What to do on a hot summers morning, when a lot of your friends have gone back to work (LOL - how grateful am I... )?
With Emma in Melbourne watching the tennis, we dropped Cooper off at holiday care and decided to go for a drive around the Mt Coot-tha Botanical Gardens. When we got there we thought we would go up to the lookout, and ended up having breakfast. A lovely way to spend the warm morning. It was going to be a very hot day.
It is wonderful being able to spontaneously go out to breakfast. Peter had bacon and eggs and a latte, I had avocado and feta on thick toast with my favourite 'chocolate milkshake'.
After breakfast we went for a short walk at the lookout, but at 10am it was already close to 30 degrees C (86F), so didn't walk for long.
We ate at Kuta Cafe, but also at the lookout is the Summit Restaurant, and it has, or use to have silver service dining. We celebrated a wedding anniversary many years ago. This 'new' Summit Restaurant was built in 1983.
Mt Coot-tha is 7km west of Brisbane city and is part of the Taylor Range and it is 287m above sea level. It has been a used for walking tracks since 1860's and was declared recreational reserve in 1880. Moreton Bay Aboriginal Turrbal people frequented the area and the name Coot-tha is believed to be an Aboriginal word meaning honey (ku-ta). It was originally known as One Tree Hill as most of the trees were cleared to make railway sleepers, and only one lone eucalypt tree was left.
The pavers at the lookout are arranged to depict the Brisbane River.
The park is great for picnics, mountain bike riding, and bush walking. There are 9 picnic areas, most with toilets and BBQ's.
The four Brisbane TV stations have studios and masts at the top of Mt Cootha, from 1960.
We then continued the circuit around Mt Cootha to the Botanical Gardens and planetarium, which was built in the 1970's, when a 52ha botanic garden was planted. Entry is free, and during the week one can drive around the gardens. There are not many parking places, but we didn't see anyone parked around the gardens, they were all in the car park at the entrance.
I can recommend a visit to Mt Cootha and the gardens, especially during weekday mornings. We virtually had the place to ourselves. We'll come back when it is cooler and explore the Japanese Gardens.
Such yummy breakfasts, and that is a lovely photo of the pair of you too.
ReplyDeleteWe went up Mt Cootha on a bus trip when we had a week in Brisbane last year. It is such a lovely place, with fabulous views.