A ghost from Bribie Island’s past has emerged after the most severe erosion in decades.
Mystery surrounds what appears to be the remnants of a vessel laid bare by relentless pounding seas in recent months.
They were discovered by a Golden Beach couple on the ocean side of the island about 100m south of the Lions Park, which sits opposite Military Jetty at Diamond Head.
Tracey Poole and her partner Ken Baynton had taken their dinghy for a spin and decided to go for a walk on Bribie when they came across the rusted wreckage.
“The dunes were badly eroded, the worst we had seen, and there were these metal fragments in a curved shape, like the bow of a boat,” Tracey said.
“There was a metal plate with a hole in it and Ken thought this might have been where an anchor chain went through,” she said.
“It’s fascinating because it means at some stage, Bribie was very thin, like it is today, but that could have been a very long time ago. Who knows how long the wreck has been there buried in the sand?
“We have looked in a book that documented Queensland wrecks, but could not find anything in that location. There have been many boats that were lost and are still unaccounted for, however.”
Coast Guard Caloundra Commander Roger Pearce agreed the remnants resembled the hull of a vessel.
Mr Pearce said that historical photos of the island showed it previously was wider and more robust than it was now.
He said as this find would predate that period, it could be a century old, or older.
“This is very interesting and quite the mystery. It would be great if someone could help shed some light on it.”
Can you help solve the mystery of the Bribie wreck? Email news@sunshinecoastnews.com.au
Bribie has undergone a dramatic transformation this year.
As covered by Sunshine Coast News, a new entrance to the Pumicestone Passage developed suddenly after a breakthrough in January.
In a matter of months, this opening, which has since been granted official coastal crossing status, has widened from 50m to more than 500m.
An amazing recent photo SCN compared with one from the 1980s, showed just how much of the island has been lost to erosion.
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