The Bay Islands
13 February 2015 | Moreton Bay
It has been quite a while since we last let you all know where we have been and what we have been doing - there was Christmas in Brisbane, New Years on the Gold Coast and Australia Day on Moreton Bay!
In fact, I spent 8 years of my life in the city of Brisbane after we arrived here from England when I was a young teenager. I completed high school and then a university degree at Queensland University in the late 70's and early 80's.
In some of my Uni breaks I went to stay at Nth Stradbroke Island at a friend’s family holiday home but other than that my forays into Moreton Bay could definitely be numbered on one hand!
We have for the last couple of weeks be anchored amongst the South Moreton Bay Islands of Russell, Lamb, Karraggarra and Macleay - in what has to be the most unfamiliar part of this city to me!
The islands began their settled life as farms- orchards mainly - supplying fruit and vegetables to the thriving Brisbane community but since the early 80’s the islands have seen a large amount of development with now over 4500 people (according to the 2006 census) residing on them. It's a small off shore enclave - suffering somewhat from the isolation but also offering a vastly different lifestyle for many.
We passed through these islands briefly on our way to the Gold Coast in December where some building work had been offered to Peter - we didn't stop - just noticed quite a few moored boats, as well as ferries weaving their way through the windy passages.
The work we went to the Gold Coast to do didn’t eventuate but happily, after a few weeks of false starts and tips that led nowhere, Peter has been able to get some work with a building company here on Macleay Island! We are very pleased with the work – though the location is – well interesting!
The islands, for all that they are, are not quite as pretty as where we have spent the winter!
Not as you might say – picturesque (a Peter-ism!) – they are mangrove-fringed (populated of course by lots of very friendly mosquitoes!), lack sandy white beaches and the water is not quite the pristine clear loveliness of the Whitsundays! But the point is we had a need and have been open to see how it could be met. We made ourselves willing and are happy to have been satisfied!
We are adapting and adjusting!
The islands are a sociologically fascinating place! Suffering from their isolation and lacking in infrastructure, they tend to be populated by people who want either somewhere cheap to live, or somewhere apart from the hustle and bustle of the mainland! There is a thriving artist community, a lot of retiree’s and quite a few people struggling on low incomes.
Actually it feels a little like we have stepped back in time - the pace of life is slow but the prices in the grocery stores sadly all too modern!
There are lovely things through - the sense of community is excellent - I mean where else could you be sitting in a cafe (oh sorry, THE cafe) and hear the local paramedic offer medical advice to the young barista! And where else would you feel free to join in and offer a little of your own knowledge!
There is, on the larger of the three islands we are closest to, a Spar supermarket and chemist, a pub, The cafe, a servo and a few real estate offices. There is an ambulance station and a library, a doctor and a bakery and the police visit now and then. That's it. It's is kind of rural and rustic and quaint and yet - just a ten minute ferry ride to bustling noisy Brisbane!!!
On Lamb Island, which is on the other side of us to Macleay, there is just the one shop. The first time we walked in it, we felt as if we were extras in a post-apocalypse movie! On the very sparse shelves there was like one can of cat food and one pack of soup, a tube of toothpaste and a small tin of instant coffee!
The fridge had a bottle of milk but sadly the loaf of bread had already been sold!
This is an unusual place indeed!
But like with anything it all comes down to attitude and ours in high on the thankful scale! It's perhaps not the loveliest place we have ever been but we appreciate it immensely!
We have been here now for a couple of weeks. We have experienced our first encounter with a cyclone which actually came this far south before petering out in the Tasman! It didn’t come even close to making landfall but the winds and yukky weather it brought were enough for us! We have been anchored and were, before it was even marked on the forecast, but we had dragged anchor one mild afternoon – probably due to the currents and the silty bottom – and so we had just got ourselves settled into a spot between Lamb and Macleay Islands when the wind began to build up.
We put out a stern anchor and also made use of an old mooring buoy to keep our stern steady and rode it out. It was about a week in all of strong wind and not very pleasant – not a lot of exploring has been able to happen as we have not been able to get off the boat much – but we’ve done lots of puzzles and even been able to get the TV to work occasionally!
For me the lack of exploring has not been so bad as I was offered a book contract a couple of weeks ago and am full-steam ahead in getting that off the ground. This book will relate to the issues of abuse I write a lot about. I am thrilled and delighted and will keep you posted on the progress of that!