YOU may have seen Chris Silcocks around the mountain, stopping and starting on his postie bike as he delivers your mail.
But Chris has been part of Tamborine Mountain life far longer than most realise – and his connection to the community runs much deeper than his daily route.
Chris moved to Tamborine Mountain almost 35 years ago, following in the footsteps of his father, a builder who purchased several blocks of land along Sierra Drive.
What began as a family construction project turned into something special.
“We built three houses up here,” Chris said.
“When Dad’s builder went broke, he took over and got his builder’s licence. We all ended up living in the same street – my brother, my parents, and me. I loved it so much I built my own place that backs onto Dixon Reserve. It’s just the nature up here. I love the trees and the forest.”
That connection to nature is something Chris never takes for granted.
“Landcare planted the forest behind us and they do a fantastic job up here,” he said.
“Where we live, you see how much people care about this place. There’s a real pride in keeping the mountain beautiful.”
Before delivering mail, Chris spent years building homes and running a popular takeaway shop, Overlanders – now known as The Codfather.
“I had the shop for five years during its heyday,” he said.
“When people moved to the mountain into their new place, some didn’t have a kitchen yet, so they came to me for fish and chips. I got to meet everybody.”
Those years helped shape his deep ties to the community.
“Kids who used to come in for chips after school have kids and grandkids now,” he said with a laugh.
“You see people grow up here. That’s the magic of it.”
After leaving the takeaway in 1996, Chris worked at Beaudesert Hospital as a ward assistant.
“I’d never worked for an institution before,” he said.
“But it suited me because I like helping people. I’d do everything – the wards, emergency, even the operating theatre. You see some tragic things, but you have to be there for people. It’s rewarding.”
Eventually, the postie job came up – a perfect fit after a serious car accident made heavy labour impossible.
“I damaged my back and neck in a crash,” he said.
“I couldn’t do physical work anymore, but I could still ride bikes. I love motorbikes. I’ve got a collection now and one day when I retire, I’ll have time to tinker with them.”
When he’s not out on his rounds, Chris’s life is filled with music, movies, and gardening.
“I play piano, trumpet, and flugelhorn. I’m even part of a brass band,” he said.
“I’ve got a soundproof room for my music and movies with a full Dolby Atmos surround sound. The whole street knows when I’ve got a movie on”
But above all, it’s nature that keeps him grounded.
“Everything I do is based around nature,” Chris said.
“If I go for a ride, I’ve got my tent on the back, and I’ll stay in a national park. I’ll go walking, camping, collecting rocks – I’m a bit of a geology nut. My garden’s full of rocks from all over the place.”
Having walked nearly every track in the Scenic Rim, Chris says the mountain’s true beauty lies in its diversity.
“Every walk is different,” he said.
“Witches Falls has those rock columns and The Knoll has the waterfalls. People ask me what walk to do, and I tell them – it depends on what you want to see. There’s something different everywhere.”
For Chris, Tamborine Mountain isn’t just home, it’s a way of life.
“I feel lucky to live and work on the mountain,” he said.
“I’ve always believed work isn’t really work – it’s play. If you enjoy what you do, you’re living right. I think I’m living my best life right now.”
