City Reach

the STORY

The boardwalk runs along the Brisbane River from the City Botanic Gardens to Howard Smith Wharves, tracking the CBD side past Eagle Street Pier and the base of Riverside Centre. Riverside Centre itself, Harry Seidler's 40 storey tower finished in 1986, is a big part of why this stretch exists as a public path at all. Seidler built a system of ramps he called "stramps" down to the water, opening up a riverfront that had been blocked off by low wharf buildings for years. That promenade got folded into a riverfront bikeway extension in the mid 1990s and became part of the official Riverwalk network in 1997.

The boardwalk had a $7 million structural rebuild completed in 2015, deck panels replaced, piles and beams repaired, concrete sealed against corrosion from decades sitting over the river. In 2019 the council closed a long standing gap in the path with a 187 metre extension linking City Reach to Bunya Walk in the Botanic Gardens, finally connecting the CBD side through to South Bank without a detour onto the road.

After a late night of partying I departed my hotel before dawn for a much needed bit of fresh air. It had been quite some time since visiting Brisbane City so I decided to wander around with no particular plan. Starting by the river I came across the City Reach boardwalk with a stunning view of the city’s skyline, just the view I had been looking for.

After some loitering (I arrived far too early as per usual) the sun rose and began drenching the scene with light, a sun star also appeared on the buildings. In Australia there always seems to be been active people out and about running and walking even when it’s crazy early and this Sunday morning was no exception. Capturing a few different frames with my sluggish camera at the time (Fujifilm X-Pro 1) I ended up with this final composition, a lone walker contrasting against the morning sunlight.

City Reach- Brisbane Photography Print

View of Brisbane City Skyline from City Reach Boardwalk, Brisbane, Australia