A beachside getaway in Yeppoon

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It was a very windy drive from Balnagowan to Yeppoon, with the wind hitting the front passenger side. This pushed up our fuel consumption and made the van less stable. Still, we managed to pass a number of vehicles; admittedly they were the slow backpacker type vans and a prime mover that had obvious mechanical trouble.



Earlier this year Yeppoon was hit by a major cyclone. Some building damage was still being restored and some trees had obviously lost all of their branches. As we approached our caravan park along the foreshore road it suddenly turned into one lane only as the sea had carved the land away right up to the edge of the road. The cliff face on the inland side had also been made unstable. However for the most part there was little evidence to see that a cyclone had been through here recently.



As we move south the humidity is increasing and we have had rain overnight. In the north the dry season is more pronounced and everything is dry. Further south there seems to be more consistent rainfall as we see green grass.



Yeppoon is a seaside holiday area with lots of beach houses and caravan parks. Our caravan park even had its own water slide and outdoor cinema! Obviously a family oriented caravan park and even though school is back there were lots of pre-schoolers evident.



Due to the windy conditions we roasted a chicken in the turbo oven inside the caravan. This required a bit of a balancing act as the kitchen space in a caravan is tight. Normally we would use the Weber Baby Q or the turbo oven would be outside on the foldup table.



In Emu Bay we visited the “singing ship”. There was plenty of wind to make it sing. This is located in the RSL park and it is obvious that the local RSL is very active as they have developed an impressive area complete with WWI photos and story timeline.

After a seafood lunch in the Yeppoon marina we strolled amongst the moored boats deciding which were our favourites. Naturally we needed a photo standing next to our respective picks. While Joan was taking a photo of Greg the owner popped out to say Hello and we got talking. It seems that yachting and caravanning are somewhat similar, although we expect that the entry cost for yachting is much higher. This couple was from Melbourne and had sold their business to move onto their catamaran and follow their dream. Like us they collected their new Seawind 1250 and headed out with no trial voyages. They have not regretted a moment of their new lifestyle. Admittedly it was a very nice big catamaran, so they had plenty of space aboard. Much like the caravanning community the yachters swap hints and tips of where to go and what to do, lending a hand if someone is struggling.

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