Sunrise Today...

Gorge Walk Stradbroke Island

Point Lookout is a headland, small coastal town and locality on the eastern coast of North Stradbroke Island, Redland City, Queensland, Australia. Point Lookout is Queensland’s most easterly point. The headland is an ideal location for land-based seawatching in Australia. Humpback whales can also be seen from here as they migrate along the east coast of Australia.

Indigenous tribes have lived on the island for at least the last 40,000 years. They have a rich and lasting culture that still survives today. Captain James Cook passed by North Stradbroke Island in 1770 and named the island’s north eastern point “Point Lookout”. The Quandamooka people have lived on or around Southern Moreton Bay for tens of thousands of years. Archaeological evidence dates occupation of Minjerribah (North Stradbroke Island) back to at least 21,000 years ago. Many tribes mingled on Minjerribah and local people identify the Noon…..

Those early, idyllic days came to an end once war broke out and in 1943, a Japanese submarine torpedoed the hospital ship Centaur off North Stradbroke Island where 368 lives were lost. Point Lookout was the site of an American radar station during WW II with a radio direction finder constructed in 1942 at Point Lookout at what is now Tramican Street,by the American armed forces. Later the RAAF took over the operation, which was moved to Point Lookout headland. https://stradbrokeisland.com/about-stradbroke/island-history/

Peace resumed and in 1964, Straddie really took off for tourists as the first drive-on / drive-off barge from Cleveland to Dunwich commenced.

Currently the Gorge walk is closed to the public….I was able to walk part of the way to where access is blocked. Travel to Lookout Point by bus and return by bus too. Whales can be seen from the gorge as they pass on their way north, and then return in a few months time. There are plenty of places for lunch and a great ice cream shop too, as well as trendy clothing boutiques and a well stocked chemist.

Sunrise Home Beach Stradbroke Island

The beach faces north-north-east toward Shag Rock, 1.5 km offshore. Sand waves change over time, so too does the nature of the shoreline, bars and surf. There is access to the beach at Adder Rock, at some access tracks along the beach, and at the east end, below the Point Lookout Hotel headland. Home Beach was named from the era when the only route to Point Lookout was from Amity via Flinders Beach. When the bus got to Adder Rock, the last beach was called Home Beach because it was almost home.

There are two camping areas here.. One at Adder Beach and the other at Home Beach. Both are from $50 unpowered and there are cabins from $100 a night. There are accommodation resorts along the coast ranging from $150 a night for studio…and more in top season. I think Manta Lodge is one of the best places to stay at. My single room was fully equipped and I had a fridge, electric jug and coffee and tea as well as beautiful toiletries and a very comfortable bed at $100 a night. Dorms are half that.

Stradbroke Island

I booked two days at Manta Lodge which is located on Home Beach next to Adder Rock . This was a YHA but now focuses on Dive Lessons and is a popular venue for backpackers and tourists wanting to get a diving certification. There are dorms and shared accommodation, a well serviced kitchen and plenty of relaxing areas….a lounge, games room, a book exchange and lots of friendly people wandering around if you want company. The best part is the beach and that is where I went the moment I arrived.

Next to Manta Lodge is a small general store and food bar and you can get real good hamburgers there cooked by the Indian shop owner and his family. They also stock bait for fishing and a selection of things that you may need. I ate my meals there for convenience. There are major works happening there right now as soon there will be petrol pumps and petrol. That will be wonderful as the only petrol available now is at Amity Point

I also went to Point Lookout and did the Gorge Walk. The bus comes hourly so make sure you do not miss the bus like I did, as then you have to wait another hour for the next one.

https://photos.app.goo.gl/uC9FjFoUaQwJfSLr8

https://photos.app.goo.gl/reHWAjZT1qaZzYfn6

Military And Memorabilia Museum Childers Queensland

The Military and Memorabilia Museum is “unquestionably one of the best displays of military memorabilia outside the Canberra war memorial” as was the ‘wrap’ placed on the collections at the Military and Memorabilia Museum by the judges when Childers won Queensland’s Best Heritage Town in 2010. The collection includes countless items associated with various emergency services including police, ambulance, fire brigade, SES and nurses. The museum also dedicates a large part to remembering our service men and women from Boer War to present day conflicts. It also showcases appliances from bygone eras making the collection tally up to 30,000 items from over 140 countries.

