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| Feeding the lorikeets at
Currumbin Sanctuary |
Coolangatta (including Bilinga, Tugun and Currumbin)
An older and more gracious part of the brash Gold Coast.
Located 102 km south of Brisbane, Coolangatta is the most
southerly of all the holiday destinations on the Gold Coast.
The border between New South Wales and Queensland is now so
blurred at this point that people pass from one state to the
next barely knowing they are doing so. A twin town with
Tweed Heads, Coolangatta has a major airport behind Bilinga
Beach, and there is a golf club, a leagues club and a major
sporting complex in Boyd St, which runs through Tugun, just
north of Coolangatta.
While it is true that Captain James Cook sailed up the
Gold Coast in 1770 there are few points where he felt
compelled to give the coastline a name. One of the places
recorded by Cook is Point Danger which was aptly named and
later became the site of a lighthouse - now a memorial to
Cook. It lays claim to being the first lighthouse in the
world to experiment with laser technology but the experiment
was unsuccessful and it returned to the more conventional
mirrors, magnifying glass and powerful electric lamps.
The area was later explored by John Oxley who discovered
and named the Tweed River in 1823. The town was actually
named after a ship , the Coolangatta, which was wrecked on
the coast in the 1840s. It is said that the word was an
Anglicised Aboriginal word meaning 'beautiful place'.
By the 1880s the beauty of the area had been recognised
and people started moving into holiday cottages. Some, of
course, decided to stay. The arrival of the railway in 1903
gave the settlement a boost but it was really postwar
mobility and the desire of people from New South Wales and
Victoria to head to the sun that made Coolangatta a popular
resort. It can claim to be one of the first resorts on the
Gold Coast and consequently its age shows in some of the
buildings and amenities. Unlike Surfers Paradise (which also
predates the postwar boom) it has not been radically
modernised. It is, therefore, still a resort which is
orientated towards family holidays rather than the gaudy
'sophistication' of the destinations further north.
Things to see:
Beaches and Foreshore
Between Coolangatta Beach and Snapper Rocks the coastline
inclines in an east-west direction with protected beaches
facing northwards. Coolangatta Beach and Greenmount Beach
form a continuous strand backed by some foreshore greenery
with picnic tables, a public telephone and markets along the
foreshore on the second Sunday of the month. Greenmount
forms the eastern end of the beach and Coolangatta the west.
However, both have their own surf lifesaving clubs: the
Coolangatta Beach club is on the foreshore, off Marine
Parade, and the Greenmount club is by the corner of Marine
Parade and Hill St.
To the immediate east of Greenmount Beach is a small
rocky elevated headland topped by Pat Fagan Parkwhich offers
fine views and picnic tables.
On the eastern side of the headland is Rainbow Bay which
is but a smallish cove, although it has a surf lifesaving
club and toilets. On its eastern side is Snapper Rocks, at
which point the coast veers southwards again, opening out to
Duranbah Beach which is a noted surfing location. Behind the
beach is a foreshore area atop the rugged headland of Point
Danger (named by Captain Cook), on which sits a lighthouse
(at the end of Boundary St which forms part of the state
border) which lays claim to being the first in the world to
experiment with laser technology but the experiment -
carried out in 1971 - proved unsuccessful and it returned to
the more conventional mirrors, magnifying glass and powerful
electric lamps. Nearby is an 18-metre memorial to Captain
Cook which takes the form of a capstan moulded from
cast-iron ballast jettisoned from the Endeavour and
recovered in the 1960s. There are four supports that lie
exactly on the compass points. There are picnic spots and a
walk along the cliff-edge. Dolphins can sometimes be seen
out to sea. There are views of the coastline from
Surfers Paradise to
Byron Bay.
At the western end of Coolangatta Beach is Kirra Point
with its long breakwater forming a protective barrier for
Coolangatta Beach. On the western side of Kirra headland is
Kirra Beach which is the district's most notable surfing
area, offering challenges for the expert, and smaller waves
closer in to shore for beginners who can hire a long board
for the day.
From this point the coastline veers in a north-westerly
direction. The beach is continuous between here and the
small mouth of Flat Rock Creek, although its name changes
from Kirra Beach to North Kirra Beach to Bilinga Beach to
Tugun Beach. There is a narrow foreshore area which slims to
a sliver then virtually disappears at Bilinga Beach.
Each of these four designated beaches has its own surf
lifesaving club: the Kirra Beach club is adjacent Marine
Parade in Coolangatta, with toilets and public telephones
nearby; the North Kirra club is on Pacific Parade, in
Bilinga, with toilets and picnic tables nearby; the Bilinga
Beach club is next to Golden Four Drive, in Bilinga, and the
Tugun club is on O'Connor St, in Tugun, with toilets and
telephones adjacent.
At the northern end of Tugun Beach is the small mouth of
Flat Rock Creek which is named after a small rocky outcrop
just south of the creek estuary. The creek forms the border
between Tugun and Currumbin. Kropp Park lines the southern
shore of the creek behind the beach while Currumbin
Sanctuary (see entry below) sits on part of the northern
shore.
On the northern side of Flat Rock Creek is Currumbin
Beach which is noted for its rock pools and gentle surf. It
is cut in two by Elephant Rock, on which sits the local surf
lifesaving club (off Pacific Parade). At the northern end of
the beach Currumbin Point, with its rock platform, extends
outwards like a carbuncle, forming a natural breakwater at
the mouth of Currumbin Creek which is popular with anglers.
