A sparkling Day

After three days of rain, the sun returned to the Sunshine Coast in glorious fashion today! It was a splendid day; bright and warm, but not hot or humid. I naturally had to check out of my house in the morning, but stuck around and did 6 km or so of bushwalking in Noosa National Park. The beauty of the shoreline was too dazzling to pass up! Here's a shot looking toward the southwest; in the distance is the main part of Noosa Heads with swish hotels and condos. The beach was jammed with throngs of tourons today, no doubt due to the fine weather after much sogginess. In fact, the night before last it rained about two inches here!

This is Granite Bay, a couple km along the track from the northwestern entrance to the national park. There was a blustery south wind along the east facing beaches, but the shoreline here faces north, sheltered from the south wind. Lots of surfies were out, taking advantage of the placid weather with good swells.

Here's a classic shot of Alexandria Bay, one of the prettiest settings for a beach to be found anywhere in the world. Earlier this week I hiked here from my rental house, only about 1 1/2 km away. This time I came from the main area of Noosa and the trek was close to 3 km, but not very difficult and through beautiful country. I realized that I really, really like it here; the beauty is a major element but I also prefer the level of development. At Sunshine Beach it's rather quiet, but you're in the middle of a community with a small but pleasant commercial area containing all the necessary stores and restaurants. If you want a little more action, you can head for the main tourist area of Noosa Heads, which is rather small but bustling and heavily developed. If you want more peace and quiet, you just stroll into the bush protected within the national park. It's a nice balance.