King Island – grand by name, modest by size, and packed with local history. If you are visiting Brisbane or a local looking to holiday at home, we recommend putting King Island on your list. It is a great place for families, couples, singles, well everyone really.

King Island is located off the peninsula of Wellington Point – roughly 25km from the Brisbane central business district and an easy drive. If getting around by car is not an option, there is a train station at Wellington Point with a short 3.5km journey to the Wellington Point Recreation Reserve.

If you are planning on bringing your furry little friend, just make sure they are on a lead and note you can’t take them right up onto King Island however, you can certainly walk them along the sandbar.

History of King Island

King Island’s Aboriginal name was Yerubin or Erobin. Wellington Point’s first European name was King Point up until the 1842 surveys. After the surveys, the previously un-named (by Europeans) island retained the name King, with the mainland
area re-named for the Duke of Wellington. King Island was named by surveyor Robert Dixon who also named Wellington Point and was declared a Reserve in 1887.^[1]

In 1888 local residents petitioned the council to allocate a sum of money to cut a road through the end of the bluff on Wellington Point to allow access down to the beach and out to King Island. What they didn’t realise at the time was they could access the island any day during low tide.^[1]

By 1897 the council had purchased land at the end of the point to be included in the area for public recreation which is still used by tourists and locals alike today.^[1]

King Island became the home of the Phillips family from December 1904 until April 1906. One of the children in the family suffered from polio and medical advice recommended salt-water bathing and sea air. King Island was the ideal place.^[1]

Today, King Island is managed by a volunteer group and Redlands City Council and is protected under the Nature Conservation Act 1992. It is part of the Moreton Bay Marine Park. ^[2]

Walking to King Island

What makes the visit to King Island unique, is at low tide a perfect sandbar in the form of a path joins Wellington Point to the Island. A 2km sandy pathway will lead you out to the island where you can picnic, paddle, or stroll around. On the journey, you may be lucky to see crabs (we did!) and small fish.

The ideal time to take the walk is 2 hours after high tide. This provides the perfect pathway with blue waters on either side. You just need to ensure you don’t get caught out with the tides as a long swim back to shore would not be fun for anyone. We recommend using this site – tides.willyweather.com.au to check the tides before you leave.

The sandbar is not pristine white sand and in some sections, it does have quite a lot of shells and small rocks. We recommend taking your trusty rubber thongs or just being mindful of where you are stepping.

Parking and facilities

Whilst there is a large car park, if the sun is out and it’s a weekend, you can bet your bottom dollar it will be a challenge to find a spot. There is however street parking back up the hill in the residential area which isn’t far away.

There is plenty of grassed areas and trees providing shade for those who fancy packing a picnic for the day. Park benches are limited so recommend bringing your camping chairs and a picnic rug to choose your own comfortable spot. There are also public bathrooms close by.

If it is a hot summer’s day, definitely pack your swimmers as the water is a gorgeous temperature. For families with little ones, you will be happy to know it is seasonally patrolled every weekend throughout and during school holidays from September to April.^[3]

If you don’t want to self-cater, there are a small number of eateries down on the water to choose from. Oxley’s on the bay is a fish and chip restaurant where you can dine in our take-away, there is also a cafe next door.

References

[1] http://www.redland.gov.au – Wellington Point Timelimes

[2] https://www.weekendnotes.com/wellington-point-king-island/

[3] https://www.redland.qld.gov.au/info/20137/water_recreation/156/patrolled_beaches