Run by the Baker Trust Family, the Museum is quietly located in a street that is now opposite the Memorial Centre….48B Churchill Street Childers Queensland. Inside you will find Alan Baker seated behind the desk. The museum is his collection of memorabilia collected from everyone and everywhere. He is a wealth of information. I asked if he had a photo of the Decorated soldiers carrying the deceased soldier, and he showed me multiple images and explained each one.

A Brief Summary of the MILITARY AND MEMORABILIA MUSEUM, Ashby Lane, Childers, Queensland. (Owned and run by the Baker Family Trust).

Contact: (07) 4126 1545

What started as a hobby for Allan Baker grew into a Museum of over 26,000 items on display from 140 countries, and which the family is most proud of. Visitors from overseas and Australia, who work in museums, say it is one of the best they have seen, and of course, other visitors have made such wonderful comments also. Allan is trying to get as many photos as possible of men and women who have served during both War and Peace. The museum already has hundreds and is continually looking for more. Every photo is displayed with honour.

Some other displays of general interest include items from the campsite at Adelaide River, Northern Territory; wireless and other items from the Coast Watchers main base at Thursday Island; handcuffs from the Japanese POW camp at Cowra; cameras and gear used in WW2 for aerial photography; equipment used by our Civil Defence. from the Great War (WW1), World WW2, Korea, Vietnam and Gulf Wars; a part of a telephone system from General MacArthur’s Headquarters, Brisbane.

Additionally equipment uniforms, hats, caps, helmets, photos and medals from Police, Ambulance and Fire services, SES and Railways. Altogether over 900 headgear, 600 uniforms or part thereof, 200 medals, 400 badges, 3200 patches as well as coins, fossils rocks, minerals, sea shells and items used in the home in both War and Peace, plus more intimate memorabilia such as letters from his father to his mother during World War 1.

All in all a fascinating and irreplaceable place where you could happily lose yourself for hours. Quite a few 6 Div Cav photos are beginning to appear in their own little space so any memorabilia that you may have and needing to find a home for it then Allan is the chappie to contact! Unless of course it relates to 2/6 Cavalry Commando Regiment, 6 Div. Cav. or our daughter Regiment 2 Cav. Now in action on 5 fronts; in which case it would go to the Regiment’s museum in Robertson Barracks Palmerston N.T.

Boolboonda Tunnel Queensland

Boolboonda Tunnel is an abandoned heritage-listed railway tunnel at Tunnel Road, Boolboonda, Bundaberg Region, Queensland, Australia. The tunnel is 192 metres in length making it the longest unsupported man-made tunnel in Queensland. Its construction represented an important engineering feat for rail transport in Queensland. It was built from 1881 to 1884 by O’Rourke & McSharry. It is also known as Boolboonda Railway Tunnel and SEQ-6Q 1. It was added to the Queensland Heritage Register on 24 September 1999

The Boolboonda Railway Tunnel opened 12 November 1883 following a construction period of two years. It was built by Queensland Government Railways as part of the Bundaberg to Mount Perry railway line, constructed to service the Mount Perry copper mines. It took two years to dig and was officially opened on 2 November 1883. The line was deviated in 1960 and tracks removed the following year. The section of the line between Tirroan and Mount Perry closed in 1960 and was removed in 1961.

Copper was discovered in the Mount Perry area in the second half of the nineteenth century. Mining activities led to agitation for a link between the mines of the Mount Perry region and a port. In 1872 proposals of a private railway line were considered, and both Maryborough and Bundaberg vied to secure the line. The Boolboonda Railway Tunnel was driven through the hard granite of the range. This was the first time in the colony where it had not been necessary to line a tunnel, due to the nature of the rock it was driven through. The hard granite rock also meant the tunnel did not require additional support, and it is the longest unsupported (railway) tunnel constructed in Queensland.

