On a very clear and sunny day in late April, members from our local Probus club enjoyed a day trip to Montville, a village in Queensland’s Sunshine Coast hinterland, which is “famous for its walks, parks and stunning views, its fine food, exciting shopping, creative talent and wonderful places to stay.”
It’s not a very long drive to Montville and, on the way there, we travelled through some spectacular scenery. Soon after leaving Sandgate in our comfortable coach, we arrived in the Glass House Mountains area. We can see these rocky outcrops, which are the result of volcanic activity, in the distance, on our morning walks to the Shorncliffe Pier. Captain Cook had seen them back in 1770, and had given them this English name.
For many thousands of years, the Glass House mountains have been a special meeting place for the Gubbi Gubbi people, who lived in this part of south-east Queensland.
As our coach began its steep climb up the Blackall Mountain Range, we came to our first stop at the entrance of Mary Cairncross Scenic Reserve. Close to where our coach had parked, we were able to cross the road and to once again have a magnificent view over the Glass House Mountains. My friend and walking companion, Simon, and I, visited the interesting Discovery Centre there, and we followed this by taking a short walk through a subtropical rainforest there. We did this via an elevated walking track, until it was time to board our coach again, to continue our drive to the village of Montville.
Just before arriving in Montville, we had a perfect view from the coach, over Lake Baroon, which has been described as “Montville’s jewel”. I’ve read that this lake, and the lagoons in and around Montville, were where the First Australians would meet to celebrate important events. The Gubbi Gubbi people would invite, and welcome, indigenous tribes from far and wide, “to exchange songs, stories, tools and ornaments while, after good harvests, feasting on the fruit of the Bunya Pine”, which is native to south-eastern Queensland.
The Bunya Pine was the subject of a very informative article in the March/April issue of Australian Geographic, which explained that this tree dates back millions of years and had survived prehistoric climate change. The Bunya nuts are found inside the cones, which fall from the trees when they ripen. Bunya nuts have been a traditional food source for the indigenous tribes for thousands of years. They are said to have a tasty, slightly sweet flavour. I tried to find some in Montville but, somewhat to my surprise, I was unable to do so. According to one of the ladies in the Information Centre, this year’s harvest had been a bad one.
The article in the Australian Geographic journal, which is well worth reading, quotes research done by a Dr Nadolny, from the University of Queensland. The article states that Bunya nuts are: “rich in omega-3 and omega-6 polyunsaturated fatty acids. And the starch has a low glycaemic index, or GI, meaning it could reduce the risk of diabetes, obesity, cardiovascular diseases and colon cancer”. Somewhere else, I have read that Bunya nuts contain all nine of the essential amino acids, making them one of the few nuts to provide a complete protein.
Montville itself is a quaint and delightful village on the Blackall Range, about 400m above sea level, a few degrees cooler than Brisbane, giving it pleasant temperatures throughout the year. Our coach dropped us off at the top of the main street and picked us up, later in the afternoon, at the bottom, which made for an easy downhill walk past many small shops, boutiques, galleries, coffee shops and other eating places, some with extensive views over the coastal areas.
Among the points of interest referred to in the brochures, available from the Information Centre in the main street, were the Memorial Gates. These were said to be “unique in Australia as they recall those who served, those who fell and, quite surprisingly, those who were rejected. We believe that those who were rejected wanted the world to know that they had tried to do their bit”.
Another building mentioned was “Wild Rocket @ Misty’s”, referred to as an excellent restaurant. “This was originally the village store and had a cattle dip outside. In later years, a Dutch Sea Captain built a viewing deck on the top and installed a telescope. The story goes that he charged six pence to use the telescope on a clear day and a penny on a cloudy day. I was able to locate Misty’s but, as the photo shows, unfortunately it was not open for business.
I loved the story of the Dutch Sea Captain. How did he get stranded here? Why did he live in Montville? Thinking about him gave me a feeling of “déjà vu”, as if I had heard this story before. It was as if I could almost sense his presence. This is what seems to happen to me sometimes, when I visit places with a history that touches me. It happened when I visited Baxter’s Jetty (post 32), a jetty in Shorncliffe named after the man who drowned there. When I stood on that jetty, I thought of poor John Baxter and the people who were present around that time. In the late afternoon and feeling only a light cool breeze that did not even make a ripple in the creek, I could almost imagine hearing their voices. What were they saying? What would they have been thinking?
Montville had that effect on me when I read about the first “timber-getters”, who were among the first white men who had arrived in Montville, after a penal settlement had been established in Moreton Bay. They cut down trees and shrubs in the thick rainforest which covered the mountainous terrain and lowered them down the ridge in “shutes”, to bullock teams waiting below. They were followed later by early settlers, who discovered that the rich red volcanic soil was ideal for growing fruit and vegetables. This led them to building citrus orchards and pineapples farms in the Montville area.
The “Montville History Group”, in their “Hinterland Stories”, have published a detailed history as well as many fascinating stories about the development of Montville and the difficulties faced by the first European settlers. They mention the names of Maria and George Butt, George being referred to as “the Father of Montville”.
Other early settlers were the Smith brothers, Henry, Edward and Alfred. It was Alfred who chose the name “Montville”, after a town in Connecticut, USA. Alfred had lived in the USA with his parents, who had emigrated from the UK. Two other townships on the Blackall Range, Mapleton and Flaxton, were named by the settlers after towns in England.
Access to Montville became easier when, in the early 1900s, a sugar cane train line was extended from Nambour to Montville. The “tough little steam train” carried sugar cane, timber, fruit, pigs, cattle, and later, people as well. It even began to run “excursions for visitors from Brisbane”. In some of the stories, I read that the train is also referred to as the “Moreton Bay Cane Tramway”.
Gradually, when they realised that it was possible to reach Montville by train, more visitors began to arrive and guest houses began to be built. The logging and farming community began to change, and Montville became more of a popular tourism destination. The little train continued to run until 1944, when better road access made it obsolete. However, with the roads came even more guesthouses and guests, who were drawn by Montville’s growing reputation as a place of fine dining, log fires, conviviality and music.
As the coach was making its way back to Sandgate at the end of the day, I had time to reflect on all that I had experienced: the scenery, the view over the Glass House Mountains, Lake Baroon, the history of the Gubbi Gubbi people and the health benefits of Bunya nuts. Also, to reflect on Montville village itself, which has so many memories of a bygone age, including an almost forgotten Dutch sea captain, a small sugar cane steam train and the guest houses with a million stories to tell.
Enough impressions to reflect on for a lifetime!
O.P.
P.S. On Sunday morning, 31 August, the new post will be titled: “The Girl with the blue hat”.