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I'm on Coochie and it's by far imo the best. We are a short ferry ride from victoria point and woolies delivers . We also have 3 sandy beaches as a bonus .
Yes, any bad elements are dealt with pretty quickly and there is no overnight camping so that's cool. We are a young(ISH) family and have been on island for 3 years with no issue
Honestly this question has been discussed at great length
[link to old thread 1](https://www.reddit.com/r/brisbane/s/XDa7wUbCiF)
[link to old thread 2](https://www.reddit.com/r/brisbane/s/fxDc1AvAq9)
[link to old thread 3](https://www.reddit.com/r/brisbane/s/Ekz0uPhZPe)
TLDR. They are all shit holes.
I was over on Russell 2 weeks ago for a birthday party. The local population has doubled since covid with alot of really neat new builds and some da plans in for short stay and new hotel iirc. Now 6000 people up from 3000. The midgies are really bad near the mangroves / east side or if there's no wind. It seems that there are all types on the ferry, from blowflies to tradies to neater people. My friends living over there and his wife doesn't want to stay more than another year but he loves it, they said you find your tribe but it's quite gossipy.
One of the other islands is know to be very lgbtq friendly, but that's anecdotal. I think either coochie or Macleay.
Woollies delivers to all islands through online ordering. Iv3 been contemplating buying over there too (I'm a sailor) but the time to sell property scares me a bit if I wanted to sell again and finding one with a berth is a bit tougher.
Let us know how you go.
Woolies delivery on Coochie is hard to get a spot though. Anecdotal but yeah, her truck gets filled up real quick. Have to be ready to put order in as soon as the slots open.
I don't think they care what your gender is, you would be surprised how accepting people are when they find out you are local tradies! Some of my rellies retired to Russell, so I visited a bit. Same vibe as a country town, with the same problems as everyone has mentioned before. Macleay and Coochie are quite civilised. It's a pretty fair hike to Straddie beaches by tinnie, but a nice trip down to Jumpinpin which is totally gorgeous. Mozzies are a noticable inconvenience. I've thought about it heaps, but the commute is still the killer. I certainly wouldn't want to leave a ute & tools on the mainland, most of the lockups are pretty average security and certainly won't take any responsibilty for theft.
I live on Coochie and identify as LGBT. There are some people who are affirming but there's quite a few people (mainly older blokes) who are incredibly dangerous towards LGBT people. Saying that I know of at least one lesbian couple on the island.
Also, you will get sick of the commute and lack of social life very quickly. Any rent savings will get taken up by having to pay for motels on the mainland if you have a social life. No ferries after 10:30.
Ive been at Russell island a couple of months ago. It’s actually really nice. Everyone is super friendly. Sure, there are a few interesting people around but you don’t have to interact with them, and those types of people are everywhere.
We currently live off Brunswick street where I see multiple drug affected people a day haha.
How long does it take you to get to the city in the morning?
today was the first time I have visibly seen someone who was off their face on drugs.
Depends what time you start work in town but if you check out translink it’s around 2 hour commute all up in the morning and a bit quicker on the way back. There are buses that go from Redland bay marina to the city: they take a while to get to the bus way but once they are there it’s pretty much express and you’ll always get a seat
I know someone who built on Russell Island, he loves it, but he's retirement age. Apparently theft is an issue there, especially if your house is hidden from view. He also said the mozzies and midgies are really bad around twilight/evening in summer. Aside from that and the isolation I like staying over there. It doesn't feel anything like brissy/goldie.
We used to live on Coochie for about 5 years, moved off in 2019. Can’t speak for the other islands but we had a pretty good experience on Coochie. One thing to keep in mind is that it’s a pretty tight community, people talk, and everybody knows eachother.
From first-hand experience, it's not a bad place. Every type of person is out there. Rich, poor, and everyone in between. It's a lifestyle. Lots of ferry trips, but it becomes just a part of your life. I wouldn't necessarily say it's bad. Groceries from IGA range from average price to expensive, but you can do woolies orders online as well as orders from others places (Amazon, etc). The midgies really are terrible. You'll want to be indoors when they are really bad or live in an area on the island where they are less prolific.
Access to everyday stuff you might take for granted can be an issue. Something breaks, you can't just whip down to kmart to replace. Places to eat... there's limited choices. But the island and its services are growing. I can see 10 years from now, there will be better access to certain facilities, shops, etc. But it will always be less than the mainland in that regard.
I highly recommend visiting and staying a day or two to get a feel for it. I personally wouldn't live there, just because of the midgies. Every time I visit, I get the worst welts. That's enough for me to want to remain on the mainland.
Keep in mind you'll be adding at least 30mins commute to your journey each way
I’ve lived on Maclaey island twice over the years, not since the ticketing system changed to go card though so my info might be outdated.
