On the Northside of Brisbane, close to Samford, is a hidden gem of a creek play area known as Andy Williams Park. It is located on Cedar Creek Road and is perfect for families with young children looking for low-depth water play in a natural creek.
This review of Andy Williams Park was taken prior to good rains and this is about at dry as it gets (obviously not accounting for a massive dry spell). Because it is fed from mountain rain, it flushes and fills quickly after it rains.
Andy Williams Park
When Brisbane families consider Cedar Creek, their minds almost always go to Cedar Creek falls, located further up the road from Andy Williams Park. The difference between the two is that Andy Williams Park features facilities like toilets and parking and adequate green space for families to picnic on the grass. It is also more suited to younger kids with lots of shallow rock pools and mini rapids allowing parents to relax without too much concern for the deeper pools like further along at Cedar Creek rock pools.
While deeper rock pools exist here, most of the river is shallow, with small areas of mini rapids as the creek narrows at some points. We have spent many a hot weekend afternoon paddling in these cool waters and enjoying the shaded water play only 30 minutes from Brisbane City. The river that flows through here is known as Cedar Creek, and it ambles underneath the canopy of trees, providing a lovely cool respite from the Summer heat. We love that various levels of water depth ensure kids of all ages are catered for, from toddlers to teenagers.
While we don’t advocate dam building in creeks, we know it’s an inevitable (fun) part of creek play but if your little ones alter the water path, make sure you return the rocks to their original spots before leaving. Kids can spend all morning or afternoon sailing leaves down the river and racing to see who gets their leaves to the next river junction. This is also a great place to introduce kids to rock skimming with plenty of smooth stones to facilitate this Australian rite of passage.
Wildlife is abundant here with lots of bird life (including the whip bird), but you might also spot a bush (brush) turkey, lizards, fish and very early in the morning if you are lucky, the odd wallaby or platypus. You can here the birds in the video of Andy Williams Park below.
When is the best time to visit Andy Williams Park?
Andy Williams Park is best visited after rain, as the creek is fed from Mount Glorious and sometimes, outside the wet season, it can get slightly stagnant. As soon as you hear there is rain over Mount Glorious; you can expect a good flush out of the creek section at Andy Williams Park. Visiting outside school holidays and weekends is the best chance of enjoying this space by yourself and we often visit after school on weekday afternoons for a quick swim/paddle.
Facilities at Andy Williams Park
Andy Williams Park is a natural watercourse the council long ago accepted as a popular spot for local families. As such, while you can’t expect features like playgrounds, you can expect accessible toilets, off-street parking, rubbish bins, electric BBQs, picnic tables and a nice green lawn for picnics. This is a popular nature play space, especially on weekends and school holidays, so if you want a park, you should get there early in the day.
How to get here
You will find Andy Williams Park on the left-hand side of Cedar Creek Road, approximately 10 minutes from the Cedar Creek turn-off. You can’t miss the park as you will see a toilet block and a constructed turn-off into the park. The drive to Andy Williams park is enjoyable, crossing the creek at certain points and meandering past properties with animals like cows, sheep and even the odd llama.
You can find shops and cafes at Samford, the popular Harry Potter store, and the Samford playground.
Cedar Creek Road, Closeburn Queensland 4520, Australia
More pictures of Andy Williams Park
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