Tapp's Travels

As the memory of the recent storm fades, places start re-opening.  Often with limited customer numbers.  The Boat Shed in Cotton Tree on the move again – with just four punters…

… and as it was a few days ago …

The deserted campsite …

… and as the hardy souls started to return.

The ospreys never left and can be seen mixing it with the tourists.  Swooping into the river and shallow coastal water to grab a meal.

There was even a huge eagley type bird seen soaring over the Maroochy River.  I think it was a white bellied sea eagle – they certainly live around here.  I have rarely seen ospreys in the UK, and then only at great distance.  And I’ve only ever seen one of the eagles at home.   On the Isle of Wight.  Soon after it was released as part of a re-introduction programme.  Other than that, we had had to travel north of the Arctic Circle in Norway to view this magnificent hunter at work.

Baked Poetry, at Perigian Beach has been the source of possibly the best vanilla slices in Australia.  (Although it is true to say that those on sale at the Old Telegraph Station in Alice Springs would compete for the top spot!)  A visit is compulsory.  Through Bli Bli and on to the coast road, past Marcoolah, Yaroomba and Coolum Beach.  But tragedy has struck.  The bakery has now transmogrified into a posh restaurant.  No more delicious comestibles from there, then.  And it’s a hell of a way to Alice – some 3030 kms by road!  So that’s not an option!  A period of mourning has been instigated!

After the disastrously disappointing stop at Perigian, we decided that a compensatory lunch at the Noosa Springs Golf Club was called for.  Always an oasis of calm a few kilometres inland and a bit south of the bustling, tourist town of Noosa.  Getting there involves a transit through rain forest on a quaint, narrow “dual carriageway”.  And today, the local authorities have decided to prune some of the massive palm trees on the route.  The dual carriageway had been converted into a one way system which alternated every 20 minutes.  Engines off.  Wait patiently, while hoping the restaurant will still be open when we get there!  (We might come back to Australian Rules Roadwork Etiquette later!) (If I remember!)

We did make it before close of play and were treated to a delicious “meal of the day” …

… while enjoying the magnificent views over the golf course taking full advantage of our status as universal non-golf-club-members!

Afterwards, a lovely walk on the beach from Noosa Spit into town avoiding all shops – at all costs.  Well, one of us did the avoiding thing, anyway!

Back in the UK, a couple of weeks before we left for the Antipodes, we had been enjoying a hot coffee in the Guardhouse Café on Berry Head a few miles from home.  A noisy group of gentlemen electric bicyclists were sitting in the corner.  (Maybe that should read “a group of noisy gentlemen electric bicyclists”.  Not sure.)  Anyway, one of the group pulled out a cake and passed it round the group.  We immediately got into conversation, hoping for a slice!  It turned out that the cake provider was heading off to Australia the following week.  “Where to?”  “Mooloolaba!”  “That’s a coincidence, we’ll see you there!”  So we did!  Here we are having dinner at the local surf club with David and Anne.  Anne being the cake baker.

Back at base, we suffered from an “henvasion”.  It’s a new game.  The chicken climbs the steps to the deck.  I pick her up and take her back to the lawn …

… and so on.  For ages.  She’s not called Speedy for nothing!  And she’s lonely after her three stepsisters recently went to birdy heaven.

Changing subject – yet again…  We are off for a walkabout.  Stanthorpe is a town in the Granite Belt about 330 kms to the south-west of the Sunshine Coast.  That’s where Glenda’s cousin, Beryl, lives wirh husband John.  It is easily driveable in one day.  But we are on holiday.  The plan is to take three days!  A two night stay in a cottage near Grandchester has been booked.  But we are not in a rush.  We met a traveller from outer space in Beerwah, near the Glasshouse Mountains.  She seemed friendly enough!  Or is it a he?  Probably best not to go too far down that road!

The road from Beerwah to Peachester, about nine kilometres in length, consists of 14,256 bends and curves.  There is no straight section on the way!  It rises steeply and is fitted with metre-deep rain drains both sides.  It REALLY pays to stay on the black top!  Full focus.  No distractions!

The Peachester café was inundated by motorcyclists.  They trek to this section of road from all over in order to “enjoy” the twisty drive!  Further down the road, at Kilcoy, we took advice from a local, the incumbent supervisor of the local art gallery (pictured below).  “Where’s the best place in town for something to eat?”