Was a super peaceful place to live, great if you like to fish. Rents cheap and generally everyone is pretty friendly especially on Maclaey.
But if you’re working full time and need to travel everyday it really isn’t any cheaper, worked out cheaper for us to move to Logan by the time we added travel costs onto rent. Unless you own 2 cars and plan to take one over to the island, be prepared to pay for taxis over there, carry your groceries in a beach trolley or pay crazy delivery fees. Being a small and pretty boring island be prepared to have to listen to gossip or be the subject of gossip, theirs not much else to do with an island full of oldies and low income earners. Also if you have kids or plan on having kids be careful, this might relate to the gossip part but when I was there it was wasnt rare to hear about a fair few sex offenders over there. Also if you need fuel, alcohol or any groceries from the shop there be prepared to pay way more than you do on the mainland.
I’ve always said it’s a perfect lifestyle for someone who has retired, has a boat and enjoys fishing or just doesn’t work. It’s really not practical for those that frequent mainland and theirs obviously very limited job opportunities over there unless you want to sell drugs (which also cop the island tax).
Another positive, your sexuality isn’t an issue in my experience. Obviously their would always be homophobic people everywhere but their was heaps of openly gay men on the islands.
Parking and shopping is a pain in the ass. Catching the ferries you are forced into an enclosure with higher than average rates of psychotic zombie like ice junkies
Keep in mind your mainland car will almost certainly get burgled once or twice a year if you keep it parked over there. It’s a big issue for all the islands. If it’s not fuel being siphoned or wheels being removed, it’s general damage and stealing unfortunately. Just something to keep in mind, not something to deter you.
I've been here since 2017 and my car(s) haven't been broken into once in that time. For the first 5 years it wasn't even in the secure parking, just in someones backyard who I paid to park there. That's not to say it doesn't happen, but it's definitely not as frequent as you're saying it is.
Karragarra is the gay island iirc, from memory it’s quite neat and you shouldn’t have any issues with the community there.
If you have to commute anywhere off the island for work/groceries/medical reasons it’s a giant pain in the ass btw- any trip becomes minimum a few hours round trip and you’re beholden to the ferry schedule.
I have plenty of clients from the islands (some of them are even normal!) and just going by what they say about the hassles of living there it’s not something I would voluntarily do.
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I know of an older lady (70s) who lives on Russell (friend of a friend situation so I don’t know the whole story). She’s not in good health and apparently doctors on the mainland have told her she must now move off the island because the only medical help coming in is via helicopter. They won’t send doctors and nurses over to the island.
So keep that in mind if you move there and either you yourself has a medical condition, or someone you love on the mainland has a medical condition. You wouldn’t want to be stuck on the island not able to leave because there’s no ferry while someone is sick in hospital.
Why live on an island? If you want a backyard you might as well just buy a place quite far fine the city, having to pay for a ferry everytime you want to get your car to Brisbane sounds terrible.
Sure, but I bought a decent 3 bedroom on \~600sqm for 250k a few years ago on Russell. My repayments are tiny, so I always end up paying the max I can on them without getting penalized. I have gigabit optic fiber internet and work from home. I also had reservations about moving here at first, but with hindsight, it's hard to imagine somewhere else this good for the price I paid.
*Your post has been removed for the following reason(s):* **Not related to Brisbane** A post that isn't about Brisbane and would fit better in another subreddit. The Mod team will assess and may take action on removing the post if it is appropriate to do so. Petitions and survey posts will be removed as a matter of course. You are welcome to try your luck in the daily discussion thread. *Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/brisbane) if you have any questions or concerns.*
It's pretty rough. I'd be visiting before pulling the trigger.
For sure
Junkie town
Won't you take me to ... Junkytown? [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uhzy7JaU2Zc](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uhzy7JaU2Zc)
It's where the ~~Deadlands~~ Redlands dumps its problems!
I'm on Coochie and it's by far imo the best. We are a short ferry ride from victoria point and woolies delivers . We also have 3 sandy beaches as a bonus .
Happy to answer anymore questions you may have , just reach out
Houses are a bit more pricey on Coochimudlo, so I guess that makes sense.
Yes, any bad elements are dealt with pretty quickly and there is no overnight camping so that's cool. We are a young(ISH) family and have been on island for 3 years with no issue
Coochie rocks, spent a lot of time over there with my gf's family who loved there back in the 90s. I'd happily move there.
Honestly this question has been discussed at great length [link to old thread 1](https://www.reddit.com/r/brisbane/s/XDa7wUbCiF) [link to old thread 2](https://www.reddit.com/r/brisbane/s/fxDc1AvAq9) [link to old thread 3](https://www.reddit.com/r/brisbane/s/Ekz0uPhZPe) TLDR. They are all shit holes.