Behind Currumbin Point Pacific Parade coils westwards to
follow the creek's southern shore. Inside the loop formed by
the Parade's change of direction is Wallace Nicoll Park
which has toilets, picnic tables and an air-sea rescue base.
For information on beaches and foreshore to the north see
entry on
Burleigh Heads and for information on the coastline to
the south see entries on
Tweed Heads and
Fingal Head.
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| Feeding the lorikeets at
Currumbin Sanctuary |
Currumbin Bird Sanctuary
To the north of Coolangatta is Currumbin, made famous by the
excellent Currumbin Sanctuary which claims to be the home of
the world's largest captive collection of Australian native
animals, including 1400 species of mammals, reptiles and
birds. Noted for the rainbow lorikeets that descend twice
daily at feeding time, it features 27 hectares of lush
gardens and an array of wildlife including rare and
endangered species, such as the southern cassowary,
Goodfellow's tree kamgaroo, the Tasmanian devil and the
bilby, as well as kangaroos, wallabies, snakes, freshwater
crocodiles, koalas, emus, waterbirds and the largest
sub-tropical, walk--through, rainforest aviary in the
Southern Hemisphere.
Other attractions include a 2.5-km miniature railway,
koala photo opportunities, live animal presentations, a
children's playpark, an animal orphanage, a bush tucker
garden, nocturnal guided tours with Aboriginal corroboree,
Flora Gully (which contains a range of rare and endangered
flora species in a recreated subtropical rainforest
environment),educational programs, a gift shop, eateries,
and the transmission of Aboriginal myths and legends through
song, dance and fire-making.
Located on the Gold Coast Highway it is open from 8.00 am
to 5.00 pm daily and attracts about 500,000 visitors a year.
The entrance charges, in November 2002, were $22 for adults,
$14 for children aged 4-13, $16 for pensioners and group
specials are available, tel: (07) 5534 1266 or
mail@currumbin-sanctuary.org.au.
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| A wombat in the Currumbin
Sanctuary |
Olson's Bird Gardens
These lovely botanic gardens, situated in a subtropical
rainforest valley, contain numerous exotic and indigenous
birds, as well as deer and emus. It is located 9 km from
Currumbin Beach. To get there turn off the Pacific Highway
at Currumbin into Currumbin Creek Rd. The gardens are open
from 9.00 am. to 5.00 p.m. daily. Refreshments are available
and there is a gift shop. An entry fee is charged, tel: (07)
5533 0208.
Mt Cougal (Springbrook National Park)
This rugged and heavily vegetated section of Springbrook
National Park, located in the Tomewin region behind the Gold
Coast, centres on the two peaks of Mt Cougal. The only
facilities and tracks are to be found at Cougal's Cascades.
where there is an old timber mill, mountain streams and
pools, and walking tracks into the rainforest.
Tandem Skydive
Tandem Skydive operate out of Coolangatta Airport on a daily
basis (weather permitting),
Australian Businesses for sale
Caravan Parks for sale
Motels for sale
Hotels for sale
Broadwalk Business Brokers
Businesses for Sale in Coolangatta: Buy or Sell Hotels, Motels, Caravan Parks, Bed & Breakfast,
Pubs, Wine Bars, Restaurants, Cafe, English Tea Rooms, Coffee Shops,
Deli, Catering Business, Pubs, Bars, Sandwich Bars, Pizza Delivery,
Bakeries, Hot Food Take-away, Fish & Chips, Petrol & Service Stations,
Australian Businesses for sale, Car Sales, Motor & Transport, Car/Van
Hires, Newsagents, Dry Cleaners, Salons, General Stores, Retail Stores,
Post Office, Printers, Convenience Stores, Clothes shop, Hair Dressers,
Beauty Salon, Fruit Markets, Butchers, Florist, Card & Gift shop, Sports
shop, Book Shops, Care Agency, Pharmacy, Tool-Hardware & DIY shops, Pet
Shops, Auto Mechanical, Auto Parts & Accessories,
Bakery Businesses for sale , Motel sales, caravan park sales, Hotel
sales, Business sales, Bar for sale, Juice Bar for sale,
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Australian Businesses for sale, Blinds and Shutters Businesses for sale , Boat Business for sale ,
Book Shop , Bread Run, Building and Construction , Butcher Shop,
Café Business for sale, Car Dealerships for sale, Car Rental
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Business for sale, Childcare Centre for sale, Confectionary
Business for sale, Convenience Store for sale, Deli Businesses for
sale , Distribution Businesses for sale , Earth Moving Businesses
for sale , Businesses for sale , Engineering Businesses for sale ,
Export/Import Businesses for sale , Fitness Centres for sale,
Florist for sale, Franchise Businesses for sale , Fruit and Veg
Shop for sale, Function Centre for sale, Funeral Parlour for sale,
Furniture Businesses for sale , Garden Equipment Businesses for
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hotels for sale, Ice Cream Businesses for sale , Juice Bar for sale, Laundrette ' s for sale, Lawn Mowing Businesses for sale , Magazine
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for sale, Mixed Businesses for sale , Mobile Businesses for sale ,
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Preschool for sale, Pest Control Businesses for sale ,Business for
sale Pet Shop, Plumbing Businesses for sale , Post Office for sale ,
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Businesses for sale , Sales and Distribution Businesses for sale ,
Security Businesses for sale , Service Station for sale, Shoe Shop
for sale, Supermarkets for sale, Takeaway Businesses for sale ,
Taxi Businesses for sale , Transport Businesses for sale , Vending
Machine Businesses for sale , Wholesale Businesses for sale,
Wrecking Yard for sale in Coolangatta.
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