She forwarded us to Rustic Brew Café on William Street.  Always trust a local – well almost always.  There are some jesters about with bad taste in coffee shops!

Our route took us down the west side of Somerset Dam.  A “small” lake on the Brisbane River of some 45 km² with a capacity of almost 400,000 ML.  Together with Wivenhoe, an even bigger lake (110 km² and 3.12 million ML) just downstream, they cover an area about one tenth the area of Greater London.  An area which supports a population not far short of a million people!  The reservoirs constitute both a flood prevention system and water supply for Brisbane.  When we last visited the dam was only 20% full.  This year it’s virtually at the maximum allowable capacity.  There is an extra 20% left deliberately empty in Somerset Dam to allow for flood mitigation.

At the end of 2022, there was about 200 metres of “beach” extending out and down from the current waterfront.  Spooky seeing it so full!

Our next stop was at Nash Café in Esk.  We had a lot of assistance finishing crumbs of cake.  Noisy minahs, blue-faced honeyeaters …

… and rainbow lorikeets.

Driving south from Esk to Grandchester, we passed hundreds of areas which had clearly been flooded in the aftermath of the cyclone.  Floodways and creek crossings alike.  The debris remained stuck in the trees, bushes, fences and even on unwary farm vehicles!

In places the river levels had obviously risen several metres.  Luckily for us, that was last week’s problem.  We would NEVER have got through!  But the floods have now all abated.  This week’s issue involved removing huge tree branches, clearing landslips and mending washed out roads!

This brings me to the Australian Rules Traffic Management Scheme.  They do love their lollypop people with their stop/go boards.  (Strictly speaking, “stop/slow boards”!)  Often used in conjunction with traffic lights.  If there is a bit of an issue, for example with the grass verge, they are on it.  Like flies on a dish of fruit!  Bear in mind that country roads here are substantially wider than we are used to in the UK.  Usually much straighter and ALWAYS with less traffic, commonly almost none!  So, that’s the scene.  There is short section of slightly narrowed road, maybe 50 metres in length, which may or may not be being worked on.  The ARTMS folk are there in a flash.  Warning signs appear at least two kilometres from the “obstruction”.  Roadworks ahead – 60 kph.  One kilometer further on, a reminder with a reduced speed limit of 40 kph.  The traffic lights are customarily red.  Lollipop at stop.  Ten minutes of muted conversation wiith their opposite number by radio.  All very visible because we are near the front of the queue of two.

More radio chatter.  We get the go slow signal and we are off.  A kilometre down the road we come to the obstructed zone with loads of “slow” signs plastered to anything to which a sign can be plastered!  At this point, two cars could easily pass each other, although meeting a truck might require some reduction in speed.  Of course, the whole set up is repeated in reverse as we depart the zone.  Ii this way, a minor constriction can easily be converted to a real drama by the ARTMS.

I have to say that in the UK, we are usually left to ourselves to decide who will be first to traverse a truly single lane section of road.  Getting there first is a good start.  Being bigger than the opposition helps.  As does closely following the vehicle in front.  But how driverless cars of the future will tackle this problem, heaven only knows!

While we are on the subject of roads, it can be noted that, in town especially, they can be wide.  In some cases, extremely so.  Commonly, there is room for diagonal parking at both kerbs.  Sometimes with cross street parking down the median.  Occasionally with two rows down the middle.  We stopped for coffee in Allora.  The main street was nearly 40 m wide – I measured it.

… and this wasn’t the wide version with median parking.  To be fair, there weren’t enough cars in Allora needing to park that would warrant the extra road paint!)  Luckily, I had packed a drink and a snack to have half way!  It’s truly brilliant.  A bit of research indicates the New South Wales town of Trundle claims to have the widest road in Australia.  At 60.5 metres, it is the same width as a stock route in days of old.  Apparently, Trundle was a spot where bullock teams used to stop over.  The main street is wide enough to allow a full bullock team to turn around.  You could turn round a road train there for that matter!

At Allora, they don’t have bullock trains any more, but even the side roads are wide enough to accommodate the town’s public conveniences.  Built in the roadway!  Still with room for two cars comfortably to pass the parked vehicles

I feel better now I’ve got that off my chest!  However, the road south from Allora was afflicted with six separate sets of road works.  Each with the full works!

I’m going for a lie-down!  Stanthorpe will have to wait!