eastern and western firebreaks (Kings Bore Circuit) and the Leisha track

A Saturday morning, no so long ago Kim and I packed the Nissan Navara and headed north. First stop was the Eumundi Markets, which were interesting; Kim picked up a dress, a long dress as in down to her toes. She has always thought that long “maxi” dresses look weird and never tried one on. This one didn't look too bad at all. It also means, I think that she has more dresses than I do jeans or shorts. Once we were done with the markets we headed north again to Gympie and onto Tin Can Bay rd, which lead us to our first destination of Seary’s Creek for lunch and a paddle.

Seary’s Creek is a most wonderful place with a decent creek which flows out of a swamp. They have put in a lot of board walks and the two swimming holes where you can float and swim from one hole to the other. On a body board, you just float down, which is very pleasant. Both pools have tame yabbies. The yabbies come and nibble and tickle toes if you stand still. Then we drove into Poverty Point, which is a campsite at the southern end of Tin Can Bay. The road in is loose to packed sand, and a 4wd is required to reach the campsites. There were a few long stretches of deep sand, but the Blue Smurf handled it with ease without airing the tyres down. We camped about 10m from the sand and our fire was just on the bank above the sand.

Poverty Point is a lovely little sandy beach and when the tide goes out it is sand flats rather than the expected mud flats. This little-known spot on the southern shores of Tin Can Bay was developed by the logging industry around 1873 as a despatch point for the timber trade.

Logs were brought to Poverty Point via light rail and, later, trucks to be rafted up and floated to the Dundathu timber mill in Maryborough. We unpacked and setup camp and started a fire and tried our hand at a little fishing at sunset.

The next day we headed to the town of Tin Can Bay. Where is Tin Can Bay you might be asking? And you might be forgiven for not knowing prior to reading this blog. However you absolutely have no idea what you are missing out on by never being there! The funny part is that you have probably driven right past Tin Can Bay on many occasions, yet not known it was nestled just off the Bruce Highway in Queensland just north of Noosa.

It is a very sleepy little coastal village and home to some of the most stunning scenery and fantastic ocean passage. If you are coming by boat then this is a fantastic spot to anchor down for a few days, as it is very sheltered. The beautiful harbour area is dotted with an array of yachts, fishing boats and houseboats all parked up and relaxing. Tin Can Bay offers sensational fishing, great watersports and an awesome doorway to explore the ocean.

But it is something quite out of the ordinary, which makes Tin Can Bay a stand out destination. It is the wild dolphin feeding which happens every single day of the year. Now this is no normal dolphin feeding attraction, these are wild Indo Pacific Humpback dolphins.We headed down to the Barnacles Dolphin Centre, located right next door to Barnacles Café, at the Norman Point boat ramp and ordered some breakfast and waited to see the dolphins come in. We then took a scenic 4wd trek down the Freshwater Track onto North Shore Beach to Double Island to walk up to the Lighthouse and thru the Leisha track to the Carlo Sandblow. We watched some hang gliders and parasailer’s as they launched off the world renowned sandblow to ride the wind and witnessed a stunning sunset. Back to the camp for some drinks and yarns, we headed back to Brisbane early to avoid the carpark traffic on the Bruce.

COOLOOLA NATIONAL PARK AND FIVE ACTIVITIES NOT TO MISS!

1. CANOEING

As featured on Queensland Holidays, canoeing along the undisturbed Noosa River is one of the finest ways to experience nature at its most tranquil. Boats or canoes can be hired at Tin Can Bay, Boreen Point or at the Harrys Hut camping area. Make sure not to miss the peaceful everglades and the breathtaking reflections of the surroundings on the river’s clear, pristine waters.

2. FISHING

For keen anglers, Cooloola also offers a great spot for fishing. Cooloola and Teewah Beach includes catches of whiting, bream and Flathead, while inland river fishing is also popular. You need not worry about obtaining a fishing licence since none is required; however, there is established size and bag limits for fishing in the tidal waters that visitors need to comply with. Popular fishing sites include the Kin Kin Creek and Noosa River.