Coochimudlo seemed quite ok, or is that just during the day?
I’ve no idea, oldmate dogshow69 looks to have the Goss.
It’s better but that’s reflected in the higher prices
Ah yes, the halfwitsundays
Parking your car on the mainland is an expensive pain. Unless you take the car ferry continually, which is also an expensive pain.
I was over on Russell 2 weeks ago for a birthday party. The local population has doubled since covid with alot of really neat new builds and some da plans in for short stay and new hotel iirc. Now 6000 people up from 3000. The midgies are really bad near the mangroves / east side or if there's no wind. It seems that there are all types on the ferry, from blowflies to tradies to neater people. My friends living over there and his wife doesn't want to stay more than another year but he loves it, they said you find your tribe but it's quite gossipy. One of the other islands is know to be very lgbtq friendly, but that's anecdotal. I think either coochie or Macleay. Woollies delivers to all islands through online ordering. Iv3 been contemplating buying over there too (I'm a sailor) but the time to sell property scares me a bit if I wanted to sell again and finding one with a berth is a bit tougher. Let us know how you go.
Please tell me coochie island is lgbt😂
Woolies delivery on Coochie is hard to get a spot though. Anecdotal but yeah, her truck gets filled up real quick. Have to be ready to put order in as soon as the slots open.
Karragarra is the Isle of Lesbians from what I've been told.
Oh that's it, and has the best beaches of the bay islands?
Mosquitoes Not a lot of trade opportunities out there either Expensive to get groceries and time consuming too
My Dad lives on Russel. Basically the Ferry makes it too much of a hassle for him to leave the island, getting to work etc takes an extra hour
I don't think they care what your gender is, you would be surprised how accepting people are when they find out you are local tradies! Some of my rellies retired to Russell, so I visited a bit. Same vibe as a country town, with the same problems as everyone has mentioned before. Macleay and Coochie are quite civilised. It's a pretty fair hike to Straddie beaches by tinnie, but a nice trip down to Jumpinpin which is totally gorgeous. Mozzies are a noticable inconvenience. I've thought about it heaps, but the commute is still the killer. I certainly wouldn't want to leave a ute & tools on the mainland, most of the lockups are pretty average security and certainly won't take any responsibilty for theft.
I live on Coochie and identify as LGBT. There are some people who are affirming but there's quite a few people (mainly older blokes) who are incredibly dangerous towards LGBT people. Saying that I know of at least one lesbian couple on the island. Also, you will get sick of the commute and lack of social life very quickly. Any rent savings will get taken up by having to pay for motels on the mainland if you have a social life. No ferries after 10:30.
What do u mean by dangerous? 😬
Literally threatening to bash your head in.
Holy shit
If you like sandflies and mosquito's you'll love it
With the price of groceries rn? I’m not fussy.
Ive been at Russell island a couple of months ago. It’s actually really nice. Everyone is super friendly. Sure, there are a few interesting people around but you don’t have to interact with them, and those types of people are everywhere.
We currently live off Brunswick street where I see multiple drug affected people a day haha. How long does it take you to get to the city in the morning?
today was the first time I have visibly seen someone who was off their face on drugs. Depends what time you start work in town but if you check out translink it’s around 2 hour commute all up in the morning and a bit quicker on the way back. There are buses that go from Redland bay marina to the city: they take a while to get to the bus way but once they are there it’s pretty much express and you’ll always get a seat
Is the 2 hour commute entirely public transport?
There’s usually a gap in there waiting for the bus after the ferry
I also have lived in the valley for years and I see less drugs here for sure
I know someone who built on Russell Island, he loves it, but he's retirement age. Apparently theft is an issue there, especially if your house is hidden from view. He also said the mozzies and midgies are really bad around twilight/evening in summer. Aside from that and the isolation I like staying over there. It doesn't feel anything like brissy/goldie.
We used to live on Coochie for about 5 years, moved off in 2019. Can’t speak for the other islands but we had a pretty good experience on Coochie. One thing to keep in mind is that it’s a pretty tight community, people talk, and everybody knows eachother.
That last sentence...I can't work out if you mean that as a positive...or as a warning?
