How to cure wanderlust with a few simple upgrades
You don’t have to go too far off the beaten track to experience a NEW TWIST on an OLD FAVOURITE, on the SUNSHINE COAST.
AMONGST Covid-19 lockdowns, travel windows have decidedly shrunk, so with only 24 hours available, my husband and I set out to elevate a simple Sunday night.
We’ve upgraded from our aging SUV to a sexy new Jeep Compass S-Limited. Settling myself into the premium new interior and with Jeep capability on my side, I head for the hinterland.
The winding backroads that link us to lesser-known hamlets like Dulong, Flaxton and Hunchy are a popular route for Sunday drivers, but our commanding grille and sleek LED headlights show up others like Miranda Kerr at her high school reunion. Blue skies flood the panoramic sunroof and the Active Lane Management System keeps me in check as I wend towards West Woombye.
While our camping days aren’t behind us yet, everything is taken care of at STARRY NIGHTS, a pair of canvas-wrapped pavilions. Shane Nelson bought this 17-acre plot with his wife, Nicole, three years ago, and opened in January 2021. Drawing on his high school woodworking skills, Shane built the tent frames, calling on a canvas maker for the ‘walls’, which can be rolled up to let the surroundings in. Much of the furniture was also handcrafted after scouring “thousands of Google images”.
We light the fire, pop some bubbly and enjoy a bath as the light of day ekes away, then zip into Palmwoods for prawn pizza with fresh chilli and salsa verde from PIZZA PIZZA.
Sleep is aided by the sounds of the bush before a chortling chorus of kookaburras rouses us at 5.40am (just like real camping).
A breakfast hamper is provided but I can’t resist a coffee at GROUNDED@WOOMBYE, five minutes’ drive away. Locals converge here most Friday nights for live music, but it’s the breakfast menu and freshly baked treats that keep it humming.
It’s the 50th birthday of a local icon, so we stop to say hi. still THE BIG PINEAPPLE rocks the same look of my ’80s preschool memory, but a planned redevelopment will ensure her heyday didn’t start and end with Princess Diana’s 1983 visit.
And perhaps that’s the secret to a fruitful life: a little upgrade to drive us on. About the Jeep Compass: The reimagined Jeep Compass raises the SUV bar with unparalleled off-road capability, premium finishes and a redesigned interior. The line-up commences with the Jeep Compass Launch Edition, from $37,950, while the Jeep Compass S-Limited is priced from $46,950. We rated: The elevated interior featuring the 10.1-inch Uconnect 5 infotainment system, making navigating less-travelled roads all the more fun.