On our drive from Brisbane to Coolum Beach we passed the almost unworldly Glass House Mountains on our left and we had already decided we wanted to take a closer view. We had been waiting for the weather to improve and today was to be that day.

Mapleton

Although the ground surrounding the Glass House Mountains was decidedly flat, the drive to a good viewpoint was anything but, surprisingly so. And so our climb started through the foothills towards the country town of Mapleton. There was no way we would take the caravan along this climb and the number of slow vehicle passing points was good confirmation. Each passing point also had tight turns so getting up to a speed to overtake would also have been quite a challenge. Fortunately driving at a slower speed also meant we could get a better view of the rolling hills and brief glimpses of the Mary Valley falling further and further below.

We reached Mapleton around lunchtime and picked a local cafe just off the main road for a bite to eat. It just so happened to be a bakery full of pies and pastries of all types, which goes by the name Sweet & Flour so you know just what to expect. Good coffee and very nice cakes.

Montville

Our drive continues on the narrow ridge that rises above the Mary Valley on one side and Mapleton National Park on the other. Occasional glimpses between hedgerows shows just how narrow a ridge we were driving along. You would thing this wasn’t the ideal place to build a house but with a view like this clearly many people have chosen to overcome the engineering challenges to build on such a steep hillside. A viewpoint to the east showed just what could be done with a house built completely into the slope of the ground with just round skylights and a steep driveway giving any indication that people lived here.

Montville township is larger than Mapleton and more interesting too. Built along the road, steep in places, is a good range of shops, cafes and restaurants as well as a few of the ‘hippy’ style outlets that seem to be common in the Sunshine Coast Hinterland. For those interested in photography there is an excellent photo gallery by photographer Ben Messina and sure to inspire any landscape photographer.

One of the best viewpoints in Montville just happened to be from the balcony of The Edge Cafe. And it would have been rude to just walk in to take a photo, so a coffee and cake was enjoyed as we watched the showers pass and the view opened up all the way to the coast.

Maleny

The last town on our mountain drive is Maleny, which turned out to be a bit of a disappointment. We were hoping to get a good view of the Glass House Mountains to the south but the narrow ridge leading to the town offered few places to pull over safely, something very common on our trip so far. Turning around to head back to the coast, by chance, we drove past a sign to Mary Cairncross Park that we had been advised earlier offered a good view but from what we could see as we followed the road were just houses along both sides of the road and a park. But, just behind the houses to our left, were sneak glimpses of a huge valley. We drove on a little further and persistence payed off. Not only a stunning viewpoint but a carpark and viewing platform above a park visitor centre. For once we could park and get a good view of something without trees being in the way. And what a view, stretching all the way south to the high-rise buildings of Brisbane on the horizon, 90KM away!

We had hoped to take a walk closer to the mountains but it was starting to get late in the day and we had quite a long drive ahead of us. Hopefully, one day in the future, we’ll be able to visit the area again and spend some time exploring the region on foot.

And just as we wouldn’t have wanted to drive up into the mountains with the caravan in tow, we certainly wouldn’t have wanted to drive down to the valley floor from Melany either with several sections of straight road dropping at 12% gradient. The steeper the gradient, the more emergency lanes there are and there were plenty on this route.