Protocol on Quandamooka Country
Yura, welcome from the Quandamooka People, the Traditional Custodians of this land.
Our ancestors have walked this country and we look to you to care for this country.
Quandamooka People, people of the bay, call North Stradbroke Island by it’s traditional name, Minjerribah. Our relationship with the island dates back tens of thousands of years and as such the island is rich in our traditional culture and heritage. Our connection to the land, sea and country is still as strong today.
As you visit this land and sea, we urge you to pay respects to Quandamooka Elders past and present. Acknowledge Naree Budjong Djara, Mother Earth, creator spirit.
On your stay on Minjerribah (now also now known as North Stradbroke Island) you may tread the sands on the Eastern Beach. Being sand, these dunes move with time, but the Nunukul and Gorenpul people had many meals here. The shells and bones left after meals were gathered carefully and placed on top of each other. Over millennia, the piles of carefully placed shells and bones in these tribal eating places become middens.
There are middens in the dunes you may pass and on the headlands. The headland now known as Main Beach Headland was used often for meals and gatherings. It is a significant midden. Middens in the banks of Capembah Creek (Myora Springs) are significant also.
Aboriginal people mill binnung (observe listen) to nature. When the Mirrigimpa (sea eagle) soar high in the sky over the sea we watch and see if they dive for fish. When the melaleuca blooms in full we know there will be an abundance of honey. When the hairy caterpillars travel in long lines across the land we know the mullet will be moving up the coast.
We urge you too to observe and listen to mother nature. If you see wildlife such as gula (koala), buwangan (dolphin) or garumun (kangaroo), please respect that they are naturally wild.
Enjoy Minjerribah and Quandamooka Country. We wish you all the best for your stay.
Please respect our culture and places, enjoy the experience and leave only footprints.