'Moorgumpin' -- Clouds over Moreton Island.

Clouds over Moreton Island.

'Moorgumpin' ( meaning "place of sandhills").

Country of the Ngugi people.

A lot of activity dilly dallies offshore,in the Coral Sea hugging the coast, and considers becoming

terrestrial. Sometimes will. Sometimes won't.

Looking east toward Moreton --and its weather -- is always magical as 3 large sand islands come into view:“Boorabee”(Bribie Is), "Moorgumpin" (Moreton Is) and "Minjerribah" (North Stradbroke).

Moreton Island -- known as “Moorgumpin” in the Quandamooka language--  is the third largest sand island in the world (after Fraser and North Stradbroke). 

The big hill  we can see from Beachmere and the highest point on the island is  Mount Tempest, which at 280 metres high is reputedly the highest, stabilised, coastal sandhill in the world. 

Close to Mount Tempest is another large sandhill—Storm Mountain at 264 metres.

The Indigenous people of Moorgumpin are known as the Ngugi. Moorgumpin lies within the area referred to as Quandamooka. Quandamooka is commonly defined as the Moreton Bay region. Extensive site surveys have established that the Ngugi people lived permanently on the Island, maintaining a marine-based lifestyle for over 2000 years. Fish, shellfish, dugong, turtle and crustaceans formed a major portion of their diet, which was supplemented by the bungwall fern (Blechnum indicum), midyim berries (Austromyrtus dulcis), pandanus and honey.

Bungwall Fern (blechnum indicum)

Midyim Berry (Austromyrtus dulcis)