Leaving Mount Gambier our next stop takes us out of South Australia and into Victoria – the sixth state on our Big Lap of Australia. But first we have one more place to visit.

Portland

Portland is a small, often overlooked, coastal town, which just happens to be the birthplace of the state. On the 19th of November 1834 Edward Henty landed on the shore and established the first European colony in Victoria, a year before the founding of the state’s now capital of Melbourne. Though Henty takes the credit, a whaling station was already active here in 1829.

A regular topic of many of the places we have visited has been, by nothing but coincidence, either a World first, biggest, oldest, longest, or straightest and Portland has one or two of its own. It is the only place in the World where you can cage dive with seals. Why the cage? Just to keep the sharks out! And just outside of Portland is a simple field that was once a settlement for the Gunditjmara people dating back at least 6,600-years – older than both the Pyramids of Egypt and Stonehenge in England. Stone fish traps, still visible, are believed to be the oldest form of aquaculture system in the World.

The oldest story… ever?

And just recently the story repeated by the Gunditjmara people of the sudden arrival of giant ancestral creature transformed from a volcano with teeth of lava has gained credence according to new research. For many centuries the people have told of the land and trees dancing and an emerging hill formed from the forehead of this ancestral being with lava spat out through the earth. The volcano in question is Budj Bim, which is known to have erupted 37,000-years ago and aboriginal artefacts have been discovered buried in its volcanic ash deposits. It is thought likely the dancing land and trees represent the seismic activity that would have been present at the time. It is believed this is the oldest known story to exist.

Looking for somewhere to park the car and caravan we ended up at the huge car park adjacent to the Portland Visitor Information Centre and what a surprise we found there. Within the centre is a cafe that on first inspection served just cakes and snacks but a menu provided by the friendly waiter proved otherwise. An excellent selection of hot and cold meals and daily specials all cooked to order. And this is a cafe/restaurant that knows how to make a superb Thai green fish curry. Oh, and great views out over the harbour too.

Shine a light

But the real reason for our visit to Portland was to visit the Cape Nelson Light Station. The station sits 123-metres above the sea perched on the edge of the Cape’s cliffs. In addition to the Lighthouse, Keepers Quarters, workshops, and horse and cart stables and generator room (now a cafe), the site still has its original 1.75-metre wall wrapped 435-metres around the station to protect the keepers from the strong winds.

The 32-metre high bluestone tower was completed at the height of fears of a Russian invasion of the Pacific in 1884 and first lit on July the 7th of the same year. So fearful of an attack was the government of Portland that a large telescope was installed at the station to help sight any potential invaders. It came into use again during the First and Second World Wars looking for German and Japanese warships and aircraft.

The coast is littered with shipwrecks including those of ships just arriving from England having survived their arduous sea passage only to be smashed on the rocks just off the coast and within sight of Portland Harbour. The lighthouse couldn’t have come soon enough.

Built at an initial cost of £11,552, the lighthouse went through several upgrades and was one of the first in Australia to convert to an electric light powered by a pair of generators. Curiously the lens continued to be driven by a clockwork mechanism. It wasn’t until 1987 that mains power finally reached the station followed shortly by full automation and no longer needing lighthouse keepers.

The station is now open to the public and the Keepers Cottage is available to rent. Guided tours take visitors around the station and include a viewing from the lighthouse gantry out over the ocean and the waves crashing on the rocks below. The generator room and existing stable have now been converted to a cafe, which just happens to make some of the best scones we’ve tasted.