Mt Ninderry - Sunshine Coast

Mt Ninderry. Off early 6:30am, traffic light but steady. Can see our destination, cos it's standing a couple of hundred meters above the surrounding terrain, but which road will get us to the base. Turns out to be pretty well signposted.

A good little calf burner I've read on-line. Turns out to be true. Start with a well defined track, increase the gradient to steep, add a good pinch of gibbers, sprinkle with early morning dew and yep my calves are burning. The track levels out as we get close to the summit then provides some excellent viewing areas atop of large rock outcrops. A well used phase comes to mind: "It was worth the effort".

Looking towards Maroochydore.

Looking towards Mt Coolum; out there somewhere in the mist.

Looking south-west.

The gibber bit.

Slackboarding at Cotton Tree

So Robyn was recently in Hawaii and came back with a photo of this local guy riding his SUP (stand-up paddle-board) sitting in a garden chair. Not being one to get in the water with the bull sharks, she asks "Would that be hard?".

Well that's all it took to start a new craze here in Cotton Tree. Expecting it to take-off, it's fun, relaxing and it still works the core. 

Hayley nails it.

Anybody could do it!

Queensland - Beautiful one night storms the next

Sunny-coast in November -you've got to expect the storms. So far we have mostly seen the edge of the major thunderstorms. Might just get away without replacing the MH roof this year.

click an image to enlarge

Just me and a pelican in the park tonight.

Thunderstorms and lightning, this one missed us, phew!

You have mail.

If buildings define a town, the style, the period, the architecture. We are talking the older ones not modern boring boxes built nowadays. Buildings with style and flair. Public buildings, post offices, town halls, libraries and pubs. That's what makes a town memorable and discernible from the next one. Well for me anyway.

But what defines a street within a town? Street art? Mm maybe? Check out these letterboxes sitting proud out front of their houses, in their streets.

Mt Coolum.

It's a 20min drive from Cotton Tree to Mt Coolum, before seven in the morning it's smooth and uneventful. Car park is all but full, one spot for me to park, now that's nice; don't want to have to walk too far to get to the walk.

Mt Coolum is a circular volcanic dome a bit over 200m high. It's a very popular hike, especially after the Parks people fixed the track with lots of steps and rock base to stop erosion. This morning it's busy, I've seen far worse, and it's already hot in the sun but there is a cool breeze from time to time. Being as close as it is from Cotton Tree I've done this hike quite a few times and am always looking to improve on my best time. Hikers are evenly spread along the track, mostly females, mostly young, and no kids, that's a bonus. I overtake a few. No one overtakes me, phew!

The view from the summit is always good. Sometimes you get to see whales swimming south just a few kms off shore, but not this morning. Weathers not the best for a photo, but at least it's not blowing a gale.

Mt Coolum in the distance as seen from out front of my MH.

No whale spotting this morning.