Mudjimba to North Shore

This is an easy 8km circuit trail from Mudjimba along the beach at North Shore to Pincushion Island and loops around the Maroochy river at low tide and back along coastal pathway.

Activities: Walking, running, dog walking, swim.

Parking: Carpark at end of North Shore road (Southern end) or along esplanade at Mudjimba (Northern end). Directions below are starting from Northern end at Mudjimba town centre.

To complete a loop, it is preferable to do this walk at low tide, otherwise you can’t get around the riverfront but you can always skip the mangrove walk along river and just go along the pathway and beach if the tide is too high.

Pincushion Island

At low tide you can climb over this rocky outcrop known as Pincushion island. I love the color of the rocks and even though it’s not technically an island, at high tide it is surrounded by water.

Mudjimba Beach

This stretch of beach is one of my favorites because it has views of Mudjimba island which is not far off shore, Mount Coolum to the north and Pincusion island to the south.

Maroochy River

The Maroochy river joins the beach at Pincushion island and at low tide you can loop around the river through the mangroves to join the pathway along North Shore road. Maroochydore and Cotton tree are just a short distance across the river.

The Pathway

I like to start with the pathway and road section to get this out of the way and finish with the beach on the way back. You can then have a swim and take your shoes off when walking on the sand.

Starting from Mudjimba, you can head south along the pathway then turn left when you get to North Shore road and go to the very end of the road. There is no pathway on this section but it’s a quiet road.

Once you reach the North shore carpark, there is a track on the right hand side of the carpark that takes you through to the river. You can then continue south (around to the left) and along the sandy track next to the river, following the footsteps through the mangroves. This is where low tide is needed to get around the river mouth towards Pincushion island. Then once you come out on the open section where the river meets the sea, head north along the beach and back to your starting point at Mudjimba.

“Live a life true to yourself instead of one others expect.”

– Greg McKeown