Gladstone

Gladstone - The Harbour City! Gladstone is situated approximately 550km north of Brisbane (Queensland's Capital City) and 100km south-east of Rockhampton.

The Gladstone region enjoys a sub-tropical climate with islands, beaches and waterways providing the menu for a great holiday. The area is on the doorstep of the southern Great Barrier Reef and provides easy access to coral quays and reef ringed islands perfect for snorkelling. At the heart of the region, the city of Gladstone overlooks a deep water harbour, while just to the south can be found the shires of Miriam Vale and Calliope which have National Parks and quiet secluded beaches. 1770 is the first place in Queensland that Captain James Cook stepped ashore. Boyne Island is renowned for its beautiful foreshore parks, while its sister city of Tannum Sands offers long sandy beaches for safe coastal recreation.

The reef islands within the Gladstone Region are true coral cays, and day trips are on offer to Lady Musgrave Island and Fitzroy Lagoon where visitors can enjoy diving, snorkelling, fishing, reef walking or exploring the flora and fauna.

The region has several impressive National Parks which add camping and 4 wheel driving to the adventures you can experience in the area. The spectacular cliffs of the Kroombit Tops are cloaked in diverse flora and fauna. Mount Castletower National Park lies at the base of Lake Awoonga with its impressive, yet rugged terrain. Deepwater and Eurimbula National Parks provide the contrast of open eucalypt and paperback forests with lush rainforests and quiet beaches.

Gladstone's Tondoon Botanic Gardens are one of Australia's few totally native botanic gardens. The display areas specialise in the plants of the surrounding and Tropical North Queensland regions. The Gladstone Entertainment Centre, forms the focal point of the city's cultural activities. The Gladstone Regional Art Gallery and Museum is a colonial Georgian structure which houses three exhibition areas.

History

Prior to European settlement, the Gladstone region was home of the Baiali (or Byellee) and Goreng goreng Aboriginal tribes. Matthew Flinders was the first recorded European to sight the harbour in 1802 (naming it Port Curtis), and a colony eventually settled the area in the late 1940's.

Development of the Gladstone region was slow until 1893, when a meatworks was established at Parsons Point. In 1963, Queensland Alumina Limited established its alumina refinery on the site of the old meatworks. Gladstone's port facilities were expanded and the city launched into an era of industrial development and economic prosperity. The harbour now provides port facilities for resource materials mined throughout the surrounding region.