Straddie (Minjerribah) in October is a good time on the island.
The whales are still going south, the birds are nesting, the flowers are out, and the water is warm enough.
We saw plenty of Grey Kangaroos and many birds including parrots, friar birds, eagles, gannets and kites. Off the Point there were manta rays, turtles and the largest pod of dolphins ever. Since August 2014, a lot of sand has arrived from northern NSW and found itself in North Gorge, on Deadman’s and Cylinder.
Friends saw koalas bounding like dogs beside their 4-wheel drive at night followed by some furious rutting late into the night to keep us up!
On the downside sand mining continues apace. Next to Fraser and Moreton Islands, Straddie is one of the largest sand islands in the world (the second largest?). Yet no sign to the end of the destruction of the high dunes at Yarraman and Enterprise mines as shown in the photos. I have been coming here for over 50 years yet no government has had the good sense or guts to stop it. Is all that rutile worth the destruction of an aquifer and beautiful bush?
We pay respects to the Quandamooka mob who have looked after country for millennia.
Ian Curr
October 2015
Here are some pictures I took (click on images to get a big surprise) and watch out for ‘Duck on Blue Lake’, the second one 😉
The use of dredge mining dramatically changed the landscape of Stradbroke. To establish a dredge mine the high dunes are levelled and vegetation is stripped to create a dredge pond. The dredge is continually moving, leaving behind the tailings sand as it progresses. While the dunes are regenerated the original ecology of the Island cannot be replaced. — Colin Sweett, ‘Lines in the sand: a history of mineral sandmining on Queensland’s Barrier Islands’, BA (hons) thesis, University of Queensland, 2008
Glorious Straddie reminding us of real beauty