On the coast 100km north of Bundaberg along the Rosedale road (or an additional 65km from the highway via Miriam Vale ), the tiny settlements of AGNES WATER and nearby 1770 mark where Captain Cook first set foot ashore in Queensland on May 24, 1770. It's a pretty area, and one of the few undeveloped places along the Queensland coast that can be reached without a 4WD. If you don't have your own transport, you can take a twice-weekly afternoon bus from Bundaberg from outside the Barolin Street post office ($20 return). Nearby attractions include the mangrove, fan palm and paperbark wetlands at Eurimbula National Park , and the coast at Agnes Water, which has Queensland's northernmost official surfing beaches - though with the reef's lower reaches offshore, don't expect too much from the waves. 1770 is also the closest point on the mainland to the southern cays, from where there is regular transport to two Barrier Reef islands.

Agnes Water itself consists of a service station, a few stores at Endeavour Plaza, and the Agnes Water Tavern , set a few hundred metres back from the sea, while 1770 is even smaller, occupying the foreshore of a narrow promontory some 6km north. In 1770, the Captain Cook Holiday Village (tel 07/4974 9219) has rooms and dorms (under $50), a store, bar and bistro; while more budget beds are on hand at 1770 Backpackers (tel 07/4974 9849; under $20). For Eurimbula, head 10.5km back towards Miriam Vale from Agnes Water, where you'll see the track and national park sign to the north of the road. Bring all supplies with you, so you can bushcamp about 15km inside the park in the dunes behind Bustard Beach - ask at the Agnes Water service station for directions. You'll need high clearance or 4WD for the park.

The most interesting of local tour options is with 1770 Environmental Tours aboard The Larc (tel 07/4974 9422), an amphibious bus that spends the day exploring the coastline and reaches of the otherwise impenetrable Deepwater National Park, south of Agnes Water. Heading back to Bundaberg , the bus leaves early in the morning, twice a week, from Agnes Waters' Endeavour Plaza.