Back home again......
Jenny and I managed to tear ourselves away from pink birds and the home front today and headed up to Caloundra on the Sunshine Coast north of Brisbane. It's been a year since we have made the trip and much has changed since our last visit. These shots are dedicated to Maybe (May) whose family like mine when we were both kids shared a passion for Caloundra for annual holidays. We both have many fond memories of the place but sadly few people to share those with now.
Now the story about these pictures. The top one is taken from near Bulcock Beach on the mainland (Caloundra) looking across what was Pumicestone Passage and its bar into Moreton Bay to the northern tip of Bribie Island. The trees which include a lot of Casuarinas indicate the island, this part of which was once unreachable unless you had a boat. Pumicestone Passage bar was about in the centre of the sand in the distance, the Passage during the ebb and flow of the tide was fast moving and deep and as kids we were strictly entreated to not go too near and fall in lest we be washed out to sea in particular. On the left was a large area of sand dunes with valleys between peaks - the valleys often filled with fresh water if it rained on holidays, a situation that sometimes felt all too frequent. On the right out of shot is Bulcock Beach which is still there to this day. About 30-40 years ago, the dunes started to be eroded away and eventually became a wide low level beach; shoals and rocks were revealed in the passage which dealt the final blow to the once busy fishing and prawning fleet that had flourished not far from the edge of town.
What was once the uncrossable passage has now filled in with sand flowing north and while there are some bodies of water there now, at low tide they are shallow to non-existent and you can walk across to the island.
In the inclement weather and floods of early 2022, what was the last thin section of the northern end of Bribie Island was breeched by the sea, at first in a small trickle that you could jump over, gradually widening over the subsequent 15 months to become the new main Passage and bar. I was astonished to see that the separated northern section of the island is probably less than 1000 metres long and the passage entrance which is opposite Caloundra's Golden Beach is now at least 500 metres wide. This is the scene in the lower photo. The mainland opposite the breech is now eroding and mangroves which have thrived there for years are dying as newly deposited sand builds up over their preferred mud.
It does open up new vistas though. The main shipping channel from the Port of Brisbane crosses from the eastern side of Moreton Bay near this location and parallels the coastline around Caloundra Head and out into the Pacific Ocean opposite Mooloolaba where pilots hop on and off to guide ships down to the port. There were at least 13 ships at anchor in the roads there today awaiting pilots or berths in Brisbane.
The keen eyed observer may notice what appears to be a mountain range in the distance of both of these shots. That is Moreton Island, which with North and South Stradbroke, all large sand islands form the outer barrier of Moreton Bay. For ships, there is only one way in or out and that's past Caloundra.
To be back home again -
Back home again......
Jenny and I managed to tear ourselves away from pink birds and the home front today and headed up to Caloundra on the Sunshine Coast north of Brisbane. It's been a year since we have made the trip and much has changed since our last visit. These shots are dedicated to Maybe (May) whose family like mine when we were both kids shared a passion for Caloundra for annual holidays. We both have many fond memories of the place but sadly few people to share those with now.
Now the story about these pictures. The top one is taken from near Bulcock Beach on the mainland (Caloundra) looking across what was Pumicestone Passage and its bar into Moreton Bay to the northern tip of Bribie Island. The trees which include a lot of Casuarinas indicate the island, this part of which was once unreachable unless you had a boat. Pumicestone Passage bar was about in the centre of the sand in the distance, the Passage during the ebb and flow of the tide was fast moving and deep and as kids we were strictly entreated to not go too near and fall in lest we be washed out to sea in particular. On the left was a large area of sand dunes with valleys between peaks - the valleys often filled with fresh water if it rained on holidays, a situation that sometimes felt all too frequent. On the right out of shot is Bulcock Beach which is still there to this day. About 30-40 years ago, the dunes started to be eroded away and eventually became a wide low level beach; shoals and rocks were revealed in the passage which dealt the final blow to the once busy fishing and prawning fleet that had flourished not far from the edge of town.
What was once the uncrossable passage has now filled in with sand flowing north and while there are some bodies of water there now, at low tide they are shallow to non-existent and you can walk across to the island.
In the inclement weather and floods of early 2022, what was the last thin section of the northern end of Bribie Island was breeched by the sea, at first in a small trickle that you could jump over, gradually widening over the subsequent 15 months to become the new main Passage and bar. I was astonished to see that the separated northern section of the island is probably less than 1000 metres long and the passage entrance which is opposite Caloundra's Golden Beach is now at least 500 metres wide. This is the scene in the lower photo. The mainland opposite the breech is now eroding and mangroves which have thrived there for years are dying as newly deposited sand builds up over their preferred mud.
It does open up new vistas though. The main shipping channel from the Port of Brisbane crosses from the eastern side of Moreton Bay near this location and parallels the coastline around Caloundra Head and out into the Pacific Ocean opposite Mooloolaba where pilots hop on and off to guide ships down to the port. There were at least 13 ships at anchor in the roads there today awaiting pilots or berths in Brisbane.
The keen eyed observer may notice what appears to be a mountain range in the distance of both of these shots. That is Moreton Island, which with North and South Stradbroke, all large sand islands form the outer barrier of Moreton Bay. For ships, there is only one way in or out and that's past Caloundra.
To be back home again -