River ferry

My sister, Clare came up with the idea of us having a day out on the Brisbane River taking the ferry up the river as far as they go from Hamilton, the northern most terminal.  There can't be a better way to see Brisbane!

 

 A quiet reach of at river beside the Hamilton ferry terminal

Not much of what I saw looked familiar to me, I am pretty much a stranger in the city where I grew up, so the sight of the old wool stores at New Farm were a familiar, welcome sight.  The  historical wool stores and industrial structures which were erected in the beginning of the 20th century have gradually been transformed into a medium-high density residential community since the early 1990s.

I was surprised at the number of bridges spanning the river, I'd say more than double the number that were there in my youth.  I shouldn't have been surprised, progress doesn't stand still, if you’re not moving forward, you’re moving backward and Brisbane is certainly not doing that judging by the number of cranes to be seen on the skyline.

 

I think this is Kurilpa Bridge for pedestrian and bicycles

We went up the river to the end of the line (I guess that's not the right word, might it be route?) to the University of Queensland terminal at St Lucia where we hopped off for a few minutes before taking another ferry back towards the city a few minutes later.  Brisbane City Council currently operates a fleet of 23 CityCats which go up and down the river and five KittyCats which go across the river. There's a network of 23 terminals.

On our return journey we got off the ferry again to have lunch at Southbank, opposite the city CBD.  It was a warm day and the man-made swimming beach, overlooking the river, was being enjoyed by quite a few people of all ages.