|
The Guest House is located in the heart of Crystal Waters
Permaculture Village. This village environment
has been designed on sustainable, holistic living principles. It received
the UN's 1996 World Habitat Award for its "pioneering work in
demonstrating new ways of low impact, sustainable living" If you wish
to learn more about the village then click here and visit
the web site or better still stay at the Guest House.
Please remember that most of this property is a private
residence. At the entrance to the property is a visitors center where a
community shop is located and where the Saturday Markets are held.
Visitors, need to be invited into the residential area so be sure to ring
the Guest House in advance to receive a welcoming invitation.
How to find Us
 
If you are coming by car we are a scenic 90 minute drive from
Brisbane, the capital city of Queensland Australia.
Firstly, head North out of Brisbane toward
the Sunshine Coast for 45 minutes. Take a left
exit up the Glass House
Mountain Hwy following the road through
Landsborough up the range to Maleny. Head straight through Maleny township
down the range and along the Maleny
Kenilworth Rd. At the bottom of the range 2klm
before Conondale there is a bus shelter on the left at the entrance to Ahern's Road (there is also a sign to Crystal Waters
here). Turn into Ahern's Road and continue, take a right
fork at the V junction just after Harper Creek. (You will see an old
sawmill on your right as you head up the small hill.) After a further 4.6
Km, turn right into Kilcoy Lane. Take the
first left (opposite a recycling and refuse station) and you will come to
the entrance to Crystal Waters Residential Area.
Bear left at the roundabout and continue along the sealed road for 1.4 Km
Take the second sealed road to your left with a big sign: Guest House. Welcome! Pull up in the car park head
toward the main House a friendly face will be waiting to greet you. 
If driving from the north, Crystal
Waters is around 60km from the Bruce
Highway / Eumundi - Kenilworth
intersection. As you approach the Sunshine
Coast, turn right at this
intersection towards Kenilworth. Drive
through Kenilworth and on towards Maleny.
About 2 km past the small village
of Conondale, turn
right into Aherns Rd.
then on to Crystal Waters as per the instructions above.
If coming from overseas to an
airport other than Brisbane International, it is usually best to get a
domestic air ticket as part of your fare - make your final destination
Brisbane (BNE). If arriving through Sydney
the flight to Brisbane
takes a bit over an hour.
From Brisbane
Airport, catch a shuttle bus to Brisbane Roma Street Transit Centre
or the train to Roma Street
station directly from the airport. Buses and trains go from the Roma Street
centre. It is about a half an hour bus ride from the airport to the Transit
Centre.
Public transport:
Translink Information
will provide you with all your public transport needs.
From Roma Street Station in central
Brisbane, catch the Gympie train as far as Landsborough. This
journey takes anywhere from 1.25 to 2 hours. There are also coaches from Roma Street to
Landsborough. Landsborough is then about 35km, or 40 minutes drive from
Crystal Waters.
From Landsborough catch the
privately operated mini bus to Maleny.
(Note: this bus does not meet all trains, and only operates weekdays not
weekends or Public Holidays, so you need to check. (Tel: +61 7 5496 9249).
The Range Taxi Service can be contacted on (mobile phone)
0418 711 989. It’s a 24 hour service, 7 days a week and costs about
$40 from Landsborough to Maleny, and significantly more all the way to
Crystal Waters.
You will need to arrange transport of some
kind to Crystal Waters from Maleny (27km). Visitors sometimes find a
lift by enquiring from the following ‘co-operative’ outlets on Maple Street -
Maleny Credit Union, The Upfront Club or Maple Street Co-op - to see if any
CW residents who are in town would be willing to drop them off. The High School Bus leaves Maleny High School
in Bunya Street
each school day at 3 pm to arrive at Crystal Waters by 3.45 pm. They will
take passengers for a fee of about $5, subject to seating availability.
If visiting as a group (up to 14), there is a mini bus operator at Crystal Waters who, for a fee is
able to collect you. Contact the Guest House for details.
The Glass House Mountains are a
group of 13 volcanic peaks that dominate the landscape of the Sunshine Coast. Beerwah, Tibrogargan, Ngungun
and Coonowrin are fully protected within separate National Parks - All can
be seen from the top of our Valley. They are ideal for bush walking through
open eucalypt forest. For the more adventurous, a climber's paradise.
Incredible views can be experienced from the summits. They are the
centrepiece of a visually fascinating and experiential region - with
tropical fruit plantations, Pine forests, delightful tourist drives, scenic
walks and an abundance of native flora and fauna.
The townships throughout the hinterland each have a charm of
their own, along with a wonderful range of restaurants and arts and crafts
shops.
The Gubbi Gubbi
The traditional owners of the Blackall Range are the Gubbi Gubbi people,
who, before European settlement, would gather every two or three years on
the banks of the Obi Obi at Baroon Pocket to feast on the fruit of the
Bunya Pine (Bonyi Bonyi). Today, the tall Bunya Pine still grows on the
range.
Legend of the Glasshouse Mountain
It seems that Tibrogargan, the father, and Beerwah, the mother, had many
children - Coonowrin (the eldest seen in the left of this picture),
Beerburrum, the Tunbubudla twins, Coochin, Ngungun, Tibberoowuccum,
Miketeebumulgrai and Elimbah. According to the story there was also Round
who was fat and small, and Wild Horse (presumably Saddleback) who was
always straying away to paddle in the sea.
One day, when Tibrogargan was gazing out to sea he noticed a
great rising of the water. Hurrying off to gather his younger children in
order to flee to the safety of the mountains to the westward, he called out
to Coonowrin to aid his mother, who was again with child. Looking back to
see how Coonowrin was assisting Beerwah, Tibrorgargan was greatly angered
to see him running off alone. He pursued Coonowrin and , raising his Nula
Nula (club), struck the latter such a mighty blow that it dislocated Coonowrin's
neck, and he has never been able to straighten it since.
When the floods had subsided and the family had returned to
the plains, the other children teased Coonowrin about his crooked neck.
Feeling ashamed, Coonowrin went to Tibrogargan and asked for forgiveness,
but filled with shame at his son's cowardice, Tibrogargan could do nothing
but weep copious tears, which, trickling along the ground, formed a stream
which flowed into the sea.
Then Coonowrin went to his brothers and sisters, but they
also wept at the shame of their brother's cowardice. The lamentations of
Coonowrin's parents and his brothers and sisters at his disgrace explain
the presence today of the numerous small streams of the area.
Tibrogargan then called Coonowrin, asking him why he had
deserted Beerwah; at which Coonowrin replied that as Beerwah was the
biggest of them all she should be able to take care of herself. He did not
know that Beerwah was again pregnant, which was the reason for her great
size. Then Tibrogargan turned his back on Coonowrin and vowed that he would
never look at him again. Even today, Tibrogargan gazes far out to sea and
never looks around at Coonowrin, who hangs his headand cries, his tears
running off to the sea. His mother Beerwah, is still heavy with child as it
takes a long, long time to give birth to a mountain.
|
