It was hard to believe, but we had already reached Kim’s family’s last full day on the Sunshine Coast. Sadly, the trip was going fast, but every single day had been pretty great so far. And even though I was sad, I wasn’t going to dwell on it – we had another epic day ahead!
We were climbing Mount Coolum!
Just joining us? Catch up on Day 1, Day 2, Day 3, and Day 4 first.
Mount Coolum Climb
Mount Coolum is one of the most famous peaks on the Sunshine Coast, alongside the Glasshouse Mountains. It’s a 26-million-year-old volcanic dome, 208m tall, and apparently just over 1km to hike (according to my workout stats anyway).
The view from the top is spectacular, and if you’re someone who likes the outdoors, then you’ll love this hike.
Parking is free and available just off Tanah Street West, but a word of warning, it fills up quickly, especially at peak times, usually early morning. There are a few streets nearby, so you might be able to find a park in one of those. The usual warning applies here – don’t leave any valuables in your car.
Also, exciting news, they finally built some public toilets there. Normally, you’d have to hold it and go somewhere else – pretty difficult if you’re on your way down the mountain and busting!
The start of the hike is well signed, with a huge information board, and also a standard National Park sign that’s perfect for group photos.
We had packed the three hiking poles that we’d bought last year when I reluctantly accepted that my knee was pretty shot after an injury a few years back. At the time I had bought one for myself, one for my son because I knew he’d steal mine otherwise, and one for my husband so he didn’t feel left out.
As expected, the kids all claimed them immediately.
The hike starts off as a relatively nice stroll through the bush, but then gets steep quickly. It’s rocky too, so they do warn that you must be fit to do the hike. In saying that, kids generally handle the hike relatively easily, just with the necessary rest breaks along the way.
The steep part is largely made up of rocky stairs, but if you’re not good with balance, it’s best to be pretty cautious through this part.
Everyone is pretty courteous. From my experience, anyone coming up is more than happy to let anyone coming down go past – they probably want the break! There are occasionally some pretty hardcore runners coming through too, but everyone is mostly patient and more than happy to find a way to get to the side.
As you climb, the views just get better and better. You can tell you’re nearing the top when it starts to flatten out a bit. And then you get to the top, and get rewarded with an incredible view, and an almost flat’ish spot to sit and relax on.
Or, if you’re my husband, stand there impatiently waiting for us to go back down. He’s never been good at enjoying the “journey” of a workout; he’d rather get up and down non-stop. But nope, the rest of us were determined to enjoy the view, after all, who knows when they’ll get to see it again!
Note the Bunnings hats that I bought our friends – I think the shade from the wide brim was appreciated by A – she was hot!
I haven’t climbed Mount Coolum since my knee injury, so I was a little nervous about how I’d go on the way down. Much to L’s annoyance, he handed over the hiking pole so that I could use it to take pressure off my knee on the way down.
These photos show just how steep it can be!
We all made it down in one piece, though the boys all pretty much took off together at breakneck speed. I was a turtle, and thankfully Kim and A stayed with me, and we just took it easy.
Once we reached the car park, we split up into the cars, and I dropped everyone back at their accom so they could start packing (*sob) and rest before the afternoon activities.
Fish and Chips at the beach
A trip to Australia wouldn’t be complete without fish and chips on the beach. It’s one of my favourite things to do – there’s something about the water that just calms me. And I would never forgive myself if they didn’t get a chance to actually chill on an Aussie beach at least once!
We debated where to go, but ultimately decided on Cotton Tree. It’s normally pretty nice there, the water is generally calm, and there’s a great playground for the kids. One of our other options, Mooloolaba, we assumed would be way too busy.
When we arrived, we discovered the tide was out, so it wasn’t as picturesque as it normally is, but it was still a nice afternoon.
We set up the Cool Cabana and the world’s best beach chair (I’m not kidding), and applied sunscreen to the kids.
I made Kim sit in my chair just so she could appreciate it, but she’s hidden in this picture.
I was gifted this chair for my birthday from my sister, and it’s so freaking great. Please humour me while I go on about this chair’s features in bullet point form:
- It can be worn as a backpack (handy for when you’re carting everything down onto the beach)
- Folds out easily and lies flat so you can snooze in it if you want.
- So many pockets – an insulated one to keep things cold, another big one on the back for regular stuff, a pocket on the side for your phone, or book, kindle, etc.
- There’s a fold-out bit on the back to drape a towel over for drying.
- A pillow for your head.
Seriously – so cool.
Here’s a photo of it from my backyard when I was texting my sister, telling her how much I loved it.
Ahem, back to the holiday.
After we set that up, I was then left to set up the one thing I’d insisted we bring, but hated setting up. The stand-up paddleboard (SUP).
With Kim, A, and me taking turns, we got it to a point where the kids could take it out on the water.
Kim had a ride on it too, but found it rather unstable, and it was only when my husband mentioned the different settings that we realised my error.
Fun fact – we’ve had this thing for years, and every time I hate setting it up. The pump gets insanely hard to push, and I hate it. Also, I get tired quickly. Well, turns out that I didn’t realise that our pump has different settings, and that I was always pumping it up on the wrong settings.
DANG IT.
It was underinflated by about 3 PSI, definitely enough to make it wobbly for an adult! Sorry Kim!
We did end up pumping it up a bit harder in the end.
The kids had a great time on it, and there was a bit of a hairy moment when A started drifting towards the bottom of the jetty and the oysters there, but she was able to recover strongly and paddle herself back to the shore – epic effort. It would have been fine, I don’t think it would have been enough to pop it, but better to be safe than sorry.
By this stage, my husband had already gone and ordered our dinner, and came back with literal armfuls of food.
We had fish, calamari, chips, and, to be controversial, potato scallops. Apparently, in some other states of Australia, they call it potato cakes or potato fritters, but… they would be wrong. Ahem.
After dinner, and once the kids had had enough of the water, we made our way to the playground. Of course, the boys instantly wanted to get to the top of the climbing tower again.
They played on the swings for a bit as well, and one of the kids went on the merry-go-round until they started feeling dizzy again.
We wound up the day back at home for a bit again, letting the kids spend as much time together as possible, as it would be the last time they got to hang out.
And as a final treat, we made them try fairy bread, an iconic treat at kids’ parties. Basically, it’s buttered bread covered in hundreds and thousands (sprinkles).
L showed them how to eat it first, which is a very difficult process. Ok, I lie, it’s literally just picking it up and putting it in your mouth.
There were some very unsure and disgusted faces to start with.
And I don’t think it got any better.
A had one bite, promptly put it back on the cutting board, and pushed it as far away from her as she could. She then backed away slowly out of the kitchen.
It was hilarious. I mean, I certainly can’t say that it actually tastes good; it’s just sugar on butter. And I don’t know why it’s so iconic, but strangely, Australians are very proud of it.
Final survey:
J: “Good”
A: “I hate it”
L: *too busy scoffing any of the remaining pieces to respond
Eventually, we sadly had to call it a night, where I returned Kim and her family to their accom to finish packing, and get ready for the flights to Sydney the next day. I would be joining them, after all, Kim and I had a bridge to climb!
Have you ever tried fairybread, or fish and chips by the beach? What’s one meal you would introduce friends and family to if they were visiting you?
