A Summer Day on Sydney Harbour – Port Jackson, Australia

Sailboats in Sydney Harbour with the CBD in the background, Australia.

Sailboats in Sydney Harbour
It’s a perfect summer day: sunny skies; enough wind to give the genoas a nice puff; and a slight sea haze, rendering Sydney’s distinctive skyline dreamy.

Almost any city is nice in good weather – but you just can’t beat Sydney and its harbour on a sunny day.

For all my years of being in and around Sydney, I have not spent enough time on the waters there. There is no excuse for it really – the public ferries that criss-cross from Sydney’s Circular Quay to various points around the harbour and beyond are comfortable, relatively cheap, and easy to use. And, they afford the same glorious views as the more-expensive tourist boats.

But there always seemed to be something else going on …

One December, however – mid-summer in the southern hemisphere – we had international visitors and had taken them to the zoo and the aquarium. A bonus with our tickets was a return passage from Circular Quay to Watsons Bay on the Captain Cook Cruises ferry. The season had been glorious, so there was no reason not to jump aboard and take ourselves over the harbour for some famous fish and chips and a short coastal walk.

Watsons Bay is a harbour-side suburb 11km (6.8mi) northeast of Sydney’s Central Business District (CBD). While you can access it by road, the city’s traffic can be a nightmare – and if you are downtown anyway, private boats or New South Wales Ferries are easier and much more fun.

The suburb sits on the South Head Peninsula, allowing great views west across Port Jackson to the Sydney Harbour Bridge. The high eastern cliffs, known as The Gap, give views to Manly on North Head and the Pacific Ocean.

Amongst other things, Watsons Bay is known for the internationally famous Doyles on the Beach seafood restaurant. That was a bit out of our league, and we didn’t have a reservation, so we made do with fish and chips from the more modest Doyles on the Wharf Take Away.

We carried our lunch up to The Gap Lookout National Park, and enjoyed some of the best food and views that Sydney has to offer.

Join me on and around the waters of Sydney Harbour.

Pyrmont Bridge over Darling Harbour, Sydney Australia

Bridge over Darling Harbour
We picked up our boat in Cockle Bay, Darling Harbour, and motored under the historic Pyrmont Bridge – built in 1902 – to get to the outer harbour. Cars were banned here in 1981, and it is now strictly for pedestrian and bicycle traffic. I walk over this bridge often when I’m in Sydney.

Australian National Maritime Museum from the water, Darling Harbour, Australia

Australian National Maritime Museum
This ‘museum of the sea’ includes a replica of James Cook’s HMB Endeavour, which visitors can tour to get a feel for the life of the early explorers. I visit the museum regularly because it also hosts the Wildlife Photographer of the Year exhibition.

Ferry on the Water
While Sydney Ferries get highlighted in the occasional news stories of high drama, cost blow-outs, or unreasonable delays, for the most part they are clean, fast, and efficient ways to access ports around the city and beyond.

Iconic Sydney Harbour Scene
Sailors in the crowd will note that this scene is less-than-ideal: the sails are luffing; slack with insufficient wind. But, really! A sailboat, the Opera House, and the Sydney Harbour Bridge; what more could you want? (iPhone6)

High-Rises on Sydney Harbour

A Sydney Ferry and Luna Park
Luna Park is a heritage-listed amusement park in Milsons Point. Constructed in 1935, it was closed in mid-1979 (just before my arrival in the country) when the Ghost Train fire killed six children and one adult. Although most of the park was demolished and new rides were constructed, it was closed for various reasons for most of the time I lived nearby, and I have never visited. But, I would miss that ridiculous clown-faced sun if it were ever to disappear!

Almost Abstract : Lines and Angles
We get glimpses of the Sydney Opera House as we pass under Pyrmont Bridge.

Sydney Ferry and the Opera House
And there she is! I attend performances here four or more times most years, and never get tired of visiting. What a beautiful building!

Boats and the Bridge
And that bridge! Affectionately called the ‘The Coathanger’, this steel-through-arch bridge opened in 1932 and gives Sydney Harbour some of its most iconic views. (Phone6)

The Sydney Opera House

On Top of the World!
Since 1998 the BridgeClimb has allowed visitors – well-harnessed in – the chance to climb the bridge.

Wedding on the Shore
Unfortunately, this photo is not very sharp, but it gives a feel for the layers of age in the city, and the continual activity on the waterfront.

Fort Denison
Once a penal site and a defensive facility, this island in the harbour has been heritage-listed since 1999. I like the contrast with the ultra-modern recreational vessel in the foreground.

With the Sun in my Eyes

Sailboats in the Harbour
The waters here are a playground for the wealthy!

Sydney in our Wake
The profile of the CBD makes a dreamy backdrop for all the boats on the waters.

Shark Island and its Light

Watsons Bay
As we come into the wharf, it is easy to envy those with houses on the waterfront here; median house prices in this Sydney suburb are currently 5.4M Australian dollars.

Sydney and Port Jackson
From the hilly land of South Head, we have views back to the city centre.

Commemorative Anchor
The waters outside the headland can be dangerous. The Dunbar was wrecked here in 1857, with the loss of 121 lives.

Enjoying the Sun

Weathered Rocks
I’ve always loved the colours, textures, and shapes carved into the sandstone along Sydney’s lengthy coastline.

Treasure Flowers – Gazania Rigens

Memorial
Lieutenant Grieve was a Special Service Officer who was killed in 1900 at the Battle of Paardeberg during the South African (Boer) War. Local residents had this marble and sandstone memorial (originally a drinking fountain) erected in his honour.