A WEEK AT KINKA BEACH...

 Our good friends John and Barb were booked in for an Avan meet at Kinka Beach on the Capricorn Coast and when they found out that we would no longer being touring because of the lock borders etc, they encouraged us to book for a week and come down and join them.  

We don't have an Avan, but their schedule with the group was pretty flexible so we would be able to spend quite a bit of time together.  

We only booked a couple of weeks before we were due to go and fortunately we were able to get accommodate for a week.  The only night they couldn't accommodate us was the first night which was a Saturday, still that was OK as they had seven consecutive nights for us.

Our usual site 15 was already taken so we had to settle for Site 33 which turned out to be an excellent site, three vans down from the amenities block  and directly in front of the pool.  Ironically when we got there we discovered that it was our friends John and Barb that had our usual Site 15.  Good laughs were had all round...

We were there before lunch on Saturday and it didn't take us long to set up, and it didn't take Barb long to come and visit us..

All set us for our week at Kinka Beach...

 

John and Barb's Avan set up

After lunch Barb and I took a run down to Yeppoon.  This is where she grew up and it has been a couple of years since they have been up this way, so she was keen to see the changes there.  Since she was last here, the beautiful Yeppoon Lagoon has opened so we headed there first...  We parked just in front of the wonderful kids playground... that was impressive in itself and then she was quite taken by all the beautiful artwork around the public toilet block. 

Skatepark

Some of the great art work on the toilet block..

 The Yeppoon Lagoon really is the jewel in the crown of the Yeppoon foreshore precinct.  The 2500 square-metre resort-style lagoon pool is located right on the beachfront and it includes a shallow children's play area, an informal lap swimming area and a swim-up infinity edge with stunning views over the Keppel Islands.

Barb found the Lagoon very impressive.  We didn't come prepared for a swim.  We did talk about coming back during the week for one but somehow, with the weather and time, that didn't end up happening...  this lagoon is such a welcome addition to the Capricorn Coast and is very popular with tourists.  We did stop and have a drink for afternoon tea and just enjoyed our environment..

These mushroom shelters are new since we were last down there. 

 The parklands surrounding the pool include barbecues and shaded areas and are ideal for family day outs allowing you to enjoy a picnic lunch as well as being a relaxing way to while away an afternoon with stunning views under the tropical foliage.

The added bonus to this is that entry to the Lagoon is free and they have permanent life guards that patrol the Lagoon Monday to Sunday including all the Public Holidays.  

 

 Part of the complex includes The Pavilion which contains, management, administration and first aid facilities, as well as a Multi-Purpose room, Commercial Kitchens and a Restaurant and Bar on Level 1 with views overlooking the site and island views.  It was designed with consideration of environmental factors and incorporates solar power, passive shading through the roof design, natural light and openings to encourage air flow  and views.  On the ground level the the Rocks Milk Bar,  operates and this was where we bought our drinks from and then enjoyed them under in their eating area with is under cover from the level above.  

One of the places Barb wanted to visit was Lammermoor Beach as their home was built right on the sand dunes and she spent many happy hours of the beach below, so it was important for her to go back to her childhood happy days on this beach.

On the way to Lammermoor Beach though I wanted to make a detour and show her the new lookout at Wreck Point.  This has all been done up since Barb was last on the coast and is another one of the jewels in the Capricorn Coast crowns and is also a major tourist attraction in the area...

As we arrived at Wreck Point, we watched a lone glider soaring above the coast line.  He was quite impressive to watch...

The Wreck Point scenic lookout which is actually located in Cooee Bay gives you 360 degree views of the Capricorn Coast and Keppel Bay.  The new upgrade to this scenic looking now has a new viewing platform, walking trail and interactive artwork added to the lower section of the headland below the main lookout.

The central focus of the walking trail to the bottom lookout features the symbolic shipwreck sculpture  and an interpretive panel telling the story of the "Selina".

"Selina"was a ship wrecked and found in 1848 after which Wreck Point was named.  This new addition to the lookout showcases the rich history of the point with artwork constructed in the form of a symbolic representation of the famous "Selina"shipwreck.  Selina, a transport schooner, washed up on the shores of the coast cliff on it's maiden journey from Brisbane in 1847.  With disaster hitting early on the journey, the Selina lost its crew and wandered for thousands of nautical miles in a huge circle near the Victorian Coast before heading towards New Zealand.  The ship was finally wrecked on the Capricorn Coast here, which in turn dubbed the area Wreck Point.   

Needless to say, Barb was very impressed with this new addition to the Cap Coast and even more impressed with the wonderful views over her beloved Lammermoor Beach.

Barb & I with Lammermmor Beach as a backdrop.

The shipwreck sculpture of the "Selina"at Wreck Point.

Wonderful views of Lammermoor Beach

 The main lookout depicts a ship's deck, which is in memory of the wreck of the wreck of the 62-tonne trading schooner Selina, which drifted crewless for 2600 nautical miles and was the ship washed up at Wreck Point in October 1848.

Six plaques mounted on the lookout tell the story of the discovery of Keppel Bay by Captain Cook in 1770 and the survey of the Australian coastline by Matthew Flinders in 1802.  They also share the important story of the indigenous owners of the land - the Darumbal Nation.

From here it was a very short drive around the corner to Barb's old stomping ground.  Their original family home has long gone with it being replaced by a much more modern building.    Some of their original home was still there until the Cyclone Marcia in 2015 destroyed a good part of it, and it has now also been pulled down and replaced with the large garage structure below.  

The new addition since the cyclone..

The walk way beside their home to the beach below..

The new home built on their land has amazing views out to sea.

This beautiful beach lies on the south side of Wreck Point and is a 2.5km stretch of beach.  It is backed by a casuarina-covered foredune, and it is a very popular beach with tourists and locals alike.  It occupies a large bay just north of Kemp Beach.

Beautiful Lammermoor Beach

Looking towards Wreck Point.

The beach is littered with these interesting shells

Barb had to take photos of the home that now occupies their piece of paradise...

Enjoying a stroll along Lammermoor Beach

Ah the memories of stepping back in time...  So blessed what we both carry such happy memories of our childhood...

By now it was 4pm so we decided it was time to head back to the Caravan Park as we were both keen to have a bit of a swim before dinner.  Steve had headed down to the Causeway to do a spot of fishing so we knew he wouldn't be home as we had passed his car on the side of the road on our way back to the van park...

Unfortuntately he had all my swimming gear in the car, so I wasn't going to be able to do my laps like I would normally do, as these days, I can't seem to swim without my goggles..

Still the water was beautiful and we had a lovely refreshing, relaxing swim.  One other camper from Victoria hoped in the pool with us and we enjoyed getting to know her also...

Beautiful hibiscus flowers bloom around the pool area...

The caravan park has two pools, a family pool and an adults only pool, which was lovely for us as it does allow us to swim laps without having kids get in your way.  Both pools are set in a beautiful open area with a camp kitchen and BBQs close by.  

As we had only arrived at lunch time, John and Barb invited us over to their van for dinner tonight.  John had prepared a really yummy stew.  Before dinner though, we did join with a few of the other AVan families for happy hour.  

They were a really friendly bunch of folk, and during the course of the week, we did get invited to join with them for some of their activities within the park...

Enjoying a cuppa before dinner...

Beautiful home made stew for dinner...

Going in for seconds..

Lovely to sit and watch the moon come up.

It's been a lovely first day on the coast.  It is so good to be back out in the caravan again.  Life has got way too busy and we haven't had it out anywhere near as much as we had planned this year..

Looking forward to relaxing a little this week even though the weather forecast isn't the best for the week ahead...