Day 1: Wed 30 Oct - Home to Brisbane

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16-26 degC

We were up at 5am just because we were awake. By 7:30am all our pre-departure jobs had been completed and we were ready to leave. However we but had arranged an ETD of 10am with the others and didn’t want to muck them around so we just sat down and relaxed. But Glen and Carmel were also running ahead of schedule and arrived just after 9am.  When Wendy looked at Google Maps, she saw that Sue, Mark and Gunther were already on the road. So, we did a quick change of clothes, did a final pack and were on the road before 9:30am. Our first drive on the new Gympie bypass and it was great; pity about other bits of the highway that are not so good, and they’ve now reduced the speed to 80 on a section that was previously 100. Not sure why.  Eventually it will all be 110, but maybe not in our lifetime. We stopped at Glass House Mountain rest stop for lunch about midday. 

We arrived at our accommodation for the night, Airway Motel, about 1:15pm and reception was closed - check-in was strictly after 2pm! We sat around and chatted until 2pm, checked-in, unpacked a few things and set off on foot to Brett’s Wharf to catch the City Cat Ferry into Brisbane City. We hopped off at Riverside Wharf and walked to the brand new Sky Deck observation area on the 23rd floor of the recently opened Star Casino. Nice views over South Bank, The City and Brisbane River. It was then onto South Bank via yet another recently opened structure, the Neville Bonner Pedestrian Bridge. This whole new area, Queens Wharf etc, is very impressive and should connect South Bank to the City nicely once it’s all finished.  After a short wander, we found an ice cream shop and had to have some. Another short wander saw us at South Beach restaurant where we had dinner and drinks, it is Wednesday night after all. 

Fat as fools we strolled to the South Bank ferry terminal for the ride home. We eventually made it back to the motel, carried out the night time routine and went to bed.

Our resident red belly black snake came to say goodbye

On the ferry to the city

Storey Bridge


Kitty cat, not a City cat (smaller boat)



The Boys, minus one


A hole roof of the casino building


South Bank from the sky deck

More views from the sky deck








South Bank



















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