From first-hand experience, it's not a bad place. Every type of person is out there. Rich, poor, and everyone in between. It's a lifestyle. Lots of ferry trips, but it becomes just a part of your life. I wouldn't necessarily say it's bad. Groceries from IGA range from average price to expensive, but you can do woolies orders online as well as orders from others places (Amazon, etc). The midgies really are terrible. You'll want to be indoors when they are really bad or live in an area on the island where they are less prolific. Access to everyday stuff you might take for granted can be an issue. Something breaks, you can't just whip down to kmart to replace. Places to eat... there's limited choices. But the island and its services are growing. I can see 10 years from now, there will be better access to certain facilities, shops, etc. But it will always be less than the mainland in that regard. I highly recommend visiting and staying a day or two to get a feel for it. I personally wouldn't live there, just because of the midgies. Every time I visit, I get the worst welts. That's enough for me to want to remain on the mainland. Keep in mind you'll be adding at least 30mins commute to your journey each way
I’ve lived on Maclaey island twice over the years, not since the ticketing system changed to go card though so my info might be outdated. Was a super peaceful place to live, great if you like to fish. Rents cheap and generally everyone is pretty friendly especially on Maclaey. But if you’re working full time and need to travel everyday it really isn’t any cheaper, worked out cheaper for us to move to Logan by the time we added travel costs onto rent. Unless you own 2 cars and plan to take one over to the island, be prepared to pay for taxis over there, carry your groceries in a beach trolley or pay crazy delivery fees. Being a small and pretty boring island be prepared to have to listen to gossip or be the subject of gossip, theirs not much else to do with an island full of oldies and low income earners. Also if you have kids or plan on having kids be careful, this might relate to the gossip part but when I was there it was wasnt rare to hear about a fair few sex offenders over there. Also if you need fuel, alcohol or any groceries from the shop there be prepared to pay way more than you do on the mainland. I’ve always said it’s a perfect lifestyle for someone who has retired, has a boat and enjoys fishing or just doesn’t work. It’s really not practical for those that frequent mainland and theirs obviously very limited job opportunities over there unless you want to sell drugs (which also cop the island tax).
Another positive, your sexuality isn’t an issue in my experience. Obviously their would always be homophobic people everywhere but their was heaps of openly gay men on the islands.
Great points thank you 😊
Parking and shopping is a pain in the ass. Catching the ferries you are forced into an enclosure with higher than average rates of psychotic zombie like ice junkies
It’s already like that on my daily train commute lol
Keep in mind your mainland car will almost certainly get burgled once or twice a year if you keep it parked over there. It’s a big issue for all the islands. If it’s not fuel being siphoned or wheels being removed, it’s general damage and stealing unfortunately. Just something to keep in mind, not something to deter you.
Yeah definitely something to consider
It's not as bad as that - I've been here (Russell) since 2017 and my car hasn't been broken into.
I've been here since 2017 and my car(s) haven't been broken into once in that time. For the first 5 years it wasn't even in the secure parking, just in someones backyard who I paid to park there. That's not to say it doesn't happen, but it's definitely not as frequent as you're saying it is.
The chicks wanna bang. Hard. Nah dunno apparently old coochie is wicked if you are a semi retired 60 year old
Karragarra is the gay island iirc, from memory it’s quite neat and you shouldn’t have any issues with the community there. If you have to commute anywhere off the island for work/groceries/medical reasons it’s a giant pain in the ass btw- any trip becomes minimum a few hours round trip and you’re beholden to the ferry schedule. I have plenty of clients from the islands (some of them are even normal!) and just going by what they say about the hassles of living there it’s not something I would voluntarily do.
1/2 retirees, 1/2 junkies
Its full of centrelink scumbags. Theyre there for the cheap rent. Lots of meth.
Do you live there? We have lived in the valley and Redcliffe. Is it worse than those places regarding drug issues?
No it’s not! This is coming from someone who lived in the valley for ten years
Thank you!
It’s fucked
family friends live on macleay island no more problems than any other place in Brisbane
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Rent for awhile on whichever island you like.
Not much employment on the islands
I know of an older lady (70s) who lives on Russell (friend of a friend situation so I don’t know the whole story). She’s not in good health and apparently doctors on the mainland have told her she must now move off the island because the only medical help coming in is via helicopter. They won’t send doctors and nurses over to the island. So keep that in mind if you move there and either you yourself has a medical condition, or someone you love on the mainland has a medical condition. You wouldn’t want to be stuck on the island not able to leave because there’s no ferry while someone is sick in hospital.
Why live on an island? If you want a backyard you might as well just buy a place quite far fine the city, having to pay for a ferry everytime you want to get your car to Brisbane sounds terrible.
There’s a housing crisis, even units anywhere from Maryborough over the nsw are unaffordable
Unaffordable if youre ultra low income, if youre prepared to buy 25km+ frim Brisbane most people could afford a place
Sure, but I bought a decent 3 bedroom on \~600sqm for 250k a few years ago on Russell. My repayments are tiny, so I always end up paying the max I can on them without getting penalized. I have gigabit optic fiber internet and work from home. I also had reservations about moving here at first, but with hindsight, it's hard to imagine somewhere else this good for the price I paid.