Mt Perry Queensland

Mount Perry is a small town and locality in the North Burnett Region in southeastern Queensland, Australia. In the 2016 census, Mount Perry had a population of 538 people. The town is nestled in a valley near Mount Perry, the area’s highest mountain. The Normanby Lookout is located on Normanby Range Road off Towns Creek Road from the Gin Gin-Mount Perry Road and offers views of the Mount Perry Township and the surrounding countryside. The locality takes its name from Mount Perry pastoral run which was named in 1857. Originally there were two private towns known as Fife-Barnett and the town of Tenningering. Tenningering was renamed Mount Perry on 14 January 1915

Mount Perry is a rural farming area, primarily for raising cattle. Gold mining continues as an important industry. Evolution Mining owns and operates Mt Rawdon Mine which is a gold and silver mine with annual community tours. Mount Perry has historic copper workings. The Mount Perry Race Club runs horse racing events, and has great camping facilities with hot water showers and shelters for the cost of $10 unpowered or $20 Powered. The grounds are very beautiful with trees and shelter and walking tracks and stables and arenas.

Gin Gin Rest Area Queensland

Gin Gin Rest Area, Gin Gin, is a rest area provide for the travelling public just on the northern side of town on the Bruce Hwy. The site is FREE, close to shops and Pet Friendly. It is located 2km North of the town of Gin Gin on the south bound side of the Bruce Hwy almost at the Caltex service station and opposite the Mt Perry Turn Off.

Its a beautiful location. The camp areas are in grassed sections and behind is bushland rich in birdlife. We saw a red backed fairy wren here and there are lots of other birds. The toilets are clean and equipped with a hand sink and Paper, and there are rubbish bins and potable water available as well as picnic tables and shelters. There is traffic noise at Night but it did not worry me.

The shops are available and there are two excellent bakeries for home style pies and pastries. IGA, Banking, and an excellent Second hand shop with very friendly staff make this a very pleasant serviced location.

Birds…Dawson River Theodore… Queensland

Dawson River, when full, covers an area of around 42 hectares and is located in QLD. … Have you been bird watching in Dawson River? https://ebird.org/region/AU-QLD-BAN

The red-backed fairywren is a species of passerine bird in the Australasian wren family, Maluridae. It is endemic to Australia and can be found near rivers and coastal areas along the northern and eastern coastlines from the Kimberley in the northwest to the Hunter Region in New South Wales

The Silvereye is a small bird with a conspicuous ring of white feathers around the eye, and belongs to a group of birds known as white-eyes… The Silvereye shows interesting plumage variations across its range… the birds in the east have regular migrations within Australia and may replace each other in their different areas for parts of the year.

The Magic Hour

In photography, the golden hour is the period of daytime shortly after sunrise or before sunset, during which daylight is redder and softer than when the sun is higher in the sky. The golden hour is also sometimes called the “magic hour,” especially by cinematographers.

The period of time shortly before the magic hour at sunrise, or after it at sunset, is called the “blue hour“. This is when the sun is at a significant depth below the horizon, when residual, indirect sunlight takes on a predominantly blue shade, and there are no sharp shadows because the sun either has not risen, or has set.

The term hour is used figuratively; the effect has no clearly defined duration and varies according to season and latitude. The character of the lighting is determined by the sun’s altitude, and the time for the sun to move from the horizon to a specified altitude depends on a location’s latitude and the time of year. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Golden_hour_(photography)

Because the contrast is less during the golden hour, shadows are less dark, and highlights are less likely to be overexposed. In landscape photography, the warm color of the low sun is often considered desirable to enhance the colours of the scene. It is the best time of day for natural photography when diffuse and warm light is desired

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