Issue 2

WooZang March 2011

Lighthouses of Western Victoria

 Lighthouses of Western Victoria
Brief Introduction of who we are
and the ones that got away
On our recent drive around the south east
of the country, we took the opportunity to
visit some of the historical lighthouses along
the Great Ocean Road and do the tours if
possible. We did this trip once west to east and
the second time east to west as the first trip was
for a Dutch friend and we were time limited
We travelled from Torquay to the east all the
way to Mt Gambier in the west, just over the
South Australian border. It was a great shame
that we could not fit in the Robe lighthouse. An
amazing 1970’s construction, located about an
hour’s drive west of Mt Gambier. It’s a funny
one as it is narrower at the bottom (3.5m) than
it is at the top (5m) and hence looks like a
fencing spike.
The other one we missed which is also close to
Mt Gambier is Cape Northumberland Light-
house at Port MacDonnell. A squat little one,
it was the replacement for the one that was
located closer to the cliffs and under threat of
being undermined. The original lighthouse
only lasted 23 years before the exposed loca-
tion became unstable. The new lighthouse is
400m away to the east. The old lighthouse was
demolished.
Great Ocean Road Arch
This road trip started in Picton where the third
member of our party joined us after work. We The Great Ocean Road is recognised as being the
had travelled down the Hume highway and after a world’s largest war memorial. Many cairns dot the
tragic camera death and therefore a side trip into roadway recognising the sacrifice of those who
Melbourne, a new camera was procured and we lost their lives fighting in wars.
continued onwards to Torquay on the Victorian There have been four memorial arches. The first
coast. was near Cathedral rock and was demolished in
An early-ish start and a hearty breakfast at the 1936.
Angahook Cafe and we were ready to hunt down The second Arch was built at Eastern View in
the first lighthouse of the day. 1939. It weighed 50 tonnes and was demolished
in 1970 when it was destroyed by a truck crash-
ing into it. A relief to the Road authority, who had
Split Point Lighthouse declared it too narrow and a hazard to traffic but
the public had been in an uproar about the demo-
Split Point lighthouse was originally called Eagles lition plans.
Nest Point lighthouse, built in 1891. It is known
The third arch was built in the same location but
as the White Queen by sailors as they round Cape was burnt to the ground during the Ash wednes-
Otway.
day bush fires in 1983.
The lighthouse is cement rendered and was taken Due to public demand, a forth arch was built in
over by the Commonwealth Government in 1919.
the same spot where you can see it today.
The original light was vapourised kerosene and
when it was taken over by the government, it
was converted to acetylene and then automated.
Finally it was converted to mains power in 1972.
The tours cost $12 but as I had the wrong shoes
on and the boys were itching to head west, we
declined. This beautiful lighthouse has no toilets
nearby and you have to be psychic to find them.
The cafe people were surly and almost rude about
finding them. I do understand only for customers
but I could have bought a postcard.. or coffee.. All
they say was go back to the car park. The signs say
300m to the next toilet sign.. the council really
needs to improve in this area.
But I digress...
The lighthouse is now operated by the Austral-
ian Maritime Safety Authority. The tours run on
weekends and school holidays.
The light is a group 4 flash every 20 seconds, each
light is unique in light pattern and hence
immediately identifiable at night from sea. As I
was not able to climb the lighthouse I do not have
a photo of the arc of the light, but the light has a
range of 20 Nautical miles. The red light 16 Nauti-
cal miles.
We soldiered on to the gateway of the Great
Ocean Road...
Heading west from the Great Ocean Road Gate,
the road gets extremely windy. Poor Drue made
the mistake of putting his head down to read his
twitter and made himself ill. Like me, he rarely
gets sick but this road is hell. Keep your eyes
up and outside. Eventually he fell asleep and so
with no protests from the rear seat, we turned off
to Cape Otway.
This road passes through Great Otway national
park. It’s filled with koalas and hence people stop
suddenly in the roadway.
Beautiful and scenic the trees form such a lovely
pathway but still very windy and narrow.
The light was isolated and hence lighthouse
keepers only got supplied every 6-12 months! The
complex was not accessible until 1930s by road.
The light shows the way through the “Eye of the
Needle” which is the gap between Cape Wickham
and Cape Otway. Only 84km and in bad weather
many ships were wrecked in King Island. No
wonder they breathed a sigh of relief when they
rounded the Cape and saw the Split Point light-
house.
after an earthquake hit the area and spilt some of
the mercury making the light drop down. So by
taking out some Crystal panels it lifted up again
back into place. LOL so today you can see the
panels missing. On a side note if you see a book
called Australian Lighthouses- a visitors guide
then snap it up. I emailed the author and he has

