Calendar


Trip Diary

08-2012 Peel Island (An Ekka tradition)
08-2012 Moreton Island
07-2012 Rocky Point
06-2012 Blakesleys
06-2012 The Bedroom
05-2012 Breakfast on Karragarra
05-2012 St Helena
05-2012 Perigee Bedroom
02-2012 Queen Mary II
02-2012 Mud Island
11-2011 St Helena
11-2011 Shorncliffe to Redcliffe
10-2011 Weinam Ck to Dunwich
10-2011 Peel Island
10-2011 Breakfast on Karragarra
10-2011 St Helena and Green Island
09-2011 Wivenhoe Dam
08-2011 Fraser Island
08-2011 Canaipa Passage
08-2011 Karragarra
08-2011 Stradbroke Island
07-2011 St Helena
07-2011 So long, and thanks for all the fish.
05-2011 Green Island
05-2011 Wivenhoe Dam
04-2011 Upper Noosa River Weekend
04-2011 Easter at Woodgate
04-2011 Mud Island
04-2011 Karragarra for Breakfast
02-2011 Bongaree
02-2011 St Helena
01-2011 Weinam Ck to Blakesleys
10-2010 Moore to Blackbutt Rail Trail
10-2010 Whitsundays
09-2010 Mud Island
09-2010 Redcliffe
09-2010 Girraween
08-2010 Upper Noosa River
08-2010 Potts Point
08-2010 Peel Island
08-2010 Gateway to City Bike Ride
08-2010 Mud Island
07-2010 Blakesleys Afternoon Paddle
07-2010 Kedron Brook to Scaborough (and return)
04-2010 Colmslie Beach
04-2010 Brighton Park
01-2010 Nundah Creek
01-2010 Blakesleys
01-2010 Upper Noosa River (with a difference)
01-2010 New Year Paddle
12-2009 Potts Point
08-2009 Raby Bay to Peel Island
08-2009 Wynnum Creek to King Island
07-2009 Sandgate to Redcliffe
05-2009 St Helena
04-2009 Wellington Point to Peel
04-2009 Breakfast on Karragarra
03-2009 King Island
03-2009 Mission Point
03-2009 Mud Island
01-2009 Morning Tea at The Pin
01-2009 Circumnavigate Macleay Island
01-2009 New Year Recovery Paddle
12-2008 Caniapa
12-2008 Pine Rivers
11-2008 Coochie Night Paddle
10-2008 Breakfast at Karragarra
10-2008 Girraween
10-2008 Coomera Falls Circuit
09-2008 Hinchinbrook Island
09-2008 Manly Harbour Festival
09-2008 Linville to Blackbutt Rail Trail
08-2008 Weekend at Blakesleys
08-2008 Old Woman Island
08-2008 Circumnavigate Macleay Island
07-2008 Upper Noosa River
07-2008 Weinam Creek to Dunwich
06-2008 Scarborough to Bongaree
06-2008 Wellington Pt to St Helena
06-2008 North Stradbroke Jazz Weekend
05-2008 Point O'Halloran to Blakesleys
04-2008 Upper Noosa River
04-2008 Aquatic Paradise to St Helena Is
04-2008 Eprapah Creek
03-2008 Paradise Point to Moreton Island
03-2008 Wynnum Ck to Tangalooma Point
03-2008 Amity Point weekend
03-2008 Bremer River
03-2008 Brisbane River - Gregors Ck to Barneys Rocks
02-2008 Play Day - Coochie Mudlo
02-2008 World Wetlands Day Paddle
02-2008 Brisbane River night paddle
01-2008 Australia Day Week
01-2008 Blakesleys 3/4 Moon Paddle
01-2008 Shorncliffe to Nudgee
01-2008 Brisbane River - Barneys Rocks to O'Sheas Crossing
12-2007 Raby Bay to One Mile via Blakesleys and Potts Point
12-2007 Diamond Head to Tipplers
12-2007 Wynnum Ck to Green and St Helena Islands
11-2007 Bike Ride Bay Islands
11-2007 Tingalpa Creek
10-2007 Potts Point Night Paddle
10-2007 Return to Gilligans Island
10-2007 Salt Water Creek and Coomera River
09-2007 Elimbah Creek
09-2007 Scarborough to Caboolture River
09-2007 Fraser Island Whale Watching
09-2007 Circumnavigate Russell Island
08-2007 Pine Rivers Night Paddle
08-2007 Linville to Blackbutt Rail Trail
08-2007 Brisbane River City Reach
08-2007 Peel Island
08-2007 Brisbane River
08-2007 Green Island Day Trip
07-2007 Pine Rivers Night Paddle
07-2007 Mooloolah River
07-2007 USS Kitty Hawk in Brisbane River
06-2007 Black Tie on Peel Island
05-2007 Harrys Hut Camping Weekend
04-2007 Theodolite Creek
04-2007 Upper Burrum River
04-2007 Circumnavigate Big Woody
04-2007 Walkers Point to Toogum
03-2007 Boat Passage to Big Sandhills
12-2006 Woodgate to Mon Repos
10-2006 Fraser Island Whale Watching
04-2005 Keppel Islands
12-2004 Fraser Island
10-2004 Munna Point Camping Weekend
10-2004 Mooloolaba to Maroochydore
09-2004 Coochie Mudlo Island
08-2004 Karragarra Island
07-2004 Wellington Point to St Helena Island
06-2004 Noosa River Camping Weekend
05-2004 Brisbane River Night Paddle
04-2004 Budds Beach to Moreton Island
10-2003 Bulwer to Tangalooma
05-2003 Eatonsville to Harwood Island

