It was 38 miles from downtown Brisbane to Point Lookout on North Stradbroke Island. The trip there took us due east starting with a one hour ride on the light rail from Central Brisbane Station to Cleveland. Then a 10 minute bus ride to the Stradbroke Ferry Terminal. The ferry ride took a half hour and when we landed it was another half hour wait for the next bus. We took this time to eat some of our picnic lunch in the Dunwich town Cemetery. This next bus ride was a half hour and it dropped us off at Point Lookout. This scenic overlook was named by Captain James Cook himself in 1770. I am quite sure that his selfie did not look as good as ours! The views are stunning as the cliffs drop off 100 feet to the surf and the brilliant blue waters of the Pacific Ocean. We finished off our picnic lunch and then went exploring. There are trails at the top of the cliffs and walkways along some of the trickier locations. We saw a half dozen kangaroos on the top of the cliffs. We saw a pod of dolphins surfing the waves and leaping out of the water. We also saw big rays and sea turtles in the water. There were a half a dozen new bird sightings. The bus time tables are a bit odd. No busses ran from 12:20 to 3:20 in the afternoon but then we saw three busses running, one right behind the other. Little did we know that our return trip would hinge on mere minutes. We got to the ferry terminal and stood in a long line but just for a few minutes before they started boarding. We were one of the last few to get onboard before it was all full. Some folks in line behind us would have to wait for the next ferry. When we were back on the mainland we had a few options. I called an UBER but it was going to take 9 minutes to get there. Then we saw the public bus and the free shuttle and had to make a decision. We canceled the UBER and got on the free shuttle. That was the right choice since we passed the public bus as it was stopped for passenger drop off and pick up. We got to the train station and the folks in front of us started jogging to get to the train. We jogged too and it was a good thing because the train took off just as we got seated. That saved us a half hour wait for the next train. Once we were back in Brisbane we stopped off for sushi.
Central Station and off we go!
The seats were comfortable enough for an hour ride
The ferry was very windy on the front seats where we sat
The mystery pigeon. It may be a feral pigeon or a fancy one that we saw at the Queensland Museum
Someone on the island is getting a new fridge
Aye aye Captain
We got the pensioner tickets
The Far Eastern Curlew and the Pied Oystercatcher
Off to catch more oysters
Peel Island's beach
Dunwich approaching
The remains of the Platypus
Picnic spot and cemetery
Pied Butcherbird
A sculpture
We have sighted the sea
A huge beach
Shade on this hot day
A First Nations Protest Sit-In. They don't want a whale center being built on the sacred land
Beautiful colors in the breakers
Our pathway
Too much joey and not enough pouch
Wild Kangaroos
The Joey needed to stretch our its legs
The rest of the mob
The pod of dolphins is making its plan
They are heading over to where the waves are breaking
You can see the surfing dolphin right in the center
The close-up shows the dolphin surfing
Another dolphin is jumping and spray is coming out of his blowhole
Bunched up and ready to surf
Very fun
A big gap in the cliffs where we saw the rays and the turtles
The walkway went along the water
We met this fun couple Fredrick and Oriana
Down in the gorge
Loving the seaside
On the other side of the gorge
The pathway continues
Noisy Friarbird
Another Kangaroo
But the Joey is much smaller
A packed bus heading back to the ferry
No Koala yet
The tide is out
White Bellied Sea Eagle
Yippiee we made the ferry
This shipwreck is of the Platypus, a dredge that sank in 1926
A great day for flying
A great day for sailing
A Royal Spoonbill
A well deserved sushi dinner at Ichiban
