Leaving Hervey Bay we wanted to miss some of the Bruce Hwy so stayed on the Hervey Bay Road to Maryborough, a much quieter route with virtually no traffic. Unfortunately we needed to hit the highway again but a morning tea stop was required so we turned off to the little town of Bauple to visit the Saturday Market - oops, a little disappointing is the understatement. Driving in we were abused by a local driving past, there were 6 stalls selling not much and Pensioners inc. playing rock and roll music out loud. A classic car rally of 8 old Holden's, fords and ramblers finished off the market. We did manage to buy some nice passion fruit biscuits and then on our way.
A pleasant drive through mountains led us to the town of Maleny where we planned to stay at the local show grounds. They had been developed with a new amenities block to attract travelers. We had our first rain in 6 weeks though it was still warm during the day. There was a lovely river walk into a bustling town, full of cafes, restaurants, interesting shops and galleries and just a little bit hippy and old worldly. The sun had come out, along with many people strolling along the Main Street. The place has a really nice feel about it.
The next day was towards Toowoomba through the mountains, overlooking the Glass House range - large monoliths rising straight up, very impressive indeed. A scenic route taken was via Sommerset Dam and the little town of Esk. Great views around the hinterland and not much traffic which is surprising seeing
it is the weekend.The road, though windy was very comfortable to drive until the end where there is a long (2.5k) steep windy climb into Toowoomba which was quite interesting with a heavy van behind. There were a number of vehicles struggling, even stopped - hard to get going again on that slope.
Toowoomba is a garden town and the main festival for the year, the Carnival of flowers, had just finished today. There are over 150 public parks and gardens here, all in full bloom with magnificent flower gardens full of colour. Not bad seeing the town is on stage 5 water restrictions. Picnic Point park is the main viewing platform for the Lockyer Valley back towards Brisbane. A stroll around the Ju Raku En Japanese gardens attached to the local university. A very relaxing place indeed.
Day 2 in Toowoomba started slow with a sleep in (nice) then back into the main town for a tour of the sites - the Art Deco Empire theatre, heritage rail way station, Cobb and Co museum, Queens Park, Laurel Bank - amazing how quickly the day just went. We have decided to put in a 3rd day here as our plans changed and we will now head to Brisbane (we were going to bypass) to see a friend in hospital there. We were originally going to catch up with them in Balina but not happening now.
Day 3 and a visit to the local art gallery to see the Australian masters - Roberts, McGubben, Lindsay etc only to find one Lindsay on show and all the rest in storage - very disappointing. A drive north to the Crows Nest area which is renowned for being an art and craft community. Stopped off at the shop on the way boasting over 1000 cuckoo clocks of all shapes, sizes and designs, as well as wall, grandfather and carriage clocks. All out of our price range for sure. Nice cafe as well for a spot of lunch, then what is called the Dam drive past the two water storage for Townsville and in to Crows Nest proper - didn't really live up to its reputation.
Wednesday and down the hill to Ipswich, only about 90k where we dumped the van and into Brisbane proper to catchup with friends, one who was having multiple by-pass surgery while we were on our way. Spent time with Liz until Neil was out of theatre - all good. The last time we had seen them was in Alice Springs so it was great to catch up, even under these circumstances.
Thursday and with the car once again in the service centre getting an unexplained noise checked out, we walked into the main centre of Ipswich, checking out the Art Gallery, historic precinct, the mall and the River Link shopping centre. The car is fixed and once we collected same, via the courtesy bus sent to pick us up, a visit to the rail museum, huge, interactive displays, a simulator where you drove a diesel loco (with sound effects as well) and the history of the area where rail used to employ over 8000 people - huge.
Friday we begin our run further south and into NSW.
A pleasant drive through mountains led us to the town of Maleny where we planned to stay at the local show grounds. They had been developed with a new amenities block to attract travelers. We had our first rain in 6 weeks though it was still warm during the day. There was a lovely river walk into a bustling town, full of cafes, restaurants, interesting shops and galleries and just a little bit hippy and old worldly. The sun had come out, along with many people strolling along the Main Street. The place has a really nice feel about it.
The next day was towards Toowoomba through the mountains, overlooking the Glass House range - large monoliths rising straight up, very impressive indeed. A scenic route taken was via Sommerset Dam and the little town of Esk. Great views around the hinterland and not much traffic which is surprising seeing
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| Sommerset Dam |
Toowoomba is a garden town and the main festival for the year, the Carnival of flowers, had just finished today. There are over 150 public parks and gardens here, all in full bloom with magnificent flower gardens full of colour. Not bad seeing the town is on stage 5 water restrictions. Picnic Point park is the main viewing platform for the Lockyer Valley back towards Brisbane. A stroll around the Ju Raku En Japanese gardens attached to the local university. A very relaxing place indeed.
Day 2 in Toowoomba started slow with a sleep in (nice) then back into the main town for a tour of the sites - the Art Deco Empire theatre, heritage rail way station, Cobb and Co museum, Queens Park, Laurel Bank - amazing how quickly the day just went. We have decided to put in a 3rd day here as our plans changed and we will now head to Brisbane (we were going to bypass) to see a friend in hospital there. We were originally going to catch up with them in Balina but not happening now.
Day 3 and a visit to the local art gallery to see the Australian masters - Roberts, McGubben, Lindsay etc only to find one Lindsay on show and all the rest in storage - very disappointing. A drive north to the Crows Nest area which is renowned for being an art and craft community. Stopped off at the shop on the way boasting over 1000 cuckoo clocks of all shapes, sizes and designs, as well as wall, grandfather and carriage clocks. All out of our price range for sure. Nice cafe as well for a spot of lunch, then what is called the Dam drive past the two water storage for Townsville and in to Crows Nest proper - didn't really live up to its reputation.
Wednesday and down the hill to Ipswich, only about 90k where we dumped the van and into Brisbane proper to catchup with friends, one who was having multiple by-pass surgery while we were on our way. Spent time with Liz until Neil was out of theatre - all good. The last time we had seen them was in Alice Springs so it was great to catch up, even under these circumstances.
Thursday and with the car once again in the service centre getting an unexplained noise checked out, we walked into the main centre of Ipswich, checking out the Art Gallery, historic precinct, the mall and the River Link shopping centre. The car is fixed and once we collected same, via the courtesy bus sent to pick us up, a visit to the rail museum, huge, interactive displays, a simulator where you drove a diesel loco (with sound effects as well) and the history of the area where rail used to employ over 8000 people - huge.
Friday we begin our run further south and into NSW.
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