It is still possible to find sanctuary on the Sunshine Coast,writes Debbie Neilson-Hunter.
<b>Maryborough</b><br><b>Gracious and attractive city on the Mary River.</b><br>Maryborough calls itself'Heritage City'and while it doesn't compare in grandeur and graciousness to Queensland's two premier'Heritage Cities'- Rockhampton and Charters Towers - it can claim to predate them both by some decades. The city does have a large number of beautiful buildings and the original Maryborough site - now nothing more than a series of plaques set in lush tropical surroundings - is a model of how to recreate imaginatively a bygone era.
<b>Childers (including Woodgate)</b><br><b>Well preserved historic town on the main road between Brisbane and Bundaberg.</b><br>Located 325 km north of Brisbane,60 km north of Maryborough,52 km south of Bundaberg and 108 m above sea level,Childers is a town which was created and sustained by the sugar cane which grew around it until there were 8 years of drought. The local council,determined to capitalise on the tourist traffic which drove through town without stopping,then embarked on a campaign which has resulted in the title'Historic Childers - The National Trust Town'and now offers people speeding north to the resorts an ideal place to stop and explore a little of the region's interesting past.
<b>Maryborough (including Timor and Bet Bet)</b><br><b>Small city which started life as a goldmining town.</b><br>Once a goldmining town,Maryborough has,over the years,become a small city of some 8000 people and a major industrial centre. It is located 166 km north-west of Melbourne via the Calder and Pyrenees Highways and 254 metres above sea-level