Day 93 Monday 5/9/2022 Cooroy to Toorbul, overcast 20

It was a cooler night, I guess it’s about time that I changed back to the winter doona again.

We’re in no hurry this morning as we only have a short distance to travel. We stop in town and buy another coffee before rejoining the Bruce Highway. The traffic is fast and heavy and when we hit a series of small hills the car gets loud again.

We take the turn-off at Pumicestone Road which the GPS insists on calling ‘Poo Missus Stone’. The drive is about 10kms through small farms and large manicured house blocks, mangrove swamp then the sleepy hollow that is Toorbul on Pumicestone Passage with Bribie Island beyond.

Toorbul is a fishing community with an array of homes overlooking ‘Poo Missus Stone’ Passage. There are some modern homes, but homes are mostly old and of those many are in stages of renovation. Toorbul has the feeling of the ugly duckling that is about to become a swan. There is a general store/tavern and a pharmacy that overlook the most important structure, the boat ramp. The town is neat and well cared for and there are peaceful walks along the foreshore. There is an air of relaxation here that just makes you gaze at the sea and sigh.

The caravan park is largely populated with permanent residents with a few slab and grass sites. It is very neat and clean and everyone is friendly. The beach is out front and we have a slab site at the back of the park overlooking a bird-filled wetland.

This is an area that we aren’t familiar with so we head off to get a feel for the place. Nearby the town of Sandstone Point is much bigger and urban. It is here that the bridge spans the passage to Bribie Island. We haven’t been on the island in years so drive over to have a peek. We’re flabbergasted at the busyness of it all as it’s a plethora of population, shopping centres, supermarkets, waterway estates, retirement villages and traffic. Woody keeps muttering something about it being a place where people come to die, and then we pass the cemetery.

We beat a hasty retreat to the mainland and visit Beachmere a few kms south which has a nice feel and is a little quieter. It seems to be the pick of the bunch on this stretch of coast. On our way back to Toorbul we top up with fuel and that pesky red MIL light goes out.

We return to the park to find ducks on the lawn behind our van. Stunningly beautiful, they are Plumed Whistling Ducks and rather than quack, they whistle. Naturally, I’m captivated. The residents feed them.

Walking along the foreshore path we notice a flock of corellas on the powerlines, chattering away as corellas do. Except for one, he’s obviously full of beans and doing cheeky barrel rolls around the wire. He looks to the others after each roll but they just treat him with indifference.

Accom: $34.00

Fuel: $80.08 (199.5c/l)

Kms: 89Kms