KEY POINTS:
And coming up on your left is Croc One, Steve Irwin's boat" ... the MV Mudjimba was cruising Mooloolaba's packed waterways, and skipper Bruce Walker was pointing out one of Queensland's more poignant sights: the Crocodile Hunter's boat and the vessel he used on his fatal trip snorkelling off Port Douglas in September.
Distressed crew members from that boat tried to revive him after the stingray barb stabbed his heart. Now, much later, the Mudjimba is packed with sightseers, taking people to explore the coastal area and out to the open sea not far from Australia Zoo.
The tiny, low, canal boat glided up to Croc One, moored alongside the Irwin family's Mooloolaba mansion on the canalway.
Irwin had designed the vessel to operate in north Queensland waters and its hull was shaped so it could run towards a sand bar. The deck was big enough to take a helicopter, and it was equipped to enable a full camera crew to operate in remote terrain.
The Irwins were in the public eye and they needed a retreat, so the canalway, an hour from Australia Zoo at Beerwah, became their refuge.
"Once it became public knowledge the Irwins had a house here, locals renamed this waterway Crikey's Canal," Walker recalled.
Russell Crowe once waved to Mudjimba sightseers from the Irwins' property with its two-level mansion on a small section and long jetty. But Walker said passengers were somewhat concerned when they noticed an ominous object in his hand: a phone.
The Mudjimba regularly cruises the area's waterways: its canals with luxury mansions, artificial islands and Millionaire's Row, the Mooloolah River flowing into the artificial canals, along the waterway and out to the Spit near Pt Cartwright and its lighthouse. It allows a spectacular view of marinas packed with yachts, and prawn trawlers lined up at the busy commercial wharves.
The area resembles the Coromandel's Pauanui, but on a much grander scale and with a more benign climate.
October temperatures ranged from 18 to 27C and the water temperature was always above 20. Because we only stayed a week, our body clocks never quite adjusted to the three-hour time difference between Auckland and Mooloolaba in the spring, so mornings started with a dawdle to Mooloolaba's glamorous beach for a swim at 6am.
The dozens of retirees swimming alongside us looked so healthy, fit and young, we were reminded of the Ron Howard movie Cocoon, in which a group of trespassing seniors swims in a pool of alien cocoons and are energised with youthful vigour.
Out of movieland and back in Mooloolaba, a noon boat cruise of the waterways was a good choice because it gave a new perspective. Boaties and people picnicked along the river and Walker brought the area alive with a raconteur-style commentary.
The canal boat is moored at UnderWater World, an area filled with shops catering for tourists. It was built only a couple of decades ago but resembles an old-style fishing village.
Mudjimba's first sight is the area's single most humble abode: a tiny waterfront pink house said to be one of the waterway's oldest and built in the 1920s. Walker said it was owned by an American car dealer who entertained various Hollywood superstars there, including Howard Hughes, Errol Flynn and Jean Harlow.
In 1920, the thriving tourist town of Mooloolaba on Australia's Sunshine Coast had a population of 14. Today, its marinas are filled with international super yachts taking shelter in the calm waterways. Weighty pelicans soar overhead, so the vista has a postcard quality about it. One island in the canal is only two houses wide.
The cruise passes a striped black and white house which won the Queensland House of the Year. "We call it the Big Thong, or if there's any Kiwis on board you'd call it the Big Jandal," says Walker.
One A$15 ticket in a lottery scored a lucky punter the top prize, so he got one of the area's most glamorous mansions. Another luxury house is nicknamed the "servo" because its yellow and green exterior colours are reminiscent of a BP petrol station.
(Queenslanders love to add an "o" to the end of words: hence the Salvation Army becomes "the Salvos").
"If you can afford a house here, you can afford to renovate or detonate," Walker tells cruisers. "In the past year, 30 houses have been detonated and new places will be built on the sites."
Walker told us Mooloolaba is an Aboriginal word meaning home of the black snake. The area was a deserted state government-owned swamp which was drained, and a settlement was created. It became a hub for exporting sugar cane, fish and ginger and today one of its main industries is tourism, particularly as a popular winter get-away for New Zealanders.
Heading towards the crashing surf of the open sea, the Mudjimba stops near Mooloolaba Yacht Club for crew to feed pilchards to about 15 pelicans.
"A lot of the pelicans won't come to this cruise boat any longer because they prefer fresh fish from the commercial fishing fleets as they return here," Walker said.
The Mudjimba heads past Pt Cartwright and towards the open sea to a heavy chop, turns and within in a few minutes heads towards port with a fleet of fishing vessels alongside.
Other townships shimmered on the horizon in the hot midday sun. Maroochydore and Noosa sparkled hot, low and invitingly to the north. Maybe tomorrow.
Checklist
Mooloolaba cruise
* Where: Mooloolaba canal, river and harbour cruises operate from the Wharf, near UnderWater World off Parkyn Parade, Mooloolaba.
* How much: One-hour tours leave daily at 11am, 1pm and 2.30pm and cost A$15 for adults, A$5 for children and A$38 for families.
* Further Information: Ring 0061 7 5444 7477
www.mooloolababeach.com
