March 17, 2024


Day 26: St Patrick's Day in Noosa




Today I donned the green and enjoyed a warmer than usual St Pat's Day here in Noosa. 

We had a quick bite this morning and made our way on a 6 km walk to Hell's Gate, a point at the end of the Costal Walk through Noosa National Park. As it had rained in the night, the track was a bit slick and muddy in parts. Past Tea Tree Bay, where I had ventured yesterday, there are some beautiful overlooks, or vantage points. The boardwalk eventually turns to a well marked path, and at points it goes right along the edge of the cliffs. Another reason for the walk was hopefully to see koalas. We later learned after the walk that the koala population has greatly declined. There are two major reasons. First, koalas have been hit by diseases and. the numbers in this area have been reduced by half in the last decade. Another are dog attacks, and the stress dogs have brought upon the population. Despite not seeing any koalas, the walk was another spectacular hike. Hell's Gate offers a beautiful vista. 

Hell's Gate





Dolphin Point







As seen on our walk...

Wild Poinsettia




Baybean


A "cooperative" butterfly


Flame Lily


After a quick shower, which was required after a long walk, we made our way to the Noosa Farmer's Market. At home, we usually visit our local farmer's market on Sunday, so it seemed right to do the same here. The farmers market had loads of fresh produce and many food stalls. We picked up some salad ingredients for dinner, and I got to enjoy "poffertjes" which I have enjoyed a few times in the Netherlands. I even got to try out a bit of my limited Dutch. (dankjewel which means thank you and heel goed which  means very good) I got to share some memories of den Haag where the vendor was from. All in all it was a successful market day.




For lunch, we did an Aussie favourite, Betty's Burgers. I did the Double Betty with fries and a Betty's lager. The burger is very tasty, quite similar to Five Guys, which is my favourite burger place back home. Betty's lager isn't bad, but no way near as good as their burger is.






We whiled away the rest of the afternoon at the Noosa Main Beach. The day was very warm, and a dip in the ocean was required to cool off. A long walk on the beach allowed us to take in the surfers and enjoy the sand and surf.




Its been a wonderful St Patrick's Day, still ahead a bbq and maybe some Rumminkub.

Happy St. Patrick's Day!










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