"No matter where you go, there you are."

SOUTH EAST QUEENSLAND

BUNYA MOUNTAINS

Tuesday 10^th October:

We farewelled Ros and Mick then headed west past rich red soil through Kingaroy tp the small town of Kumbia. It was a good place to base our van while we explored the Bunya Mountains. The Kumbia Apex club have provided a local park with free power for campers to overnight. Smart move as most of the vanners spent money in the town. We drove up to the Bunya Mountains in the afternoon, leaving Twistie behind in the van. The road up wended its way through magnificent forests. From the rangers station at Dandabah we took a 4km walk. We had only gone a short way when Ferg grabbed me suddenly. I was one step away from a large red belly black snake. Luckily it decided to slither away from me. The rest of the walk was uneventful although the pine forest was stunning. Back at the car we were just in time for the bird feeding at a nearby café. We were surrounded by King Parrots and Rosellas.

QUEEN MARY FALLS NATIONAL PARK

Wednesday 11^th October:

We had an early morning walk around the town of Kumbia before moving on. We found an unusual sign on our walk and of course Ferg obliged! We drove south through Kingaroy, Nanango and Esk heading for a camp ground at the Atkinson Dam. Unfortunately we hadn’t counted on the drought, there was absolutely no water left in the dam. We decided to continue south through Gatton and Warwick and ended up in Killarney. In the mountains behind the town is the most perfect caravan park opposite the Queen Mary Falls National Park. The park is full of King Parrots, Rosellas, Shrikes, Kookaburras, Magpies, Native Minas andnumerous other birds. The parrots sit on the roof of our van peering in through the door.

Thursday 12^th October:

We awoke to a glorious morning filled with birdsong. It had been rather cold overnight but we were snug in the van with our heater! We took a 2km walk down to the Queen Mary Falls. They were very pretty plunging 40m over a rock face covered in orchids.

After our walk we drove to Carr’s Lookout to enjoy the panoramic views over to Mt Barney and Mt Tamborine in the distance. We continued on down the range and turned onto a 4wd track that took us through the Condamine Gorge, crossing the Condamine River 14 times. The track took us back to Killarney where we stocked up with supplies before heading back up the mountain. We stopped at Browns Falls and Daggs Falls on the way back. We spent the afternoon feeding the birds. Ferg took another walk down to the Queen Mary Falls. Late in the afternoon another van arrived and blow me down they were from Townsville. (It’s a small world!)

GYMPIE

Wednesday 4^th October:

We said our farewells to Henry, Vicki and Pete and headed south to Gympie. We had arrived at Ros and Mick’s place by mid morning. They live on a lovely property 10 minutes drive from Gympie. Our van fitted nicely under their very large carport. Ferg and I took a very long walk along the country roads in the afternoon. Twistie and I were worn out!

Thursday 5^th October:

We spent a quiet morning around the house, chatting with Mick. His passion is hunting and he took Ferg deer hunting in the afternoon. Ferg changed into camouflage gear for the expedition. They left just after lunch and didn’t get home until late in the evening. They got one stag which Mick will keep for the meat. I spent the afternoon in Gympie discovering the shops much more civilized!

Friday 6^th October:

Ferg and I went driving today to investigate the countryside behind the Sunshine Coast. We drove to Imbil then out to Borumba Dam where there were lots of boats with water skiers. South of Imbil we stopped at the Kenilworth Cheese Factory for a nibble. Yum, they had lots of different cheeses displayed and we tried each one several times. Further south we drove through Malaney, Monteville and Mapleton where the views to the ocean were magnificent. Turning north we hit the highway at Nambour and drove a short way until Eumundi. They have a great market here on the weekend but not today. We took the back roads back to Gympie via Cooroy, Pomona and Kin Kin. The countryside is a mixture of rolling dairy hills and rainforest, very pretty.

Saturday 7^th October:

Ferg and Mick went to the Imbil rifle range in the morning. Ros and I did a bit of grocery shopping in Gympie. When the boys got back from their shoot we decided to drive out to Tin Can Bay. We enjoyed fish and chips overlooking the bay. Unfortunately the tide was out so we were overlooking the sand flats. Later in the day we took a walk down to the creek at the bottom of Mick’s property.

Sunday 8^th October:

The valley was covered in mist this morning but the weather looks good for the day. We have booked a couple of dives with Wolf Rock Dive Centre at Rainbow Beach. We arrived there at 9.30am and kitted up. The owners Kev and Cheryl took us in their 4wd with the boat behind down Rainbow Beach. It was the first time I have driven along a beach. The coloured sand cliffs were spectacular in the sunshine. We launched the boat and were in the water very soon after. We had two dives on the rock. Unfortunately we didn’t get to see any Grey Nurse sharks that the rock is renowned for, but we did see several eagle rays and large groupers. We also spotted a mosaic moray eel which neither of us had seen before. Ferg’s computer died on the dive and he also had trouble with his camera settings so no really good photos. Bugger, the Ferg factor strikes again!

Monday 9th October:

Lucky we went diving yesterday, the change has come through and its cold and raining today. Spent the morning at home, we are heading off again tomorrow so we did a general clean up of the car and van. Ferg is off to the dentist this afternoon so hopefully it's nothing major.