October 26, Sunday, we left Brisbane on our way to Brad’s beach house at Dicky Beach on the Sunshine Coast. We took the scenic route along the Steve Irwin Way to the town of Maleny and saw a wonderful view of the Glass House Mountains from the Mountain View Road overlook. Then we drove to the Glass House Mountains Lookout, where we had a closer view of the eleven hills arising abruptly from the coastal plains, formed from cores of volcanoes 27 million years ago. These mountains were named by Captain Cook in 1770 because the peaks reminded him of the glass furnaces in his home county of Yorkshire. We continued on the loop road to Kenilworth where we had lunch at Nana McGinns, and on to Montville where we stopped to walk through the plethora of tourist shops. We arrived at Dicky Beach and met up with Brad at his house, we took a walk along the beautiful beach and saw the famous ship wreck. The area was named after the iron steamboat, the SS Dicky, which ran aground during heavy seas in 1893. Then we had dinner with Brad at the Dicky Surf Club.
We stayed at Brad’s beach house for a week and loved our early morning walks along the beach, watching all the young surfers catching waves before school. We spent the week exploring the many attractions on the Sunshine Coast. We went north to Noosa National Park, a 4,000 hectare park, with a series of walking trails throughout the park. We took the coastal path to the headlands at Hell’s Gate, with stunning views from Hell’s Gate of the sheer rock cliffs. We walked to Alexandria Beach, where clothing is optional. On our way back to the car, could not resist a swim in the beautiful warm salt water of Granite Bay Beach.
We visited the Australia Zoo, (100 acres) home of the Crocodile Hunter, Steve Irwin. The zoo was opened in 1970 by Steve Irwin’s parents, and is owned by Terri Irwin, widow of Steve. We saw and petted an echidna and walked through the crocodile pools, some of which were born in the 1960’s. We petted and fed the kangaroos and wallabies roaming free in a large open pasture. We were able to get up close and personal with the sleepy, cuddly koalas hanging out in the eucalyptus trees. We saw how the trainers worked with crocodiles and the majestic Bengal tigers. We experienced a variety of birds, mammals, reptiles and also viewed the crocodile feedings. “CRIKEY” this zoo is definitely worth a visit on your trip to the Sunshine Coast.
Another day after our walk on Dicky Beach we drove a few miles north to Point Cartwright. From here we had wonderful views looking south to Caloundra and north to Noosa Heads. We went into Mooloolaba for lunch and did some much needed shopping, and found my first Lorna Jane Store for women, an Australian equivalent of Lululemon!
After a week at Dicky Beach we felt refreshed, re-energized and ready to hit the road again. Thank you Brad and Louise, again for allowing us to spend such a fun, relaxing time at your fabulous beach house.
November 3, Monday, we headed north to Hervey Bay, about a 4 hour drive from Dicky Beach.