Maroochydore, the perfect beach holiday spot.

On our way to Maroochydore we were listening to a talking book called Home Fire by Kamila Shamsie, a contemporary reimagining of Sophocles’ play Antigone (441BC). The book is about a British Pakistani boy groomed by ISIS. It was with this story on our minds that we stopped at the little town of Childers, and were horrified to see “ISIS” on many of the buildings. Childers happened to be in the Shire of Isis, prior to amalgamation with the City of Bundaberg.  So weird and a little disturbing.

In Maroochydore, we stayed at Cotton Tree Holiday Park, at the mouth of the South Maroochy River. As a child my family camped here many times and I have lovely childhood memories of this place.  Our site had fabulous water views.

The sunsets were particularly spectacular because of the smoke from the horrid bushfires in the area.

Each night there seemed to be fireworks to the north, not sure where they were from, possibly the Twin Waters Resort.

It was wonderful being able to swim anytime we wanted. Due to a channel, the water is very deep, even at low tide. Catching up with family and friends made our stay extra special; we even had some old doggy friends come to visit.

These two pelicans flew into the crowd and wandered around quite happily.

It was very popular on the week ends, but still very relaxed and quiet.

On the ocean side of the caravan park the water was much better for boogie boards and surf boards. A short walk down the beach and there were surf life savers and much bigger waves.

This would be a perfect winter retreat.

cheers til next time, Helen and Tim.