Like Split Point lighthouse it has a red light

Cape Otway Lighthouse
Cape Otway Lighthouse is simply stunning.
Situated in a complex now, the grounds cover
the telegraph station, the lighthouse keepers
cottage is now a cafe and the grounds also have
some traditional aboriginal sites.
Access costs $17 for adults and if you time it
right, you get catch a guided tour of the light-
house. Alas I was too late for one and too early
for the next.
This lighthouse is the oldest surviving light-
house on the mainland of Australia. It was
built from 1846 to 1848, made of sandstone.
The light was lit in 1848, being the second
lighthouse to be lit in Australia. The first
being Macquarie lighthouse in Sydney. BUT
Macquarie lighthouse was re-built and hence
not the oldest lighthouse. The structure we see
today is the 1883 lighthouse.
system that tell a ship if it has strayed off course.
The more red you see, the closer to the cliff you
are. The red light was installed in 1881. Its almost
exactly like the ILS with Aircraft. A plane gets
a warning when it strays too low or two high of
the perfect landing path. Well obviously this
predates so I should say the ILS is based in the
sold out of his copies. He also told me that he will
not be updating it and no re-prints so grab it if
lighthouse system.
you see it. You will not regret it. I have managed
This lighthouse has a triple flash every 18 sec-
to nab a copy that cost me $80. Originally it costs
onds. So you can see it is very different from Split
$43 from the author so its certainly rare.
Point.
Sadly this light was extinguished in 1994. It was
We ate at the Cafe whilst the heavens opened and
replaced by a solar light placed in front of the
we ate lovely winter food during Victorian winter
old tower. :-( Nothing replaces the romance of a
weather watching people run from the lighthouse
lighthouse.
looking for cover. Hey! Its Victoria just wait 10
My visit up the tower brought me into contact
minutes.
with a modern keeper. The museum employee
was polishing the crystal of the old light. He
Weather cleared up and we got some lovely pho-
asked me as few questions to which I was de-
tos of this amazing place.
lighted that I could answer. Things like “The light
Hidden to the left of the lighthouse is the RAAF
is able to be pushed with one finger, its weight
radar station Number 13. Well what is left of it.
around 2.5 tonnes... How is this possible?” I
Mostly hidden in the bushes, it is higher than
actually knew the answer.. the whole light sits in a
the lighthouse and hence gives you great view
mercury bath and essentially floats. Its silly but I
of the light. Once had a 50ft antenna the boys
was beaming with pride. LOL Its interesting that
who worked here once saw a Japanese submarine
they had to take out some of the Fresnel Lens
surface!!!
We headed off after a long, interesting time at Cape
Otway but eventually the weather got the better of
us. Moving west along the Ocean Road, we bedded
down in Warrnambool.
Lady Bay Upper and
Lower Lighthouses
Warrnambool had two lighthouses. TWO! Alas
neither are functioning.
The first, is now on top of Flagstaff hill. Originally
on Middle Island on the Merri River, it was moved
in 1872 to replace an obelisk on top of the hill. It
is now called Lady Bay Upper Lighthouse. It was
moved as the light was obscured by heavy seas
and hence quite pointless. This lighthouse and its
neighbour Lady bay lower lighthouse are both part
of the Flagstaff Hill Maritime Museum complex. To
visit you need to go into the museum.
Lady Bay Upper lighthouse is still in use, but not
with the original light. A solar light operates on the
verandah. It flashes 1 second every 5 seconds.
Lady bay Lower lighthouse, inside the museum
complex is also still in use. It is built from part of
an old obelisk and part of an older lighthouse. Its
predecessor was ineffective due to its lack of height.
It was also moved stone by stone at the same time
as the Upper lighthouse. Both lighthouses were
