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Venus Bay Victoria | |
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Coordinates | 38°41′0″S145°48′0″E / 38.68333°S 145.80000°E Coordinates: 38°41′0″S145°48′0″E / 38.68333°S 145.80000°E |
Population | 944 (2016 census) [1] |
Postcode(s) | 3956 |
Location |
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LGA(s) | South Gippsland Shire |
State electorate(s) | Gippsland South |
Federal division(s) | Monash |
Venus Bay is a wide bay [2] and a township on that bay on the east coast of Victoria, Australia. At the 2016 census Venus Bay had a population of 944. [2]
The name Venus Bay was given to the bay by a French expedition under Nicholas Baudin. This was apparently after George Bass's trading ship the Venus. (The expedition traded with Bass in Sydney in around 1801. [3] )
The town of Venus Bay is situated on a narrow peninsula of land located 180 km south-east of Melbourne. [4] Originally named Evergreen the town takes its name from the body of water on its western shore. On the eastern side of the peninsula is Anderson's Inlet, named after the settler Samuel Anderson.
Venus Bay has become a popular holiday retreat for people from Melbourne and is close to other popular South Gippsland tourist spots such as Phillip Island and Wilsons Promontory. The permanent population hovers just below 1,000, however this can swell into the thousands during holiday periods. The town is split into three 'estates'. The First Estate is home to the only shopping strip in Venus Bay, consisting of a general store, pharmacy, surf shop / hair dresser, cafe, take-away shops, real estate agents, caravan park and a restaurant. Three of Venus Bay's five surf beaches (Nos. 1, 2 and 3 beaches) are in the First Estate, with the Venus Bay Surf Livesaving Club located at the No. 1 Beach. This is the only patrolled beach, although during the busy summer period surf patrols regularly make their way up and down the beaches to just beyond No. 5 beach. [5]
The Venus Bay Community Centre is also located in the First Estate and runs a variety of programs and activities and is home to the Community Recycling Op Shop. In addition, the Community Centre runs a summer holiday program for kids and organizes the Summer Beach Shuttle Bus.
The Second Estate is home to Nos. 4 and 5 beaches as well as the popular fishing jetty on Anderson's Inlet. At the edge of the Second Estate is an elevated viewing platform that allows visitors to look out across Anderson's Inlet and view the many kangaroos that call the quiet eastern shores home.
The Third Estate is a sparsely populated and underdeveloped area leading to the tip of the peninsula (Point Smythe). This estate has the Doyle's Road foreshore reserve and the Point Smythe reservation, home to many wandering tracks that lead to secluded beaches on both shores of the peninsula and to the tip at the mouth of Anderson's Inlet.
The Tour de Tarwin is held every Easter and is a joint Venus Bay/Tarwin Lower initiative. Whilst it is a cycling event at heart, everyone including walkers are encouraged to participate. [6]
In recent years the residents of Venus Bay and nearby Tarwin Lower (5 km closer to Melbourne) have fought off developers seeking to drain the environmental wetlands and set up marina and resort developments. Today the fight appears to be strongly in the favour of the local residents.
In 2017, the locals at Venus Bay stated their displeasure over excessive harvesting of the pipi shellfish by daytrippers who came from Melbourne. Some incidents of vandalism were reported from the area. However, the locals urged that the anger was not racially charged, but was a misguided attempt to safeguard the ecological balance of the region by attacking pipi collectors rather than seeking regulatory change from appropriate authorities. [7]
Port Phillip , or Port Phillip Bay, is a horsehead-shaped enclosed bay on the central coast of southern Victoria, Australia. The bay opens into the Bass Strait via a short, narrow channel known as The Rip, and is completely surrounded by localities of Victoria's two largest cities — metropolitan Greater Melbourne in the bay's main eastern portion north of the Mornington Peninsula, and the city of Greater Geelong in the much smaller western portion north of the Bellarine Peninsula. Geographically, the bay covers 1,930 square kilometres and the shore stretches roughly 264 km (164 mi), with the volume of water around 25 cubic kilometres (6.0 cu mi). Most of the bay is navigable, although it is extremely shallow for its size — the deepest portion is only 24 metres (79 ft) and half the bay is shallower than 8 m (26 ft).
The Mornington Peninsula is a peninsula located south of Melbourne, Victoria, Australia. It is surrounded by Port Phillip to the west, Western Port to the east and Bass Strait to the south, and is connected to the mainland in the north. Geographically, the peninsula begins its protrusion from the mainland in the area between Pearcedale and an area north of Frankston. The area was originally home to the Mayone-bulluk and Boonwurrung-Balluk clans and formed part of the Boonwurrung nation's territory prior to European settlement.
Mount Eliza is a seaside suburb in Melbourne on the Mornington Peninsula, Victoria, Australia. It is in the local government area of the Shire of Mornington Peninsula.
Torquay is a seaside resort in Victoria, Australia, which faces Bass Strait, 21 km south of Geelong and is the gateway to the Great Ocean Road. It is bordered on the west by Spring Creek and its coastal features include Point Danger and Zeally Bay. At the 2016 Census, Torquay had a population of 13,258.
Inverloch is a seaside town located in Victoria, Australia. It is located 143 kilometres (89 mi) south east of Melbourne via the South Gippsland Highway on the Bass Highway at the mouth of Anderson Inlet, in the Bass Coast Shire of Gippsland, Victoria, Australia. Known originally for the calm waters of Anderson Inlet, it is now also known for the discovery of Australia's first dinosaur bone.
