Castle Hill Walk – Cudtheringa Track

Having done the Mt Louisa Lookout Walk the day before was good preparation for taking on the Castle Hill Walk the next day with our friend Dorothy. We drove in from Coral Coast Tourist Park, passing the sign at the edge of the city limits as we went.

We parked near the tennis courts at the bottom of the hill. Phil came and collected Mel. She could have an easy day by going up to the top with Roxy and Rose, Phil and Dorothy’s dogs in his car. It was a short walk along the street to the start of the Cudtheringa Trail on Castle Hill.

We were quickly ascending. Some of the trail was a boardwalk, some was gravel and then there were the inevitable steps.

Even at this early stage the view was great.

After taking in the view and catching our breath we continued

with the summit of Castle Hill above us.

We now faced a continual succession of flights of steep steps.

The views were ever expanding. In the distance was Magnetic Island.

The peak of Castle Hill looming closer.

We were now moving around the hill as we ascended which meant we came to some welcome patches of shade.

Sadly the steps became steeper and one long flight really had us puffing.

At the top we caught our breath and admired the view below.

However once the trail ended we had a final walk along the side of the road to reach the top carpark.

A short walk lead us to a viewpoint with views in three directions.

Our walk completed, it was time for a quick selfie. You can see the telecommunications tower at the top of Castle Hill in the background.

Now it was time to head off for a cool drink and something to eat. Phil drove us back to our car. From there we drove along the Strand to Odyssey on the Strand.

Odyssey on the Strand

It was at the far end of the Strand. The food is Mediterranean style. I ordered salt and pepper calamari and Karen ate a Greek salad. The food arrived very quickly and was delicious. The local Legends beer was well received too. Another factor in choosing to eat there was that well behaved dogs like ours are welcome.

Once lunch was finished we took the short walk back to where our cars were parked, admiring the view of Magnetic Island.

Back at the caravan park we started to prepare to move on the next day. Coral Coast Tourist Park is certainly on our list of parks to return to in the future. It is well set up with excellent facilities. The only downside was that on a couple of occasions about 10pm it had been noisy with army Blackhawk helicopters doing night drills above us.

Next time we continue our journey heading south to Bowen, one of my favourite places in Queensland.