With a string of beaches, loads of street art and sculptures, walking trails and the amazing Yeppoon Lagoon, this is one holiday destination to add to your Queensland road trip. Not to mention you can take a day trip on a fast catamaran to Great Keppel Island at the southern end of the Great Barrier Reef, just 20 kilometres off the coastline.

Yeppoon which is believed to be a local Darumbal aboriginal word meaning ‘the place where waters meet’, most likely refers to the place where the Ross Creek meets the Yeppoon inlet.  Apart from the Main Beach at Yeppoon, there are a number of other picturesque, long sand fringed beaches along this part of the Capricorn Coast.

Many of the beaches are safe for swimming but for extra confidence, some are patrolled by surf life savers. For an easy scenic drive from Yepoon’s Main Beach you can also take in the beautiful aquamarine coloured waters of Lammermoor Beach, Kemp, Mulambin, Kinka, Emu Park Main Beach and Keppel Sands all to the south. With kilometres of sandy beaches there is plenty of space for the family to enjoy a picnic and a swim or kayak, or try a spot of fishing.

There’s no shortage of fishing opportunities around Yeppoon either with shore based fishers able to access creek, estuary, ocean rock and tidal lake fishing. All of these are hugely popular with locals and visitors and with Barramundi, Bream, Flathead and Mackerel amongst the species to target, you’d be mad not to give it a go.

Not sure about swimming at the beaches? Well Yeppoon has another option with the Yeppoon Lagoon, a comfortable and safe place to swim, in an infinity edged pool overlooking the main beach.

Wherever you travel around the Yeppoon area, you can’t miss all the street art brightening up the surroundings and adding to the holiday town feel. Many of the artworks reflect the local wildlife and scenes in the area and plenty of public toilet blocks are adorned with these top class paintings.

The only drawback with that, is that you end up spending time hovering around public toilets to not only take photos, but to also use the interactive app which animates or alters the artwork in some ways.

As well as beach walks, a spectacular trek to take is the walk to two lookouts at Double Head, in the Capricorn Coast National Park. It’s a little steep, but with reasonable fitness it’s not too hard to climb the 700 metre return trail. There’s a well maintained path and steps which takes you to Fan Rock lookout where you can see the dramatic rock formation, a remnant of ancient volcanic activity.

A little further onwards and upwards is the Rosslyn Bay lookout which gives spectacular panoramic views to the north and over the Keppel Bay marina. On the way back down there are even more spectacular glimpses of Kemp Beach below.

Another lookout well worth the stop is Wreck Point. From the top where you can park off the road, you have wide ranging views of the Keppel Islands and Lammermoor Beach extending into the distance below. It was near this site that the schooner Selina, a transport ship with a cargo of cedar logs, was found washed ashore in 1848.

A must see while you’re touring around the Capricorn Coast is the small seaside town of Emu Park. Just a tad over 20 kilometres south of Yeppoon, Emu Park is full of reasons to visit and worth taking a day to discover all its secrets.

Starting at the Emu Park Surf Lifesaving Club, take a while to check out the toilet block (yes another one) to find the comical paintings by Simon McLean, called ‘Beach Party’. This artwork won the ‘Best Amusing Street Art’ category in the 2019 Australian Street Art Awards. 

From there you can take a walk through Kerr Park and find emu sculptures before entering the ANZAC Court area.

The artwork in this symbolic garden of remembrance depicts a line of soldiers made of galvanized steel, set against a rusting corten steel screen. It was created by Bill Gannon and is an interpretation of an original photograph taken by Frank Hurley, an Australian official WWI photographer. The photo this sculpture was based on was taken by Hurley in 1917, and shows 16 Aussie infantry troop members as they walked to the front line in Belgium, on the Western Front.

From Anzac Court follow the walking path that leads through The Gatehouse, which is full of WWI memories, photo boards and artwork, and all staggering with their detail and information provided. This wonderful display is all due to the vision of one man, Ross Coulter, a long standing and proud community member, and Vietnam veteran who had a desire to protect the beautiful foreshore area whilst honouring the ANZACS in a memorial walkway.

Sadly he passed away before he could see his vision come to fruition, but the legacy of his work would have been another well deserved proud achievement.

Once through the gatehouse you continue walking along the Memorial Walkway with more sculptures to see along the way as the path follows the coastline, eventually leading up to the Singing Ship on the hill.

The Singing Ship was built in 1970 and commemorates the explorations of Captain James Cook in 1770. This unique monument represents the billowing sail of his ship Endeavour, and the mast and rigging of the ship conceal organ pipes which create musical sounds as the wind blows.

After a full day (and more) of exploring, head back towards Yeppoon and treat yourself to a fabulous evening of food and views, with dinner at The Waterline Restaurant at the Keppel Bay Marina.

The serene views are only outdone by the absolutely delicious food which you can enjoy at your table on the deck overlooking the peaceful waterway. A truly lovely experience with friendly staff and wonderful food to finish you Capricorn Coast holiday on a high note.

Enjoy

Glenys