3. BUSHWALKING

Bushwalking or hiking is one of the most popular activities on Cooloola because of the numerous excellent walks in the area. Prepare your walking shoes because you’ll surely be in for a treat. Several walks start from the Elanda Point, and four at the Harrys Hut camping ground. Boronia walking track (1.8 km, 1 hour) along Kin Kin Creek reveals the life of cedar cutters who worked in this area from the 1860s to the 1890s. Poona Lake Walk (4.2 km return) leaves from Bymien picnic area and leads through melaleuca woodlands, scribbly gum forests and pockets of rainforest. Long distance walkers are also sure to enjoy the Cooloola Great Walk that’s up to 102 kilometres, complete with walkers’ camps. And if you’d like to try out more adventure, pack a tent for the two to four day Cooloola Wilderness Trail.

4. FOUR-WHEEL DRIVE

Like Fraser Island, access to Cooloola National Park also requires a reliable 4WD vehicle with high clearance. There are plenty of established tourist drives you can enjoy at Cooloola. You can take the Cooloola Way, a 32 km dirt road that connects the Rainbow Beach Road Kin Kin-Wolvi road, or drive through the banksia and taller forests with views over Cooloola sandmass. Other tracks include the Freshwater Road and Kings Bore Track. Before departing, though, it’s essential to be aware of the road conditions and directions by speaking with the area rangers.

5. CAMPING

Should you wish to experience and explore the Cooloola National Park for a longer period of time, then you can do so by setting up camp at one of its 15 camping sites. There are a number of formal and informal camping grounds, complete with facilities, as well as wilderness camps you can choose from. Take note, though, that the only camping area which provides safe fresh water is the Freshwater Camping Area adjacent to Teewah.

Whilst Fraser Island might be the more well-known section of the Great Sandy National Park, there’s definitely no denying that Cooloola National Park also have spectacular sights and activities you can never miss.

COOLUM, SUNSHINE COAST QLD

We were up and early for a day up the Sunshine Coast with our Kelpie pup (Shari). We take our pup everywhere we can, we don’t believe in leaving her with people or left at home while we enjoy ourselves. Today was Shari’s day. On the M1 we headed north one hour to Coolum.

Coolum is a surfing and golfing mecca, with a carefree holiday atmosphere distinct from its neighbouring beach towns. It’s long shopping and entertainment strip has a stunning outlook across a large beachfront park, and its leafy backstreets quietly traverse this beautiful coastal town in constant view of Mount Coolum, a grand volcanic dome that presides over the landscape.

About 1 kilometre north of Coolum, Stumers Creek is the estuary to the surf beach. The creek splits into two and runs into a shallow body of water which is ideal for swimming.

A short walk took us down to the unpatrolled surf beach. This is a great place to fly kites, take 2.5 kilometre stroll along the beach to Coolum, or enjoy the surf.

If it's picnicking you want, there's a shaded grassy picnic area with toilet facilities just a hop away from the shallow swimming area.

Bordering the swimming area is a grassy bank, where you can sit and watch the kids playing, fishing, or boogie boarding.

Kids seem to have a great time running up and down the sand dunes (which at present, are under regeneration).

This is a dog friendly area so Shari enjoyed the freedom of splashing around freely, chasing her favourite ball through the shallow waters and generally having a great time.

Stummers Creek is also a drop off point for parachutists, always a great sight as you see them glide gently down to the sand, but none for today.

Often you will see paddle boarders and kayakers alike enjoying the peace and quiet as they silently drift down the creek.

Stumers Creek is very popular with the locals, and on a hot day, like today parking can be at a premium. We thoroughly recommend Stumers Creek for a lazy, relaxed day out.

TWEED HEADS GETAWAY

Up bright and early we headed to the border and we said a fond farewell to Queensland.

In waving goodbye to Queensland we also waved goodbye to an hour. New South Wales operates on daylight saving time. Even though there have been calls for Queensland to follow suit it seems a referendum has been greeted with opposition from the rural community. Our destination was dog sitting at Tweed Heads for a few days.

Extending across the vast bowl of the Wollumbin Mt Warning Caldera, The Tweed Region is characterized by it’s of local communities. Outside the main centres of Tweed Heads, Murwillumbah and Kingscliff, the quirky charm of the region is revealed in quiet country hamlets, historic river ports and seaside villages.

This is where you can pull up a barstool at a local pub and share a story or two with the locals; or chat with artists at a weekend market; or stroll around an orchard as the farmer plucks native finger limes and Buddha’s hands fruit straight from the tree for you to taste and find out what they are.

