Coast to the Hinterland - Traveloscopy Information Portal: Cruise Explore Expedition Travel News

If you don’t own one, rent one so you can best see, smell and feel the wonderful landscape around you. You'll know you're alive with the wind in your face, the sun beaming down and the picture postcard scenery rushing past.

It’s this other side to the surf and sun of the Sunshine Coast which is every bit as relaxing and just a stone's throw from the beach. The Hinterland promises lush cool rainforests, fertile rolling hills and fascinating little towns that lie just inland from the busy throng of the coast.

It’s the perfect short break or long weekend away from Brisbane or the Gold Coast or a sublime spot for an extended stay if you really need to unwind. There’s time to wander around first-class art galleries, potter about country markets and linger over delectable cuisine in restaurants with to-die-for views.

Finding a place to lay your head is easy. What’s more challenging is the choice – a comfortable bed and breakfast guesthouse with mountain or lake views, a country town cottage just a few steps from antiques, cafes and bookshops or a self-contained treehouse nestled in the rainforest? One thing is certain, two areas to put on your must-do list are the Blackall Ranges and the Noosa Hinterland.

The Blackall Ranges
Making the steep and windy climb to the mountain villages of Montville and Maleny is work enough without having to stop to let a herd of indifferent dairy cows cross the road, but this is the way of things in the majestic Blackall Ranges.

The Ranges, in the heart of the lush Sunshine Coast hinterland offer the ideal short break from Brisbane. The trip is a breeze - an hour and a half leisurely motoring through pine tree plantations, fertile farmlands, past classic weatherboard Queenslander houses, and colourful roadside fruit stalls. Be sure to stop and select a few local gems - sweet pineapples, freshly picked lychees, macadamia nuts, ruby red strawberries, and home made preserves - the gooseberry and rosella jam didn't last a week !

Drink in the views. To the east rolling green hills giveway to cow studded pastures, crops and then clusters of houses and apartments along the coastline from Caloundra to Coolum. To the west are the Connondale Ranges and Lake Baroon - perched like a mirror in the velvety green undulations of the Obi Obi Valley and to the southwest the imposing Glasshouse Mountains.

You can visit the main villages of Montville and Maleny as a day trip, but excellent bed and breakfast guesthouses and self-contained cottages, fine restaurants, art and antique galleries and craft studios as well as graded rainforest walking tracks, swimming holes and waterfalls in the Kondalilla National Park make a few days very easy to fill.

Taking a wander down the main street of Montville could take the best part of a day if you stop at each art gallery, craft and gift shop and have a coffee and piece of homemade cake at each café. Keep an eye out for locally produced sauces, jams and preserves.

Must-sees for the art-obsessed are the Montville Art Gallery, and the Lasting Impressions Gallery in Kenilworth, just a 10 minute drive down the road. While you're there hop across to Kenilworth Country Foods to sample their cheeses and yoghurts.

Maleny is far less touristy and has several interesting antique and bric-a-brac stores and a country market on Sundays. A must-eat is the award-winning icecream and huge selection of cheese from around the world at Colin James Fine Foods in the main street.

If it's fresh air you crave make a beeline for the walking tracks of Kondalilla National Park Spectacular waterfalls and inviting swimming holes are a cool respite at this time of year. The pick of picnic spots is Mary Cairncross Park, with its panoramic views to the Glasshouse Mountains.

If you're adventurous, experiencing the Ranges from the back of a Harley Davidson with Southern Cross Motorcycle Tours will provide all the colour and movement you can handle. And remember a fix of sun and surf is only 30 minutes drive away!

The Noosa Hinterland
Just 90 minutes drive from Brisbane or 25 minutes drive inland from Noosa are the hinterland towns of Eumundi, Cooroy, Pomona and Yandina. Traditionally farming centres, they're now the hub of weekend markets, groovy places to stay and some of the most talked about restaurants on the Coast.

Things move fairly slowly in Cooroy and Pomona. In Pomona have a beer at the grand old Pomona Hotel and if you’re into classic movies you can catch a golden oldie at Australia’s oldest silent movie theatre, The Majestic in town on Factory Street. Pomona Market is always a colourful event held the second and fourth Saturday of each month from 6am in Stan Topper Park.

On Cooroy’s Maple St, are two galleries featuring local artists and the RSL hosts a market each Thursday from 8am until lunchtime.

Several galleries in Eumundi feature the work of prominent local and interstate artists. The famous Eumundi Market is held from 6am on Wednesdays, Saturdays and Sundays. It is especially good for organic fruit and vegetables and home made preserves, but you must arrive early! Antiques and quality bric-a-brack can be found at the Old Butter Factory Markets held every Sunday from 8am to 2pm.

Across from the markets is a typical country pub, the Imperial Hotel where you can sample and some of the best counter meals around. If you're a golfer, you're in the right place with three courses almost within putting distance!

Stop in for a look at the largest ginger factory in the Southern Hemisphere at Yandina, and treat yourself to a ginger and macadamia ice cream. Also on offer are ginger plants and other heliconia varieties and a range of products including jams, desert and cooking sauces, pickled sushi ginger and the good old crystalised and chocolate-coated variety.

For exquisite handcrafted jewellery make a date to visit gold and silversmith Ann Everingham at her rammed earth studio amid the ginger plantation at her Yandina farm. Ann designs exotic pieces combining African trading beads, choice pearls and precious stones collected on her travels. Her studio is open by appointment only. Tel +61 7 54 46 7374.

For more information on the Sunshine Coast Hinterland contact:
Tourism Sunshine Coast Tel 07 5452 2555 or see www.tourismsunshinecoast.com.au