Links

SEQSK Discussion Group
SEQSK Newsletters
Adventurer Anthony Malloch

Upper Noosa River Weekend
Date: 30-04-2011
Launch: Elanda Point
Distance: 61 Km
This was a weekend of treats, treats of many guises. The first was the paucity of traffic. We made good time and arrived just after Ray pulled up. Although we were 3/4 of an hour early we had half expected to find Ray packed and ready to go. So did Chris and Carol who, 15 minutes later, were surprised to find all three of us part way through a casual pack. The second Ray came in at the preordained 0900. He was paddling something that looked like a batski. It's sleek ski nose, tapering tail and the anatomy that powered this black and yellow waspish craft had me wishing for another 15knots as it was clear we were going to need all the advantage a sail could give.

The lake was full and beach space limited so when another four kayaks, three of which were Rosco doubles rocked up it started to feel like a re-inactment of Shute Harbour on a miniature scale. We were soon treated to kayaking 101 with a reminder on how to hold a paddle, go forwards and backwards. In the background was a brown choppy lake ruffled by a 15Kn SE. Probably just as well we were not treated to the extra 15Kn. However the afternoon may not have been as kind when these newbies were due to return on their self guided day paddle. It was now that the camera packed it in with an apparent card fault so the rest of the pictures are courtesy of Ray and Werner.

Ray (later called Young Ray to distinguish him from Ray Young) may have been a newbie at kayak camping but he was clearly not new to paddling and there was some cross training in there somewhere. "Carol did you see the quads" - "quads, what quads ?", clearly Carol is not a leg watcher. On the run across the lake the marker off Elanda Point was no where to be seen. The shoal off the point manifest as a single paddle strike before we turned towards Kinanba. There was no need to follow the channel as there was enough depth all around.

With the SE coming straight in and the first step completely submerged, Kinaba looked like a place for a boat bashing rather than a relaxing morning tea break so it was onto Fig Tree. The Rangers' jetty in the passage lined by hibiscus had disappeared and the signs only just held their directions out of the water. Chris, Carol and I chose to go to the right amongst the reeds and found ourselves in a still meadow of lilac water lilies. Exquisite, meditative tranquillity. After a brisk sail and we pulled up at Fig Tree and were treated to a share of Carol's beautiful lemon and sour cream cake. Carol is definitely not a leg watcher - she missed the quads again.

The river was brimming, the downside of which was that all the way there was a current to work against. The jetties had succumbed and made for a landing treat. At Campsite 3 I hovered the kayak over the lower deck and stepped out in a couple of inches of water. I mean how easy is that ? Far more poised than my later attempts to abandon ship.

We pulled up for lunch on the sandy beach that marks the entrance to Campsite 4. Young Ray was surprised by how basic that campsite was coming back asking "Is that it ?" Sure is. Hope you remembered a shovel. The SE gave some sailing up the longer stretches. By the time we reached 15 I for one was happy to call it a day.

The resident scrub turkey did his rounds while we pitched tents. We had the 25+ year old Macpac as unlike Camp 9, this is not a place for the Taj. However, there was still enough room for a camp kitchen under Chris's tarp. It turned out to be a very popular place when we were treated to a soaking rain burst from a starry sky. Carol had worked a dinner for drive deal with Chris, he drove and she cooked. I think Carol will have more drivers, why even Mark offered to give her a lift. Chris had two course meals including one with a steamed pudding with custard. Young Ray was impressed by the pre dinner nibbles and forgot to bring some red stuff, now considered an addition to the packing list Werner had kindly sent through. That night the sounds of the bush had additional squeaks from our mattresses and quiet snores.

The following morning you could hear what could only be the distant rumble of surf. There had been predictions of dangerous conditions and it must have been pretty impressive given that you could hear it this far from the ocean. A leisurely breakfast soon morphed into morning tea and another share of the Carols' cafe cake. Then it was time to explore the final reach of the Upper Noosa River and Teewah Creek. As we headed down to the water Werner arrived having paddled all the way from Boreen Point. Pretty impressive effort and timing. As we pushed off he said to come back for icecream.

