Blue Lake
A freshwater lake in open forest on North Stradbroke Island
Access
North Stradbroke Island can be reached by vehicular ferry service which leaves Redland Bay and Cleveland each day. The park itself is located 10 kilometres east of Dunwich. If you follow the road signs for 8 kilometres towards Blue Lake you will eventually come to a dirt track. Leave your car here and continue on foot to reach the lake.
Activities
Blue Lake is not the dirty brown of many lakes found in coastal areas, in fact it is a beautiful crystal clear lake that is ideal for swimming and canoeing. Many coastal lakes become brown after the leaves of tea trees (Melaleuca spp.) drop into the water and release a chemical, tannin, which discolours the water. If you continue following the dirt access track to Blue Lake you will eventually come to the 18 mile swamp which perhaps should be renamed the 29 kilometre swamp. This swamp may be traversed by a causeway that will take you over the dunes and onto the ocean beach.
Features
There seems to be a great aversion by most people to walking in wallum country. Perhaps it’s the thought of having to tread through mud and water or having to push through the sometimes-prickly vegetation. Whatever the reason, it’s a pity that people don’t venture into the wallum as the wildlife there is unique. One animal that may be seen near wallum is the red Stradbroke wallaby (Macropus welsbyi) which is a small wallaby that is found here. At first it was thought to be just a variation of a mainland species, and recent studies have confirmed this.
Another animal found in the park is the red-bellied black snake (Pseudechis porphriacus). This reptile usually lives near streams, swamps and lagoons. During their breeding season you may even see a pair of red-bellied black snakes mating. This is a very unusual and interesting sight. As this particular snake is venomous you should keep your distance, although they won’t usually strike unless provoked. They feed primarily on frogs and small mammals.
North Stradbroke Island is a large sand island and so the vegetation of the island plays an important part in stabilising the dunes. The vegetation type is a mixture of wallum and open forest featuring such plants as banksias and tea trees. A common banksia is the coast banksia (Banksia integrifolia) which grows to a height of over 16 metres. Banksias have adapted extremely well to the wet conditions of the wallum. They are often the dominant plant in these coastal wallums, ranging in size from shrubs to trees. The coastal banksia flowers throughout the year with creamy yellow blooms. Unlike other banksias, the coastal banksia does not have to have its seed-bearing branches die before it can release its seeds. These seeds arc released shortly after the fruit matures.