Category: Pine Rivers

Aboriginal Australia, Cycling, History, Pine Rivers

Mistake Road

by NeilEnnis 27 December 2009 No Comments Shortlink

Mistake RoadMistake Road
I often look at Google Maps to find new places to ride. Some of the roads look fascinating going through some beautiful country. The problem is a lot of them don’t exist.

Mistake Road is a classic example. Driving along Dunlop Lane in Kurwongbah, if you read the Google Map, you’d expect a nice ride through to Shea Road. But the bitumen gives way to gravel, which gives way to dirt and mud, and in the end, all that is left is a horse trail.

And off that horse trail is Mistake Road.

So Steve and I bashed through some bush on the bikes, down Mistake Road. It went through a creek that was knee deep, so I cunningly took off my shoes and socks to keep them dry and waded through, holding up the bike.

The next creek, Steve said “Ride through it, it’s easy” so I did, stalled mid-way and soaked my lovely dry shoes.

At this point the track disappeared and we found ourselves in a paddock near a farm house.

“Woops, we’re accidentally trespassing” I thought. And just as we were about to get out onto the main road, we met up with the land owner driving her car out.

I had my spiel all worked out “I’m really sorry. We’re lost, can you tell us how to get out of here?”. But before I could, she congratulated us telling us that they’d only just prepared a new horse riding trail through their property, and we were the first people to come along it on our bikes.

Wendy was really friendly, and I was relieved that we hadn’t antagonized some old hermit of a farmer who was going to set (in my imagination) hungry dobermans onto us.

But the point is that there are hundreds of old roads that are on maps, that “aren’t really there”. But if you ride down them on a bike, just at the point where they “disappear” you can bash through the bush and find horse trails that are probably more than a century old.

I’ve got a hunch that the “Old North Road” from Brisbane to Durrundur came through here somewhere.

Constance Campbell Petrie writes about a Indian fellow by the name of Shake Brown who kidnapped an Aboriginal woman and sailed to what is now Noosa Heads. After he’d had enough of roughing it, he came down the Old North Road on his way back to Brisbane, where he was met by some Aboriginal relatives of the kidnapped woman who exacted revenge from Brown and killed him on the banks of what is now Browns Creek.

Browns Creek runs through this area, as you can see on the map, so it’s very likely we rode today near where Shake Brown was killed, which is also where the Archer Brothers would have ridden their horses in the 1840’s on the way to Durrundur Station near present day Woodford.

So next time you drive your car to the end of road that really ought to be there according to the map, remember that the road probably still is there – you just need a good horse (or a mountain bike) to go any further.

Cycling, Pine Rivers

Dohles Rocks

by NeilEnnis 21 December 2009 No Comments Shortlink

Dohles Rocks is a beautiful place to cycle in the morning. The only downside is dodging some busy traffic to get there!

Today I spotted about a dozen kangaroos grazing beside the road and managed to capture a photo of one of them just staring at me.

The waterfront is beautiful too. This morning a hot air balloon was drifting slowly in the breeze a few kilometres away, and the water was serenely calm.

It’s a bit out of the way – no traffic passes through Dohles Rocks (the road stops there!) But if you’re interested in hiring a boat, relaxing by the water, or fishing, it’s a great place to visit.
Hot Air Balloon, Pine River, Dohles RocksKangaroo, Dohles Rocks Rd, Griffin
Pine River, Dohles RocksPine River, Dohles Rocks

Aboriginal Australia, History, Pine Rivers

Land Clearing in Petrie

by NeilEnnis 16 December 2009 2 Comments Shortlink
 

 

The land at the top of Armstrong Street, Petrie, known as “Murrumba Hill”, is special for a number reasons.

Tom Petrie, a pioneer of the area during the nineteenth century, had good friendship with the local aboriginal people. He spoke their language, attended their initiations and bunya feasts, and treated them with a respect that was 150 years ahead of his time.

In return, tribal elder Dalaipi advised Tom to build his house on this hill, and keep his cattle here. He promised that the North Pine tribe would look out for Tom’s family.

So Murrumba Hill is a symbol of rare early mutual respect and friendship between Aborigines and white men.

On this hill you can find some impressive old specimens of Hoop and Bunya Pines, and (until recently) a forest that had been untouched for almost a century, named “Dalaipi’s Forest” in honor of the great aboriginal leader who befriended the Petrie family.

The Petrie family sold the property to the Catholic church in the 1950’s on the proviso that the old homestead remained intact. Sadly, the chuirch renegged on the deal and demolished the homestead about a year after getting their hands on the property.

The Dalaipi Forest was left alone, but it was neglected. Due to lack of maintenance by the new owners, it became infested with Lantana and other noxious weeds.

And then last week, the church decided to bulldoze the Dalaipi Forest to construct another building and more car parking spaces.

