Caloundra

For other uses, see Caloundra (disambiguation).

Caloundra Sunshine Coast, Queensland
Caloundra
Population:	41,293(2006)
Postcode:	4551
Coordinates:	26°48′S 153°08′E
Time zone:	AEST (UTC+10)
Location:	90 km (56 mi) from Brisbane
LGA:	Sunshine Coast Region
State District:	Caloundra, Kawana
Federal Division:	Fisher

Caloundra ( /kəˈlaʊndrə/) is the southernmost community on the Sunshine Coast in South East Queensland, Australia, located 90 kilometres (55.9 mi) north of Brisbane CBD. Caloundra is accessible from Landsborough Railway Station and the Caloundra bus station.

In the local Aboriginal dialect, 'Kalowendah' translates as 'Place of the Beech Trees'.

History

In 1875, Robert Bulcock, an English immigrant who founded a Brisbane newspaper and later represented the Brisbane suburb of Enoggera in the Queensland Legislative Assembly from 1885 until 1888, bought 277 acres (1.12 km²) of land in the region. A town was surveyed in the 1870s, and land sales commenced in 1883. With its proximity to beaches, the area became popular with tourists and a number of hotels and guest houses were set up to accommodate them.

In 1917, Bulcock's, Robert Bulcock Jr, who was a councillor in the Shire of Landsborough, subdivided part of the land into 404 lots. This area became known as Bulcock Beach. By 1933, Caloundra had a population of 271.

During World War II, the area became key to Australian defence due to defensive positions along the beaches. Radar stations and machine gun pits were mounted, and Australian and US armed forces came to the area. From the early 1950s onwards, Caloundra experienced a boom in development and population, and by 1968, it had come to dominate the Shire of Landsborough so completely that the council chambers were relocated to Caloundra.

				[[Image:|235px|alt=| Caloundra in the 1930s, 1950s and 1960s]]
Caloundra in the 1930s, 1950s and 1960s

Geography

Caloundra is not strictly defined, but the boundary used by the Australian Bureau of Statistics for census purposes and the urban zone defined by the Sunshine Coast Regional Council (formerly the Caloundra City Council) almost exactly coincide. This region is bounded roughly by Currimundi Creek, Rainforest Drive and the Mooloolah River to the north, Beerwah State Forest and Bruce Highway to the west, the Pumicestone Channel (separating the area from Bribie Island) and the ocean to the east, and Bells Creek to the south. The central business district (CBD) for the area is located on Bulcock Street, Caloundra.

Panoramic view of Caloundra

The Caloundra urban centre consists of the following suburbs:

• Aroona
• Battery Hill
• Bells Creek
• Caloundra
• Caloundra West
• Currimundi (part)
• Dicky Beach
• Golden Beach
• Kings Beach
• Little Mountain
• Meridan Plains (part)
• Moffat Beach
• Pelican Waters
• Shelly Beach

Transport

Caloundra's suburbs are served by Sunbus Sunshine Coast, who operate a bus interchange in Cooma Terrace in the CBD. Bus routes 600–609 connect Caloundra to Kawana, Maroochydore, Buderim and Landsborough.

Landsborough Station on the Nambour / Gympie North Line has regular services to Brisbane, operated by QR Citytrain. There are also coach services from Caloundra to Brisbane Airport.

Population

Census populations for the Caloundra urban centre have been recorded since 1933. Since the 2001 census, it is divided between the Caloundra North and Caloundra South statistical local areas. The drop between 1981 and 1986 reflects an adjustment of the boundary with the Kawana urban centre.

Year	Population
1933	271
1947	1,718
1954	2,124
1961	2,807
1966	3,657
1971	6,150
1976	10,602
1981	16,758
1986	16,215
1991	22,959
1996	29,096
2001	34,879
2006	41,293

Industry

Tourism

Caloundra has a variety of beaches, providing amenity to the local residents and tourists.

• Golden Beach is protected by Bribie Island to the east, and is used for swimming, windsurfing, boating and fishing. At low tide, Golden Beach and Bribie Island are relatively close.
• Bulcock Beach has board-walks, piers and numerous restaurants, and is situated opposite the northern end of Bribie Island. The Des Dywer walking track is an oceanway that starts at Bulcock beach and follows the coastline on cliffs and boardwalks. The walking track ends at Moffat Beach north-east of Bulcock, and is about a one hour walk. Bulcock Beach is patrolled by volunteer lifesavers from Ithaca - Caloundra City Life Saving Club.

Apartments along King's Beach

Bullcock Beach, Pumistone Passage and the Northern tip of Bribie Island

• Kings Beach, named for Allan King who ran a guest house in the area in 1888, is the main beach of Caloundra. Kings is patrolled all year round by Metropolitian - Caloundra Surf Life Saving Club and has a picnic and children's play area. Kings Beach also has a swimming pool which, whilst built to be separate from the ocean, is fed directly from seawater.
• Shelly Beach is not a swimming beach, with the danger of wild rough waves and rocks. However, the northern and southern ends are safer for more advanced or supervised swimmers. Locals often find these places appropriate as, not only is it remote from the crowds of the adjacent King's beach, but local council laws allow dogs on the sand. On low tide, shells and rock pools can be found along the beach. Shelly is surrounded by residential housing with a maximum of five storeys.
• Moffat Beach is not a patrolled beach, but Dicky Beach, located one kilometre north, has a surf lifesaving club and is patrolled year-round. Moffat Beach is surrounded by residential housing, cafes, a post office, a newsagent, parkland and apartments.

• The surf beaches are Kings Beach and Dicky Beach which commence at the eastern end of Bulcock Beach, namely
  • Happy Valley (full east/south-east exposure)- Officially Happy Valley is part of and shown on maps as Bulcock Beach.
  • Kings Beach (E/SE)
  • Shelly Beach(E/NE)
  • Moffat Beach (E/NE)
  • Dicky Beach (E/NE)

Ettamogah Pub located at Aussie World

On Caloundra's outskirts is Ettamogah Pub, located at the Glenview turnoff on the Bruce Highway.

External links

• Caloundra Regional Art Gallery Artabase page
• Caloundra Tourism
• Wikitravel entry