powered originally by oil.
The lower lighthouse shows a fixed light with red
and green sections. Both lighthouses work together
to guide ships into the harbour.
Our next day was going to be more relaxed. Our
next lighthouse was Griffiths Island lighthouse.
The lighthouse was on the most excellent light-
house resource http://www.lighthouse.net.au and
the walk was stated to be 400m from the car park.
Griffiths Island Lighthouse
This lighthouse is located on an island just off Port
Fairy. The website said a scenic 400m walk but as
we headed off into the wind and cold, it was very
apparent that this was not quite right. After 800m,
we saw a sign that said 1750m to go to the light- The lighthouse was built in 1859 out of bluestone
house. EEP..... So off we trudged. Over the sands by Scottish Stone masons, employed by John
and along the waterline. It would be scenic if it Griffiths who owned the island. I am told that
wasn’t blowing a gale. The walk to the lighthouse the stairway is built into the wall. Amazing alas
is along the nature reserve that houses mutton no access is available to the lighthouse itself and
birds, wallabies and Gannets. I am certain that no tours are offered. A shame.
Tiger snakes haunt these holes too but it’s far too The lighthouse guides ships into Port Fairy
cold for them. You see the wallabies on the beach which was once a whaling port and up until the
and they don’t worry too much about you walk- 1980’s housed Australia’s largest fishing fleet.
The light flashes twice every 10 seconds. The
tower is 11m high. The lighthouse keeper’s
cottages were demolished around 1956. The
foundations are still there but overgrown.
ing past. The Island is a terrific place for watching
the wildlife. I would certainly recommend you
come here but only in the summer months. Talk
about bleak! I was here in early March and we had
a week of gale force winds and grey skies. But as
you can see, the Gannets didn’t seem to mind.
The walk on Griffiths Island took much longer than
our itinerary had allowed for, and hence we missed
our planned tour of Cape Nelson Lighthouse. We
were under the impression that there were two
tours a day at Cape Nelson. So we hung around
Griffiths Island lighthouse. On our return trip, we
discovered a ‘quicker’ walk. By quicker I mean it
was paved and only 1160m not the 1750m that we
had just walked. D’oh! So we hiked back in the rain
feeling rather silly. Still well worth the walk and
where else do you see mutton bird nesting sites?
Silly birds tend to crash into the ground when they
land so well worth going to see.
As we had time to kill we had lunch in Portland.
Portland is home to Whaler’s Bluff Lighthouse.
Now David and I had been there two weeks before
so on his trip we did not return, choosing to get
out of the wind and rain at the pub.
Whaler’s Bluff Lighthouse
Whaler’s Bluff lighthouse was built in 1859 on Bat-
tery point by John Hughes and known as Portland
Bay lighthouse. It was relocated stone by stone to
where it is now on North Bluff in 1889 to make
way for Guns on battery point and keep the light
safe from enemy fire. North Bluff was renamed
Whaler’s bluff.
The light flashes white and red every 10 seconds.
The lighthouse is operated by the Victorian Chan-
nels Authority and there is no tours of the little
building.
The point it sits on is close to the CBD of Portland
and very easy to get to. A great place to photograph
the ships that enter Portland harbour. Its not
well marked and so you may have to check at the
Maritime Museum on the harbour.
Cape Nelson Lighthouse maybe... lol I think it’ll always be out of my price
range. Still a lovely and romantic idea.
Our next stop was to the signal hut. All the flags
Cape Nelson lighthouse is stunningly beautiful.
are set up here and originally the flag pole was next
You just stare at it. Clean white lines wider at the
to the hut but is now farther down the cliff. The
base than the top, and the windbreak wall draws
signal hut has the telescope that they used to spot
