Sarina, Queensland

A sugar town that is surrounded by a number of significant national parks and nature reserves.
Location: 990 km north of Brisbane; 32 km south of Mackay; 15 metres above sea level.
Origin of name: derived from Sarina Inlet, which was probably named by explorer George Dalrymple, who passed through the area in 1859. He had a habit of drawing on Greek mythology for the names he gave to places he visited - Sarina was a Greek mythological enchantress. An early township, located a little further north of the present town, was known as Plain Creek.
Brief history: It has been theorised that Sarina was the site of a Phoenician settlement thousands of years ago. John Atherton, after whom the Atherton Tableland were named, was the first recorded European to reach this area, after having overlanded sheep from the New England District of NSW via Rockhampton with his brother James. By the 1870s sugar cane plantations had been established in the area.
Natural features: South Pacific Ocean; Sarina Inlet; Llewelyn Bay; Allom Point; Mount Blarney Environmental Park (west); Mount Hector Environmental Park (north east); Cape Palmerston National Park (South east); Mount Funnel Range (contains volcanic plugs); West Hill National Parks (West Hill Island, West Hill Creek)
Built features: localities of Armstrongs Beach, Freshwater Point, Campwin Beach, Sarina Beach; Plane Creek Mill; Sarina Distillery (opened 1927) and ethanol plant; Field of Dreams Historical Centre; General Gordon Hotel (1886); Hay Point lookout; Hay Point and Dalrymple Bay Coal Terminals