Postcards from the Road - North Stradbroke Island, QLD

Days on the Road 14 | Traveled 1416 ks | Campgrounds 3
Temp 11°C - 25°C | Water temp 24°C
Catch of fish | Silver Bream 16 | Dusky Flathead 2 | Sand Whiting 7

Yes, butter to my bread, basil to my tomato, rosemary to my lamb…but rain to my camping, just does not hold the same romance. Speaking of bread we stopped off in Tweed Heads at the Bread Social to grab a loaf of seeded sourdough before proceeding north into Queensland. The rain drizzled as we entered the sunshine state, and the misty showers persisted for what was a rather drab ferry crossing from Cleveland to the port at Dunwich on North Stradbroke Island, QLD. Fortunately it did not dampen our sense of adventure. Graciously the skies cleared enough for us to set up camp, and once settled we enjoyed a twilight stroll on Home Beach, where we were treated to a glorious sunset over Adder Rock. That evening it rained cats and dogs and possibly a few native birds, however cosy in our little camper we laughed and only temporarily thought about the large comfortable home we had left behind to have this adventure.

‘Straddie’ as the locals call it packs a lot into a small inhabited space. Our capacity to 4WD drive onto the vast beaches here enabled us to fully explore the more remote places. Despite the gloomy start, it has been a glut of sunshiny days, beach fishing, salty swims, long walks, beach picnics and a vibrant palette of colours on show as the sun goes down at the end of each day. The nights have been colder than we anticipated, much gratitude for the couple of blankets I threw in at the last minute just in case and the Possum Merino socks our dear friend Silvia gifted us for the road, that have kept our tootsies warm in the evenings.

An abundance of fresh caught bream led to a camp made crumbed bream burger and the colder weather inspired a one pan chicken fried rice in the camp kitchen.

North Stradbroke Island
Minjerribah Camping - we chose Adder Rock Camping Ground - a short walk to Home Beach and Adder Rock Beach, and a quick drive to the 4WD access track to Flinders Beach & Amity Point.
Ocean views from many campsites & three minute hot showers!
North Gorge Walk - an easy board walk with some stairs, spectacular views of the rugged, exposed coastline north and south ~ about 1.6km loop. Take a jacket the southerly wind blows hard.
Main Beach - 4WD access at George Nothling Drive - long beach 4WD driving and more importantly collecting pipis for bait for the fisherman
Point Lookout - sunny place to sit on the headland, spectacular sunrises & dolphin & whale watching with gelato available just across the road
Frenchman’s Beach - a lot of stairs down to a secluded beach, lovely long beach walk, and in the protected south corner, potential for an un-patrolled dip in the ocean (for the surf aware, strong swimmers only)
Deadman’s Beach - we walked part of the Mooloomba Loop down to the picnic area and beach.
Adder Rock Beach - locals and campers flock here at dusk to be mesmerised by the colours of the sky as another day closes. This is THE place to be at sunset, beverage in hand.

The Prawn Shack fresh seafood and highly acclaimed prawn rolls. We scored a kilo of small tiger prawns, salty and sweet and made our own prawn roll back at camp.

The Blue Room for smoothies and home made carrot cake with a view, you may have to jostle a little for a spot on the sunny front deck
The Beach Hotel - Bistro & Waves Bar lunch or dinner with large outdoor beer garden that faces the ocean. We had the Grilled Moreton Bay Bugs with Garlic, herbs & fennel butter sauce, why wouldn’t you with Moreton Bay just across the water.