'Mitta Glen' - Deana's breathtakingly beautiful B&B in the Blackall Ranges

Mitta Glen, Flaxton, Blackall Ranges, QLD

Tuesday 17th May- Friday 20th May

After a nail biting drive up an extremely steep road (where the transmission overheated, the car stopped changing gears and we ended up stationary on the precipice- with at least 5 vehicles behind us), we arrived at Deana’s (Daniel’s cousin) impressive old Queenslander – Mitta Glen. Mitta Glen is a 1890s home, transported to the edge of a ridge that is a part of the Blackall Ranges, in the Sunshine Coast Hinterlands. Deana has converted Mitta Glen to house an additional 3 luxury bedrooms that she operates as B&B accommodation, with full country hospitality. The views, the gardens and the home are spectacular, and we all wandered around in awe. Emilia was particularly taken with the place and she especially loved the built in bookcase with moving ladder. 

Deana is a marvellous host and she spoilt us with her cooking and hospitality. We ate and drank like royalty (and left a few kilos heavier!). It was so lovely to catch up with her (we haven’t seen her since 2019) and see her place. The kids also enjoyed lots of cuddles with her cat, Narla, a swim in the pool and wandering around the expansive gardens.

Whilst staying there we spent 2 days exploring the local area, enjoying the many sights including:

- Kondililla National Park – where we hiked through the rainforest to the impressive Kondililla Falls (which was gushing down due to the recent rains).

-         -  Doing the scenic drive along the ridge – it dropped off dramatically on each side of the road and the views were breathtaking.

-          - Maleny- where we walked along the creek hoping to spot an elusive platypus (we didn’t see a platypus but we did see lots of lovely sculptures).

-          - Gardener’s Falls – we dodged the mud to get down to these small, but picturesque, falls although it began raining quite a bit whilst we were there. It would be the perfect place to spend a warm summer’s afternoon.

-         -  Mary Cairncross National Park- where we enjoyed the views over the Glasshouse Mountains and did a small canopy walk to see different parts of the rainforest up close.

-         -  Montville – a village right up on the ridge, full of quaint shops- our favourites were the German cuckoo clock shop, the Montville chocolatier, the woodcarving shop and a photo gallery full of incredible nature shots.

-         -  Lake Baroon- a huge dam that is the water supply for the area. You could walk down to see the water plummeting down the spillway, which was quite impressive.

Whilst staying at Deana’s we also caught up with one of Daniel’s workmates, Timmy, and his wife Shayley in Bli Bli for a lovely dinner watching the sunset over the cane fields (the view from their backyard).

Although the weather was less than perfect (high humidity, lots of rain and low lying cloud) we still had a fabulous time and we can see why Deana fell in love with this place and decided to move here.

Thanks Deana for having us at Mitta Glen – we hope to be back sometime.

https://mittaglenguesthouse.com.au/

Mitta Glen - the gorgeous old Queenslander Deana now calls home.

What a great spot for the van!

The indulgent breakfast Deana made for us on our first morning.

Walking in Kondalilla National Park - the view to the Obi Obi Ranges

Enjoying the view (and taking a breather as it was a super humid day)

The rainforest was home to some very impressive trees.

The rockpool at the top of Kondalilla Falls

Daniel enjoying the power of Kondalilla Falls (and possibly praying to the weather gods!).

Gardener's Falls- just before it began raining again.

One of the many water dragons we saw.

The view of the Glasshouse Mountains was a bit obscured by the mist, but still beautiful.

Saying goodbye to Deana and Narla.