By Sonia Isaacs
A HISTORIC Glass House Mountains tourism property themed around Cobb & Co coaching heritage has been listed for sale, with owner Steve Ralph saying it is time to step back after decades of running the 23-acre operation largely on his own.
Mr Ralph, 73, is selling the property at 2001 Old Gympie Road, home to the Glass House Mountains Caravan and Camping Park and a purpose-built Cobb & Co museum and theatre that has become a niche attraction for campers, school groups and history enthusiasts.
The site includes a rare suite of council approvals that allow for a broad range of uses, including caravan park expansion, food and beverage operations such as a licensed venue or pub, horse-based tourism activities, retail, plant sales and event hosting. “I’ve got approval for a caravan park, food and beverage including a pub, horse operations, even retail and plant sales,” Mr Ralph said.
“There’s a commercial kitchen, a licensed venue, the museum, the theatre and the camping ground. It’s all there ready to go – it just needs someone with the time and resources to take it to the next level.”
The caravan park is currently licensed for 20 sites, with approval already in place to expand to 60, positioning the property as a significant tourism asset along one of the Sunshine Coast hinterland’s key travel routes.
Despite its commercial potential, Mr Ralph said the decision to sell has been driven by the realities of running the complex operation as a one-man enterprise, while also trying to continue his lifelong craft as a wheelwright and builder of horse-drawn vehicles. “I’m getting away from my core business, which is building horse-drawn vehicles and wooden wheels,” he said. “Running a camping ground requires 100 per cent devotion. Between cleaning toilets, mowing the grass, and running the office, I’m struggling to find time to do my wheels.”
Mr Ralph currently has wheels on order for several museums, including Landsborough Museum, but said the daily workload, combined with injury and health challenges in recent years, has made the operation increasingly unsustainable.
“I realised last year, when I got injured, that if I don’t work, I don’t earn,” he said. “Before I even open the front gate up, as a one-man band, about $20,000 goes out the door. I’m not really a caravan park manager or operator. I’m a wheelwright and a horse driver.”
The Old Gympie Road site sits on what Mr Ralph describes as a historic Cobb & Co paddock, a parcel of land he says has long been associated with the region’s coaching history.
He purchased the property in 1988 from descendants of Neville Gregor, whose family operated the Peachester sawmill and had historical links to Cobb & Co coaching routes through the hinterland.
Since then, Mr Ralph has assembled and restored a collection of Cobb & Co coaches, buggies, carts and handcrafted wooden wheels, which have been displayed across the property and used to support a small-scale tourism and educational offering.
Over the years, the site has attracted film crews, school excursions and heritage enthusiasts, drawn by its combination of working craftsmanship and living history.
He said the Cobb & Co legacy remains central to his identity and he intends to continue his wheelwright and coach-building work even after the sale, ideally from a smaller, more manageable property in the region.
“I’m not giving away the wheelwriting or coach-building side of it,” he said. “I just need a better shed, something air conditioned so I can work through summer.”
The property is listed with Ray White Beerwah agent Alex Garden, as well as a specialist caravan park broker. Mr Ralph said he has already received early interest and is open to staying on temporarily to assist with a transition if required. “If they want to keep it going, I’d happily stay on for three, six or even 12 months to help,” he said. “I’d like to see it keep going. It’s an incredible opportunity for someone with the right backing – I’ve poured everything into building the asset. Now it needs someone else to take the reins.”
Mr Garden said the site’s “special tourist attraction” zoning made it one of the most flexible and potentially valuable rural tourism holdings in the region.
“In 12 or 13 years of doing this job, I’ve never seen a zoning like this in our area,” he said. “The primary land use is ‘special tourist attraction’, and that can mean anything from a campground and music venue to a themed tourist precinct, school or specialty commercial use.”
He said much of the groundwork had already been completed, including approvals, basic infrastructure, powered campsites, amenities and water supply, leaving significant scope for expansion.
“There are already multiple conditions and approvals in place,” he said. “Someone can step in, spend a few hours with Steve to understand his vision, then take it to the next level.”
Photos: Sonia Isaacs