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Soldiers at Fort Nepean
Port Phillip, in Greater Melbourne, was once the most heavily fortified port in the Southern Hemisphere. Here at Fort Nepean, Australian soldiers watched over the city until after World War II.
Point Nepean National Park is a special place with a long and visible history. It sits at the very edge of Melbourne, Victoria: the city wraps itself around Port Phillip, and from the southeast tip here at Point Nepean, you can almost throw a stone across the Victory Bight to the southwestern Melbourne suburb of Queenscliff.
For at least 6000 years, this has been part of the traditional country of the Bunurong People. A number of Aboriginal sites have been identified here, including coastal shell middens which might point to seasonal gathering-places for indigenous people – and certainly reflect their food-gathering practices.
I didn’t see any of these.
I did, however, see plenty of historic examples of European settlement in the region. There is scattered archeological evidence of pastoral and lime-burning practices dating to the 1830s. Shepherd Hut, which includes sections from 1845, is one of the earliest intact limestone building in Victoria and a rare example of employee housing.
The eponymous Quarantine Station was used from 1852 to 1979, and then became the home of an Army Officer Cadet School and the School of Army Health. Defensive structures dating from the 1880s through the 1940s are dotted around the park.
In more recent history, Australia lost Prime Minister Harold Holt here in December 1967. He went swimming at Cheviot Beach and was never seen again. Convention suggests he drowned; conspiracy theories speculate otherwise.
As well as being historically significant, the whole Port Nepean National Park area is a natural treasure. Although the wildlife isn’t as visible here as on Phillip Island – the peninsula just east of here (see: Sleepy Koalas and Moulting Penguins) – bandicoot and black wallaby live in these native bush lands. The park is criss-crossed with pleasant walks – and high enough to afford panoramic views in all directions. Only a one- to two-hour drive from the inner-city suburbs of Melbourne, these long-time Commonwealth and Defence lands were returned to the Victorian State Government after years of protracted political disputes and arguments about costs, including debates over who would pay for the clearance of unexploded ordnance.
Today, the Victorian Heritage Department says that “Point Nepean Defence and Quarantine Precinct is of archaeological, aesthetic, architectural, historical, scientific and social significance to the State of Victoria.”
It is well worth exploring.
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Sandy Track
From the carpark at the Gunners Cottage – built in the early 1900s – it is easy to pick up Coles Track towards Fort Nepean.
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Myrtle-leaf Milkwort (Polygala Myrtifolia)
Native to South Africa, milkworts thrive in these sandy coastal soils.
Myrtle-leaf Milkwort Flower
As pretty as it is, the milkwort is listed by government agencies as an invasive weed.
Through the Moonah Woodland
Coles Track was expanded to service a telephone wire to the Fort as part of Melbourne’s defence system during World War II. A number of German and Japanese destroyers, submarines, and other military craft, operated in Australian waters between 1940 and 1945, threatening the shipping industry and the war effort.
Over the Peninsula
Water is visible on both sides: on the south we can see Bass Straight across the melaleuca trees.
Cheviot Beach
These are wild waters. The beach is named for Victoria’s worst shipwreck, the SS Cheviot, which hit a reef in 1887, resulting in 35 of the 59 passengers drowning.
Plaque : Cheviot Hill
Australia’s Prime Minister Harold Holt disappeared while swimming in these rough waters in 1967.
Surf off Cheviot Beach
Container Ship
Bass Strait is a busy shipping lane.
View from Cheviot Hill
On Defence Road
No private vehicles are allowed this far into the National Park, but a periodic shuttle runs up and down for those who don’t want to join the walkers.
Inside Fort Pearce
Tunnelled into the hillside, Fort Pearce was established in 1911.
Underground
Part of Port Phillip’s defence system, the gun emplacements, underground ammunition storage, and tunnels at Fort Pearce were abandoned at the war’s end in 1945. Nature reclaimed them, and volunteers later spent years removing the sand and vegetation.
Lookout below the Fort
World War I Gun Emplacement
The gun pits for the Mk VII guns were built in 1911. The munitions magazine is between the pits.
From Fort Pearce
The fort affords wonderful views back over the dramatic cliffs.
Port Phillip Bay
In the other direction, afternoon sea fog hangs over Greater Melbourne.
Looking back over Point Nepean
From Fort Nepean, you can look back over the National Park and Port Phillip Bay.
Nepean Bay Beach
These are reasonably sheltered waters, popular for swimming – but has to be wary of the strong currents and rips.
A Post in Nepean Bay
The colours and textures in the protected waters are stunning.
Yellow-Flowered Succulent
My walk back towards Eagle’s Nest takes me through beautiful vegetation …
Hideaway on the Cliffs
… and along sandy paths. The hill at Eagle’s Nest is now home to a large radar tower – but was once the site of Australia’s largest disappearing gun: built in 1889.
On the Windy Cliffs
My last stop in the National Park was at the Quarantine Station, established in 1852 – in what was then a very remote location – to house new arrivals to Australia and protect the country from introduced diseases. It was the first permanent quarantine base in Victoria and one of the earliest and most substantial in Australia. (What a shame we don’t have something like this today!)
The Quarantine Station
The station was closed for quarantine purposes in 1980, but you can still wander around the nearly-50 heritage-listed buildings.
Although I only walked about eight kilometres, with the hills there was more altitude-gain than I am currently used to!
Fortunately, the charming Melbourne suburb of Portsea, right next door to the park, was once again open for cautious business after a three-week Covid-19 lockdown.
The only thing better than a history-rich hike is the coffee you reward yourself with afterwards.
Happy Walking!
Pictures: 19June2021