Anglesea is a town in Victoria, Australia. It is located on the Great Ocean Road in the Surf Coast Shire local government area. In the 2016 census, Anglesea had a population of 2,545 people.
The Ninety Mile Beach is a sandy stretch of beach on the south-eastern coastline of the East Gippsland region of Victoria in Australia. The beach faces Bass Strait and backs the Gippsland Lakes. The beach is just over 151 kilometres (94 mi) in length, running north-eastward from a spit near Port Albert to the man-made channel at Lakes Entrance.
The Gippsland Lakes are a network of lakes, marshes and lagoons in east Gippsland, Victoria, Australia covering an area of about 354 square kilometres (137 sq mi). The largest of the lakes are Lake Wellington, Lake King and Lake Victoria. The lakes are collectively fed by the Avon, Thomson, Latrobe, Mitchell, Nicholson and Tambo rivers.
Wonthaggi is a seaside town located 132 kilometres (82 mi) south east of Melbourne via the South Gippsland and Bass Highways, in the Bass Coast Shire of Gippsland, Victoria, Australia. Known originally for its coal mining, it is now the largest town in South Gippsland, a regional area with extensive tourism, beef and dairy industries.
Wye River is a small town in Victoria, Australia. It is also the name given to the waterway which flows through the town and into the sea at this point. Situated some 155 km west of Melbourne, on the Otway Coast part of the scenic Great Ocean Road, the Wye River township is a popular tourist destination about 15 km west of the resort town of Lorne, Victoria. It became a popular place for Melburnians to holiday after the Great Ocean Road was officially opened in 1932. The postcode of Wye River is 3234. At the 2016 census, Wye River had a permanent population of 66 although its holiday population is ten times that number.
The Great Southern Rail Trail is a 68-kilometre rail trail from Leongatha to Welshpool in South Gippsland, Victoria, Australia. This mostly flat or gently undulating trail goes through lush dairy farmland, areas of remnant bush and lowland scrub. It climbs from the foothills of Fish Creek up past Mount Hoddle and then down a steep descent through dense forest out into magnificent views of Wilsons Promontory and Corner Inlet, continuing on to Foster. before ending at Welshpool.
Sandy Point is a township in south Gippsland, Victoria near Wilsons Promontory. At the 2016 census, Sandy Point had a population of 270, growing to several thousand during the holiday period. It is surrounded by areas of significant natural heritage.
Cape Liptrap is located in south Gippsland, Victoria and is a peninsula that is the extension of the Hoddle Range that runs out to sea in a southwesterly direction. With a latitude of 38° 53' 60" S it the second most southerly point on the Australian mainland, just south of Cape Otway which lies to the west. Wilsons Promontory which is the most southerly point sits to the southeast separated from Cape Liptrap by Waratah Bay.
Tarwin Lower is a small town located 175 kilometres (109 mi) south-east of Melbourne, Australia. It rests on the south bank of the Tarwin River and at the 2006 census, had a population of 115.
Cape Paterson is a cape and seaside village located near the town of Wonthaggi, 132 kilometres (82 mi) south-east of Melbourne via the South Gippsland and Bass Highways, in the Bass Coast Shire of Gippsland, Victoria, Australia. Known originally for the discovery of coal by William Hovell in 1826, it is now extremely popular for its beaches and rockpool and at the 2011 census, it had a population of 718.
Anderson Inlet, sometimes incorrectly referred to as Andersons Inlet, is a shallow and dynamic estuary in South Gippsland, Victoria, Australia where the Tarwin River enters Bass Strait. It forms a 2,400-hectare (5,900-acre) almost enclosed bay next to the town of Inverloch, for which it provides a popular and protected beach. At low tide its intertidal mudflats provide important feeding habitat for migratory waders. It is also an important area for recreational fishing. It is named after Samuel Anderson pioneer explorer the first European to settle in the area.
The Tarwin River is a perennial river of the West Gippsland catchment, located in the South Gippsland region of the Australian state of Victoria. The Tarwin River is the primary river system within South Gippsland Shire and has a catchment area of approximately 1,500 square kilometres (580 sq mi), predominantly rural with small pockets of residential land use. It flows south from the Strzlecki Ranges and discharges in the eastern reaches of Anderson Inlet, a shallow estuary connected to Bass Strait.
McLoughlins Beach is a small settlement in South Gippsland, Victoria. It has an estimated permanent population of less than 300 and a number of holiday houses.
Dalyston is a seaside town located 125 kilometres (78 mi) south east of Melbourne via the South Gippsland and Bass Highways, in the Bass Coast Shire of Gippsland, Victoria, Australia. Known originally as a train station at Powlett River near Wonthaggi, it is now the location of the Victorian Desalination Plant, and at the 2011 census, it had a population of 606. It's Bass Coast’s fastest-growing suburb, with the 2011 census showing Dalyston’s population more than doubled from 278 residents in 2006 to 606 in 2011.
The Bunurong Marine and Coastal Park collectively are a marine park and a coastal park located along the reef and coast of Harmers Haven, Cape Paterson and Inverloch in the South Gippsland region of Victoria, Australia. Collectively, the parks are located approximately 140 kilometres (87 mi) southeast of Melbourne, between Coal Point in the west to Wreck Creek in the east, and are used for walking, picnicking, boating, education and research.