After settling in we headed for an afternoon scenic drive to Coolangatta. Once you’ve hit Coolangatta and her neighbouring Greenmount Beach you’re at the end of Queensland’s Gold Coast as we know it. Duranbah and Tweed Heads sit around the corner, but technically that’s New South Wales. Technicalities aside, visitors flock to the border town of Coolangatta for its change of pace.

From here, you can look back towards the Surfers Paradise skyline in the distance and the entire coastline and feel, well, a little smug in the knowledge you’ve slowed down a bit. That’s not to say it’s boring. Sharing a boundary with Tweed Heads in New South Wales, you’re in the Twin Towns zone. For one, the surf here is spectacular, particularly off the northern corner of Coolangatta Beach, the headland around Greenmount, Snapper Rocks into the southern corner of Rainbow Bay and of course, the world-class surf break of Duranbah. D’Bah, as locals call her, is the one place you can be guaranteed of a swell when the rest of the coast is quiet.

Meanwhile, the corner of Greenmount offers a protected spot for a swim.

A lovely walking trail wraps around Greenmount Hill connecting Greenmount Beach to Rainbow Bay from which you can head up the hill to the exotically named Point Danger and plant one foot in Queensland and another in New South Wales at this lookout which is also a great place for whale watching. Named after the schooner Coolangatta which was wrecked here in 1846, this suburb exudes an old-school beachside charm where you can still find a milkshake in a tin cup. It combines this with world-class oceanfront hotels, restaurants and clubs, the most popular of which is Twin Towns Services Club, home to local and international acts

Up bright and early for a scenic drive to Murwillumbah to catch up with a friend. Identified as being in the top ten of the most desirable places to live in Australia, based on natural beauty, property values, welcoming locals and good infrastructure, the picturesque township of Murwillumbah is located in the centre of the stunning Tweed Valley on the far north coast of New South Wales. Quick “Hi” we were back on the road to Byron Bay Beachside Markets.

Held four times a year in early January, Easter, July and late September, the Beachside Markets are a make it, bake it, grow it market held on the Byron Bay foreshore east of the Surf Club. It was a perfect location to experience some of the most original products by one of the worlds’ most famous beaches.

The market showcases a diverse and exciting collection of high quality art, sculpture, ceramics, glass, home wares, fashion, craft, toys, clothing and music created by local artists and designers as well as an array of services offered by our health and well being practitioner

The focus and emphasis of the Beachside Market is on authenticity and fosters both originality and sustainability. Echoing worldwide popularity and the growing demand for direct-from-the-artist-to-you handmade, high quality product. This Artisan Market provides an unparalleled opportunity for local artists, creators and healers to showcase their talents. With over 200 stalls stretching over half a kilometer of beachfront at Byron Bay Main beach, this market is the perfect location, right on the doorstep of one of the worlds’ most famous beaches and destinations to experience some of the best and most original products and services.

Kim had a blast while I took the dogs up the outside of the markets and onto the shops in the main street. 1 dress and 2 tops later we headed back to Tweed Heads.

The next day was bright and early again for dogs to have a swim and run. It’s a dog’s life at Palm Beach Spit (known also as Currumbin Spit)

everyone loves this place, it’s a dog owner’s paradise for exercising your dog, just follow the councils signage and you and your pooch are going to have a great time.

Much of the area is geared for them. Walk them, let them run or perhaps have a dip in the lagoon in the designated area. It’s an amazing place to observe the antics of dogs and their owners resting in the calm waters of the lagoon on a hot summer day.

That afternoon we headed to Kingscliff. Shopping, there are boutiques aplenty for Kim. Up and down Marine Parade was a wonderful array of great shopping with everything from designer clothes through to swimwear through to kids’ clothes and surfwear.

A favourite, Heart of the Home, had a fantastic selection of homewares and clothes. It is truly easy to while away some time browsing before being tempted by everything from homewares, candles and jewellery to some great fashion pieces.

Fantastic designer fashion pieces can be found at Anna & Ruth and everyone is talking about On Kliff’s reversible jeans.

These are just two of the many fashion stores on Marine Parade and it certainly wouldn’t be too hard to spend a few hours wandering up and down the strip and being tempted by the great fashions, homewares and everything in between on offer, while I got to wait outside with the dogs.

Early the next day we did a drive around Tugun to Coolangatta checking out the beaches and surfer on the breaks. Back to Tweed we started packing the car and heading back to Brissy.