Teewah was also up, allowing us to go a couple of Km upstream until the narrow channel, logs and current had us decide to turn around while we could. The creek was around half a paddle deep and very dark brown. I found out that the water was quite cool as I accidentally plopped in while attempting to get out on a steep bank. By the time we got back to camp Werner had packed and was about to head off in his Valley kayak he had won in a raffle. It was a very fine looking craft although limited on carrying capacity. While Werner had a bivvy he could not be persuaded to stay a night and continued what would be a marathon of a paddle likely finishing into a firm SE blow across Cootharaba. He hadn't been joking about the icecream either - up at camp was a delicious treat of a 2L container of vanilla icecream and apricots for all to share. We made quick work of that, moved onto lunch then out for a paddle of the next creek downstream of Teewah.

While this creek was about the same width as Teewah the limited flow was more than made up for by the depth - even when it was starting to get very narrow, Mark still could not touch the bottom with his paddle. We came back for a late afternoon swim and basked in the sun on the white sandy bank. Even on May 1 we were getting nice and toasty while the dark brown river looked decidedly cooler. Just as well Mark didn't swim to the other side as a very large eel has been known to frequent the hollow under the sand bank where he had planned to swim for. Carol pan fried haloumi for pre-dinner nibbles and served this beautiful salty cheese with a splash of lemon juice - I mean how good does it get ?

Before dusk the turkey flew up into a tree a couple of metres outside the corral as he had done the night before while the campsite settled into more squeaks and snores. By morning the tarp over the aged Macpac had proved it's worth keeping off the heavy dew. We assured Young Ray that it was quite the usual routine for Ray Young to be packed and ready before anyone else and that there was no hurry. The symmetry of our leaving time with Saturday was almost perfect. However the current we had looked forward to had subsided. Fortunately the SE had eased as predicted.

Ray had already disappeared to check out the new campsite which was a part of the Great Walk while I founded on the steep bank and once again plopped out of my boat where Ray had alighted with typical grace moments before. Here we found three large wooden platforms in the communal area and a narrow track leading off to a toilet before branching off to intimate individual sites. Each only large enough for a single tent surrounded by shoulder high lush boronia. Morning tea was had in the sun on the sandy bank just upstream of Campsite 4 with a DIY piece of Ray's fruit cake.

At Harry's Hut I came across three male paddlers paused and transfixed by the visual treat of some scantily clad buxom English dumpling damsels first paddling then hauling a canoe out of the river. Cheeky spectators, all fired up they then did the male thing and paddled off full tit downstream. There were plenty more surprisingly plump females making their way upstream with the occasional male amongst them. So much for the slim trim taut bronzed tourist, these were from a whole new mould and certainly setting themselves up for a dose of sunburn to remember. Turns out Carol doesn't do quads, she said a day as a marshall on the Noosa Triathalon had given her a lifetime's worth of bums and biceps.

We regrouped at Fig Tree where Carol shared some Pascall pineapple lumps (yes Patrick the real McCoy) and Young Ray's Ginger Bears. A casual yellow breasted robin treated us to long look at his beautiful plumage while the resident goanna prowled the perimeter. Young Ray commented on the mossies and was promptly assured that this was a good day at Fig Tree.

With the lake still relatively high and no sandy beach where the pelicans reside (when not at Lake Ayr), we went around the back of Kinaba Island before putting up a sail and making a beeline for the beach entry. That was all except the batski who pulled ashore at Elanda Point. I wondered if he had come to grief on the shoal. Turned out to be a case of mistaken identity which came with an opportunity to check out the remains of the sawmill.

As we packed the boats a couple more kayaks came ashore. It had been a beautiful weekend with glorious weather on a river which we had had pretty much to ourselves from Campsite 15 right down to Harry's Hut. The final treat was that much to our surprise the traffic was flowing well right through to the turn off at Kingsmith Drive.
Kayak clutter
Kayaking 101
Batski ready to launch
Photo by Young Ray
Water lilly meadow
Photo by Young Ray
AM tea at Fig Tree
Photo by Young Ray
Heading upstream
Photo by Young Ray
Lunch at Campsite 4
Photo by Young Ray
Campsite 15
Photo by Young Ray
Campsite 15 resident turkey
Photo by Young Ray
Morning mist
Photo by Young Ray
Heading further upstream
Photo by Young Ray
Werner having a well earned lunch
Photo by Young Ray
Sunrise over Cootharaba
Photo by Werner
Reflections
Photo by Werner
Teewah Creek
Photo by Young Ray
Reflections
Photo by Young Ray
The Log Landing
Photo by Young Ray
Dutgee Campsite - The Great Walk
Photo by Young Ray
The crew (less the photographer)
Photo by Young Ray
Quads - what quads ?
Photo by Young Ray (only kidding)
Plop - falling out yet again
Photo by Young Ray
Yellow breated robin
Photo by Young Ray
Batski detours to Elanda Point
Photo by Young Ray
 
Upper Noosa River Weekend Map
GPS Trackfile (OziExplorer .plt)