15 - 2023 - July - Southern Coastal Regions, Queensland

 

Entry 15 – 2023 – July –  Southern coastal regions Queensland.

Leaving Eungella, we were heading south along the coastal regions. There was a need to suspend our wandering lifestyle for a bit. We were out of our comfort zone where we had made a few commitments, down the road a bit. There was a booked service for the tow tug, time booked at a caravan park for a week catching up with some fellow travellers, a booked appointment at the caravan manufacturer for finalizing our new caravan design, more time to be allocated catching up with some other fellow travellers who lived nearby, (about 50-200 kilometres.) From Eungella our first stop was at a rodeo ground at the town of St Lawrence. It was a peaceful location. There was a nice little walk to a nearby wetlands. We watched swans, magpie geese, a few different varieties of ducks, spoon bills and a few other different types of birds, all seemed to be enjoying the wetlands environment.

Day one we managed to travel about 200 kilometres and we were exhausted. It was probably the most kilometres we had travelled in a day for nearly two months. Day two we managed to travel around 180 kilometres stopping at a free camp at Kershaw Gardens, located in the city of Rockhampton. There was a large shopping centre across the road where Steve took Mary out for a meal at the food court and Mary enjoyed wandering around some clothing stores. There were some nice walking paths around the Kershaw Gardens where we enjoyed stretching out our muscles.

We were building up our driving stamina, trying not to overdo it. Day three of driving we tried about 110 kilometres before stopping for the day. We had previously enjoyed Caliope free camping area and thought it to be appropriate again. It was busy and we managed our arrival time just after the morning exodus where there were some prime sites freshly vacated. The below pictures best show the wellness feeling provided by Caliope free camp.

Our bodies were adjusting to a need to be seated in the car for long periods. Day four of driving we travelled around 200-kilometres and our bodies didn’t feel anywhere as exhausted as previously. The night was spent at a free camping area in the town of Childers.

Childers provide a free camping area in the centre of town, located one street off the main road. There was a 24-hour time limit and it was well patronised. We arrived around 1 pm, parking up on one of the last few remaining sites.

After sitting in the car for an extended period it’s always nice to be able to stretch out, providing some relief to those cramped body parts.  So where do you start out for a walk in Childers? Naturally along the main street with a large variety of businesses. Well done Childers for providing a free camping area, catering for about 40 or so vehicles - delivering a boost to the local economy including the pubs and services club whom were patronised for evening meals including the travelling non-locals.

We enjoyed the sights on our walk about of Childers, with some grand “Queenslander,” housing, Steve playing train driver and trying to provide a comforting arm to one of the locals.

We were into day five of planned driving and adding to the days discomfort, it rained all day. Our tow tug had been booked for a service at the town of Maryborough. There were a few options available for setting camp, ranging from about 10 kilometres from the vehicle service centre to a free camp located about 700 metres down the road. We aimed to arrive early morning, hopefully able to obtain a site at the free camp, making it easy to compute to and from the vehicle service centre. It was a drive of about 75 kilometres for the day and we were delighted to gain access to a suitable site at the free camping area. It was located in a carpark nearby the business hub of Maryborough with a section set aside for up to 48-hour camping.

It had been a dreary dull day. Ironically our night was much brighter than the day had been.

We enjoyed time walking around some of Maryborough streets. It was ironic we were in need of an umbrella when Mary was greeted by Mary Poppins. There was the grand hall with a special stage community canvas. If you look closely at the canvas, you can see foot and hand prints incorporated into the making of the mural.

Then there was the “Divine Dunnies.” We both had to view the men’s and ladies dunnies.

The following morning, we dropped off our tow tug for its required service. Mid-afternoon we were reunited with our tow tug, connecting it back up with our caravan and we were away back on the road by around 3 pm. We could have stayed another night in the middle of the township of Maryborough but the yearning for a preferable bush setting over a city landscape was too strong.

We had a targeted drive of about 110 kilometres, setting camp overlooking Fraser Island at Inskip Peninsula recreation area, nearby Rainbow Beach. We had previously camped at this location with fond memories. Much of the camping area consists of a sandy surface. It was late in the day on our arrival. We parked at the entrance and walked around a bit, selecting a possible site. Unfortunately, we miss calculated the firmness of the sand at one point of the track and the tow tug sunk, loosing traction. Luckily, we were carrying some equipment designed for these instances. It took close to an hour to successfully reverse out of our predicament as the day light disappeared. We parked up on a firm surface for the night feeling exhausted from the additional exertion.

The following morning, we woke with some aching body parts incurred from the previous day’s exertion. An inspection of the area where we came unstuck showed the state of our predicament where we had messed up a previous smooth looking surface.

In the morning, we walked around the campground looking for a more suitable, accessible camp spot. Inskip Peninsula has several different camping areas. We had previously chosen to stay at S.S. Dorigo campground with its less crowded setting. The surface was much softer than we had previously experienced. We decided to have a look at some of the other campgrounds. With the caravan parked at S.S. Dorigo we headed off. At the M.V. Natone campground we spotted a vacant camp spot with beach front views. The blue water was dazzling our good feel senses. We decided the stunning view compensated for the closer people factor. About half an hour later we were seated in our recliner chairs admiring our blue water ocean views. Magnificent!

The most time-consuming activity at Inskip Peninsula was to be seated/laid-back, admiring a magnificent ocean setting. Even more so if you are lucky enough to obtain one of a few ocean front sites. It was divine, providing a boost to your well-being good feel senses.

The beach sand was quite comfortable underfoot helping to entice you into some exercise. We did enjoy a couple of daily walks along the beach.

It had been a number of years since our last Inskip Point experience. Nature had certainly changed the appearance at some sections.

Fraser Island is one of the main promoted tourist attractions in Queensland. There is an ocean vehicle ferry transporting vehicles between the Inskip Peninsula Point and Fraser Island almost on an hourly time line. From our vantage point we could see the constant flow of vehicles driving along the beach on Fraser Island. Adding to our distant scenery was a regular flow of ocean-going vessels.

We enjoyed the opportunity to immerse our bodies into the cool ocean waters a couple of times each day.

Mornings we would wake to beautiful sun rises, providing wonderful vibes from the start of the day. There was even a clothes line with million-dollar views.

 

We enjoyed a week spent at Inskip Peninsula and could have easily stayed the permitted time line of 30 days. The constant background sound of ocean waves crashing onto the shore line helped to eliminate the human generated noise around us. The wave activity was rather loud and soothing at the same time.

It was time to move on to another commitment where we had booked time in a caravan park on the Queensland Sunshine Coast.

On par with our 2023 Inskip Peninsula experience, both the tow tug and caravan sunk into the soft sand surface when we attempted to move from our camp site. Thankfully on this occasion we were on our way after an additional ten minutes of combat with the unstable surface conditions.