Some Views of Brisbane and Surrounds

This post is for all Northern Hemisphere bloggers who are shivering in their winter. I hope these views keep you warm just for a little while. All these places a relatively short drive from the Brisbane CBD.



This is Tingalpa Creek, in the metropolitan area, and the tide is in, which makes for a wonderful "reflective' moment






A wet eucalypt forest on Tamborine Mountain, where Lee lives, a truly magical place. There are loads of walking trails and the abundant wildlife is quite readily seen at times.









Pumicestone Passage, which runs between Bribie Island and the mainland, is a favourite haunt of the dugong. They graze in the seagrass beds there and as it is a protected marine park, the dugongs are safe from man.



Brown Lake on North Stradbroke Island (or "Straddie" to the locals). This island has a lot of peat bogs with the peat layer about a metre deep, thus the water table is often close to the surface. Walking through these swamps is a bit like struggling through mud flats - and just as much fun!

Piccabeen Palms in Mt Mee State Forest. Mt Mee is actually 60 km northwest of Brisbane - about 90 minutes' drive, and is a beautiful place to visit for a picnic and swim. Around this area and part of the D'Aguilar range to the south, are believed to have been inhabited by three different Aboriginal groups earlier on, so there is a lot of history here.

Sand dunes on Moreton Island. Imagine sliding down these - what fun!!

Illaweena Lagoons in Karawatha Forest Reserve, 18 km south of Brisbane GPO. Karawatha is a Brisbane City Council reserve and is important for being an open space buffer between residential areas on the south side of the city and the northern boundary of Logan City. It's particularly far-sighted of the Council as so many areas of bushland are being sacrificed to development.

I love the contrast of light and shadow of the dead tree against the deep blue of the sky - very dramatic.

Cedar Creek - another part of the Mount Tamborine area.

Bribie Island which although supporting residences, is 80% or so national park. It has two types of beach. The sheltered side and the ocean side. The beaches are beautiful but I wonder about the wisdom of letting four wheel drive vehicles onto the beaches as happens throughout the coast.

Mangroves at Nudgee Beach, 15 km northeast of the GPO, another Brisbane City Council Reserve. The Boondall Wetlands, of which this is part, are a very important area and a vital and complex habitat for birds, fish, reptiles and other wildlife. (This also includes the biggest mosquitoes I have ever seen. I swear they were so big, they could carry you off!!)

The bat colony at Indooroopilly Island. People flock here to see the bats fly off of an evening, yet at Flossy's place, we can see this wonderful sight every evening for free. They have the most wonderful bat colony in the casuarinas at the bottom of their land. On a summer's evening, we sit out on the verandah and watch them fly off in their hundreds, then they return at sunup and roost for the day. They look like animated seed pods!

An aerial view of Nudgee Creek.

Bald Hills Creek. This is part of the Tinchi Tamba (don't you love the name?) wetland located on the flood plain of the Brisbane River. There is a boat ramp, disabled access and picnic facilities and is only 30 minutes' drive from Brisbane.

A clump of black tea-trees in the Mt Nebo area, again only a short drive from Brisbane, in the Brisbane Forest Park.









I hope you enjoyed this brief visit to our beautiful State, or a small part of the South East of Queensland! The photos and information are found in the wonderful Queensland Museum book "Wild Places of Greater Brisbane", the companion of "Wildlife of Greater Brisbane" which I have posted from in the past.