Mount Coot-tha, Queensland

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Mount Coot-tha
Brisbane, Queensland

Mount Coot-tha and the Television Towers

Postcode:

4066

LGA:

Brisbane City Council, Toowong Ward

State District:

Indooroopilly and
Mount Coot-tha

Federal Division:

Ryan

Suburbs around Mount Coot-tha
Enoggera Reservoir	The Gap	Bardon
Brookfield	Mount Coot-tha	Toowong
Kenmore	Chapel Hill	Indooroopilly

View of the city of Brisbane skyline
from Mount Coot-tha Lookout

Aboriginal art on Mount Coot-tha

Mount Coot-tha is a mountain as well as suburb of Brisbane, Queensland, Australia. The mountain is 287 metres above sea level and forms the eastern extent of the Taylor Range. It is a prominent landmark approximately 6 km to the west of the Brisbane central business district and is visible from much of the city.

Before the Moreton Bay penal settlement, Mount Coot-tha was the home of the Turrbal Aboriginal people ^[1].

Early Brisbane people called it One Tree Hill when bush at the top of the mountain was cleared except for one large eucalypt tree. The Aboriginal people of the area used to come to the mountain to collect ‘ku-ta’ (honey) that was produced by the native stingless bee. Mount Coot-tha (Place of Honey), a derivative of (the indigenous term), replaced the former title ‘One Tree Hill' in 1880 when the area was declared a Public Recreation Reserve.

1 Attractions
2 References
3 Gallery
4 See also
5 External links

[edit] Attractions

Mount Coot-tha is one of Brisbane's most popular tourist destinations. Facilities include the One Tree Hill Lookout and Kiosk. The restaurant, which adjoins the lookout, has large windows through which can be viewed the lights of the city at night. Well-known British astronomer Sir Patrick Moore has given a night-time public lecture about the stars of the southern hemisphere at the lookout.

Sir Samuel Griffith Drive is a tourist drive circling the peak, providing access to the lookout, cafe, gift shop and restaurant. The scenic drive, from the base of Mount Coot-tha to the lookout, is a winding, climbing journey that offers spectacular views of the greater Brisbane area and of the mountains and coastline that disappear into the horizon. Many of the local people also travel to the mountain as it is a great place of illumination, both religiously and spiritually. As Mount Coot-tha is one of the highest natural locations in the Brisbane region, it is a good place for people to escape the chaos of the nearby city and rejuvenate in the more than 1500 hectares of natural bushland and native wildlife that make up the Mount Coot-tha Reserve ^[1]. Mount Coot-tha Reserve also shares a border with Brisbane Forest Park, which adds a further 25,000 hectares ^[1].

On a ridge near the summit on the other side of Mount Coot-tha, are the television transmission towers for the Brisbane television stations SBS, ABC, Ten, Nine (QTQ-9) and Seven (BTQ-7). Part of the Brisbane suburb of The Gap is located on the foothills beneath the television towers.

At the base of Mount Coot-tha are the Brisbane Botanic Gardens, Mount Coot-tha, which has a tropical plants hothouse and also the Sir Thomas Brisbane Planetarium within its grounds.

There are several popular walking tracks around Mount Coot-tha, one of which includes an art display comprising works produced by local Aboriginal artists. The tracks vary in difficulty, with most involving some uphill sections or steps. Tracks around Mount Coot-tha are often used by hikers training to walk the Kokoda Track in Papua New Guinea as the terrain and climate are considered similar. On 20th November, 2005, one of the Mount Coot-tha trails, the Currawong trail, was renamed the Kokoda trail in honour of the Australian soldiers who marched the Kokoda Track during World War II. During World War II, the mountain was used as a military base by the RAAF and the US Navy. It was converted to a vast explosives depot and at one stage held more than 120 000 tonnes of explosive weapons. When darkness fell the lookout bristled with search lights in an amazing display as soldiers kept an eye out for enemy planes.