your eye to the lighthouse.
the ships and the tour guide showed us the signal
Our enquiries at the cafe revealed no standard
flags and explained their use. The telescope is 2.1m
tours anymore you have to ring in advance and the
long!
tour guide drives out for groups of more than two.
You need at least 20 minutes notice. I was happy
Next was the tower itself.
This tower was lit in 1884. The building of this
lighthouse was slow due to the location. The guide
explained that grooves of the wagons were found
in the rock near the lighthouse keeper’s house.
The bluestone was quarried nearby but this ran
out prior to the completion of the building. More
stone was sourced close by but had to be carted via
Portland which is over 20km away. In the 1880’s
A very pretty lighthouse, I do hope it is open
for inspection one day.
After lunch we headed for Cape Nelson
lighthouse. We arrived at the base of the light-
house in time for the 2pm tour. The sign at
the cafe said tours were 11am and 2pm.. so we
headed inside to make inquiries..
this was a very long way. The long white wall the
leads your eyes to the lighthouse and surrounds
to wait and take photos but the huge flies were
the cottages are made of rubble and form rather
bothering David. Wear long pants if you go.
efficient wind breaks. The lighthouse one is almost
Our tour guide turned up and he took us through
2m high!
the assistant lighthouse keepers’ cottages. Yes plu-
Entering the lighthouse is via an airlock. This cer-
ral. There were two assistant lighthouse keepers in
tainly reminds you of the gale force winds that rage
addition to the lighthouse keeper himself. The staff
round the building.
lived in relative luxury and the lighthouse keeper
earned around £150 a week which was a fortune at
The original light was changed in 1907 and electri-
the time. The wife of the last assistant lighthouse
fied in 1934 when the clockwork machinery was
keeper said that they considered a holiday and
also installed. The light flashes 4 then a 20 second
they stayed there for 20 years before retiring.
break. In 1987 the light was connected to the mains
The cottages are set up for hotel accommodation
power. Up we went to the top of a 32m tower. It
except the lighthouse keeper’s cottage which the
was here that I discovered that Drue doesn’t like
cafe owner lives in at the moment. Lovely houses
heights. The open stairwell made him nervous.
set up for two couples. An idea for next trip
Poor thing. Then again looking straight down, I
Cape Nelson Lighthouse marks the end of our
Western Victorian lighthouses. The next two are
over the border. The only missing lighthouse that
goes with this set of lighthouses is actually in
Tasmania, the companion to Cape Otway, Cape
Wickham. Cape Wickham deserves a mention as
it is not only the tallest lighthouse in Australia,
it is also the tallest in the Southern Hemisphere.
Without this lighthouse and Cape Otway many
more lives would be lost on the rocks of King
Island. Alas I have never been to Tasmania so it
is one for the list.

I do hope you enjoyed my trip across the coast.

don’t blame him. We spent ages at the top of the

lighthouse discussing lights and arcs of sight, the
different bulbs and even the AIS. (Ship identify-
ing and locating system) BUT as with all things we
had to move on and find a bed for the night and
still other things to see on this road before entering
South Australia.
One last look and we headed down the tower. It was
half way down that David realised that he has left
his glasses at the top and hence he ran all the way
up again, returning with his glasses and his phone.
OOPS. Just as well he ran back.
 Many Thanks to my travelling companions David and Drue,
without whom this trip would ghave been a chore.
To David, my husband and organiser of TJC tours, we love your trips and look forwards to the next lot
of adventures where you take us.
xoxo Woosang

All photos are taken by the Author and may not be copied without express permission ©YKirk2011