Ironically, all this happened in the week of the Copenhagen Climate Change Conference, where people are debating the effects of land clearing on Climate Change.

Forests like this can sequester almost a thousand tons of carbon per hectare. They are habitat to many native species of birds, animals and insects. But more than this, a forest like this brings magnificent peaceful beauty right into the middle of our suburbs.

What a tragedy that it is gone.

To borrow an old phrase from the Dean Brohers demolition company:

“Catholic Church. All we leave are the memories….”

History, Pine Rivers

Two Hundred Years Old

by NeilEnnis 1 December 2009 2 Comments Shortlink

Hoop Pines, Bald HillsHoop Pines, Bald HillsHoop Pines, Bald Hills

This historic hoop pine (Araucaria cunninghamii), in the St Paul’s School grounds, Bald Hills, is believed to be approximately 195 years old.

Prior to Eurpoean settlement, the banks of the North and South Pine Rivers were home to many Hoop Pines and Cedars. Most of these magnificent trees were felled for their valuable timber, so that few of them remain today.

John Oxley first noticed them in on this day (1 December) in 1823 on the banks of the North Pine River near present day Petrie.

The old building in the background of these pictures is the administration building for the school. It was originally a farmhouse built by the Stewart Family in the late nineteenth century.

Read more information about these Hoop Pines on the Queensland Cultural Heritage Register.

History, Pine Rivers

Litigation in 1882

by NeilEnnis 24 November 2009 1 Comment Shortlink
spry-and-the-butcher-bird-1

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Courtenay Spry was one of the first owners of freehold land in this area, along with Tom Petrie, Stephen Lawn and others.In 1862 he purchased large tracts of land, and sold some of it a short time later to make a handsome profit.

But this amusing little excerpt from the Brisbane Courier in 1882, reveals a nasty side to Mr Courtenay Hele Fowell Spry Esquire. It appears that one of his sons had an impressive butcher bird that was able to sing quite remarkable tunes. The bird went missing, and Spry suspected the daughter of the local pastoralist, Job Minchinton. He sued Minchinton in the Brisbane Police Court for the loss of the bird, but Minchinton testified that he never had a butcher bird, or any bird except a parrot.

Spry lost the suit, but not being one to let his inferiors off the hook, then decided that Minchinton didn’t tell the truth in court. So he had him charged with perjury, and had his sons to testify against him. Courtenay’s son, Reynell, testified that on 27 May 1882 he saw a butcher bird on Minchinton’s verandah and knew it was the stolen bird because of the tune it was whistling. Mr Bruce, the defense lawyer cross examined him:

Bruce: “If you remember the tune the bird was whistling, can you whistle it?”

Reynell: “No.”

Bruce: “Who was the composer of the tune?”

Reynell: “The butcher bird was the composer”

Bruce: “How can you be so certain about the date?”

Reynell: “I don’t know”

Bruce: “Well if you’re so good with dates, can you tell me what month the winter holidays were in, this year?”

Reynell: “No”

Bruce: “How about your birthday? Can you tell me what month your birthday is in?”

Reynell: “No”.

Because of Spry’s power and influence, the judge didn’t accept the defence claim that the case should be thrown out. He wanted to give the appearance of actually considering this weighty case. But after a few minutes deliberation, he announced that he had decided to dismiss the case, and discharged Minchinton.

If you’re interested in much ado about nothing, click on the images at the left to read it yourself.

Aboriginal Australia, Cycling, History, Lawnton

Bell’s Scrub, Lawnton

by NeilEnnis 21 November 2009 No Comments Shortlink

This is the only remaing parcel of virgin rainforest in the Pine Rivers district. It’s never been cleared, and apart from a few noxious weeds like Lantana and Umbrella Trees, it’s pretty much the same as it was before Europeans arrived 200 years ago.

Ironically it’s in the middle of a gravel quarry. The ground around it has been excavated to such an extent that it’s almost an island.

Before Europan settlement, all the land around our neighborhood along the river looked like this. I half expected early 19th century elder, Dalaipi, to peer out at me from behind the trees.

Environmental reports suggest that the salinity of the soil is increasing due to the surrounding excavation, so its lifetime is limited.

I just wanted to capture a glimpse of pre-colonial Australia before it disappears.

And to touch it.

Here’s an excerpt from the Australian Heritage Database about Bell’s Scrub:

Bell’s Scrub is one of the very few remaining patches of lowland rainforest in the Pine Rivers Shire and one of few in the wider area of south-east Queensland. However, the site is small and not in good condition. Bell’s Scrub represents the southern limit of distribution of brown pearwood (AMOPHOSPERMUM ANTILOGUM), and the crown of gold tree (BARKLYA SYRINGIFOLIA). The fig trees on the site are utilized by brown (MACROPYGIA AMBOINENSIS) and topknot (LOPHOLAIMUS ANTARCTICUS) pigeons.


 
Bell's Scrub, Lawnton