Category: History

I spent a few hours exploring out the back of Dayboro today. It’s a delightful town surrounded by green farms, areas of thick bush, and a backdrop of imposing mountains.

A causeway over Terrors creek, south of Dayboro.

According to local historian, Leith Barter, the creek was named after “Terah” – a grey Arab stallion owned in the 1850’s by Captain John Griffin of the Whiteside Run. In fact the whole area at one time was called “Terrors Creek” but the local postmaster didn’t like the name, saying it sounded too much like “Torrens Creek” so the name changed. The only authentic spelling of the name “Terah” I can find in town is the restaurant “Terah’s” on the main drag. I expect you wouldn’t get far naming a restaurant “Terror’s” would you?

The wooden pylons are remnants of a bridge that was part of the old railway line between Dayboro and Ferny Grove.

I think the funny looking hut with cream paint and a red roof is related to the old railway line but I’m not sure.

You can read more about my exploration of this railway line here.

A causeway at Lees Crossing across the North Pine River just out of Dayboro.

I followed Woodward road to see where it ended up, and discovered some steep hills, friendly people and great views along the way.

This old road actually used to lead from Dayboro to Esk over the D’Aguilar range.

I’m hoping to see if I can retrace it sometime in the next couple of months – at least as far as the top of the range.

On the way back I ran over some glass which cut my tyre. Tubeless sealant sprayed everywhere, but after about 5 minutes it sealed up of its own accord, and I was able to pump it up and keep riding.

I originally took this pic as a mental note so I knew where to check for damage when I got home (it’s a new tyre), but I thought it was pretty cool to demonstrate the way the tubeless system works.

I think I’ll dab some “Shoe goo” on the scratch from the outside and top up the sealant. Hopefully the tear will stay fixed. Thank goodness for “Stans No-Tubes”!

All up about 39km with about 770m of climbing, and 1900cal. 6 out of 10 for toughness (It was pretty short, and the only steep climbs were on bitumen). I’ll be back to explore this area again!

I thought I’d explore some quiet roads out the back of Dayboro this afternoon. It was a good excuse to get a few miles on the bike before I go for a huge ride with Simon tomorrow (weather permitting).

Rush Creek is one of those districts that figured large in the history of the Pine Rivers area. It was logged in the mid 19th century. William Henry Day (after whom Dayboro is named) planted one of the first sugar cane farms in South East Queensland using Kanak labour.

Today, much of what was the Rush Creek district has been flooded by the North Pine Dam…

Rush Creek Road was closed off in the 1970’s when the North Pine Dam was built, and local farmland was flooded.

It used to be the main road between Petrie and Dayboro, and crossed Rush Creek at Whiteside / Quinns Crossing. That crossing disappeared under the man-made lake 40 years ago, and the road hasn’t been used since.

It’s funny how you can still make out the double white line down the middle, under all the grass which is slowly reclaiming the land.

One of the other unusual roads in the area is Raen Road…

I followed a dirt road over a cattle grid. It eventually turned into a vehicle track, and before I knew it I was in front of an old farm house.

Will, the farmer, was really friendly and explained that the road reserve ran through his property and disappeared in the grass after a few hundred meters. He very kindly let me ride around and take some photos. I really liked these old Hoop (A.Cunninghamii) and Bunya (A. Bidwilli) pines along the banks of the upper reaches Rush Creek.

The final road I explored was Strongs Road. The sign says it’s a “No Through Road” but it actually turns into a muddy vehicle track, and eventually comes out on Mount Samson Road – a much nicer ride than battling 100km/h traffic on Dayboro Road!

Wild bees have built a hive in the trunk of an old Eucalypt along Strong Road at Dayboro.

All up, 55km, 2,500kcal (= 6 Big Macs), and 800m of ascent.

A fantastic way to spend a Sunday afternoon!

I’m still healing from a crash last week, so I have decided to avoid riding on rough trails or single tracks at the moment to let my shoulder heal.

Today I rode to Mount Pleasant in the hills behind Dayboro. This rural area is nestled in a valley created by the North Pine River between Mount Mee and Mount Byron.

What I enjoyed most was having a few hours on the bike on quiet rural roads to daydream and get in “The Zone” while covering a reasonable distance (80km). The hills were mostly gentle, although I managed to ascend a total of 1,048m during the ride.

Andrew Petrie reported a stand of Bunya Pines in this area when he visited it in the 1830’s. I’ve got some ideas about where that stand might have been. As you ride along the road, there are some quite mature specimens poking out from behind the hills about 300 metres from the road. These two Bunyas are quite young – perhaps 60 to 70 years old.

Some time in the next year I hope to come back here again and ride through the rainforest up to Toogoolawah in the Brisbane Valley. But the management roads in the rainforest are closed at the moment due to damage from a lot of the heavy rain we’ve had lately.

I’m happy to wait 🙂