Anglesea Overboard cottage ... adjacent to bushland and a short walk to the beach.
Located 113 km south west of Melbourne at the northern end of the Great Ocean Road, Anglesea is an interesting mixture of an attractive seaside resort town and a piece of urban sprawl which spreads for about 5 km along the coast and includes such un-seaside dimensions as the Anglesea industrial estate. However, from Point Roadknight in the south around Soapy Rock to the main surfing beach and Coogoorah Reserve it is very much a beach resort town.
Anglesea was originally known as Swampy Creek. Subsequently it was known as Anglesea River. The name was eventually changed to Anglesea which is a well known town on the west coast of Wales.
The region was settled in the 1830s by squatters attracted to the freshwater creek and the grazing land which lay behind the sand dunes. Most notable was the arrival of William Roadknight (the local point is named after him) who brought sheep across from Tasmania in 1836 and settled near Ceres Bridge, west of Geelong. William and his son Thomas pioneered a track to the Cape Otway lighthouse in 1846.
Anglesea developed as a convenient stopover for the mail coaches which plied the southern coastline in the 1850s. In 1865, sporting parties with a taste for adventure came on horseback through dense ironbark forests to reach this isolated seaside location. The sleepy hamlet changed after the government of the day surveyed land into convenient blocks.
For many years, Cobb & Co. ran a mail coach service in from Geelong on unformed tracks. They called at nearby Mrs Murray's post office and tturned around at Jackson's Anglesea Hotel. Passengers for Aireys Inlet then changed to James Hasty's four-horse wagonette for the remainder of the journey.
Today Anglesea is a popular holiday destination because it combines a good beach (rare in these parts) with plenty of holiday activities. The fishing is excellent in the local area. So too is the surfing, sailing and windsurfing. Not surprisingly the town's population increases dramatically in the summer months.
Things to see
Great Ocean Road
Anglesea is the official start of the Great Ocean Road which runs for 320 km west along the coast offering some of the most beautiful coastline anywhere in Australia. Most of the major attractions - the Twelve Apostles, London Bridge etc - are at the western end but beyond Anglesea there are some particularly lovely vistas across the southern ocean from the road.
Point Roadknight
Attractive headland which protects the Anglesea beach from the full force of the southern ocean. It is an attractive vantage point and has good protected swimming below.
Anglesea Golf Course
The Golf Course has achieved fame because of the grazing kangaroos which take advantage of the well watered fairways in the early morning and late afternoon.
Coogoorah Reserve
Coogoorah Reserve ('coogoorah' is an Aboriginal word reputedly meaning 'swampy reed creek') lies on the western side of the Anglesea River on either side of the Great Ocean Road. It is an interesting combination of bushland islands linked by boardwalks and bridges. It has good picnic and barbecue facilities as well as a range of activity-based equipment for the children. The boardwalk offers excellent opportunities to experience the flora and fauna of this interesting wetland. The park achieved some infamy when the 1983 bushfires set the peat alight. It was subsequently necessary to diver the Anglesea River to put the slow burning fire out.
Anglesea Heathland Cliff Walk
To the north of the Anglesea River is a pleasant coastal walk which starts at Purnell Street (just east of the Bowling Club). It passes through coastal forests and along the cliffs. There is a map available at the Tourist Information Office. The walk takes between 45 minutes and an hour.
Point Addis
Turn off the Great Ocean Rd 7 km north-east of Anglesea and it's 3 km to the carpark. A walking trail lead to the beach. The Point is popular with hang-gliders as well as surfers and swimmers. The Koorie Cultural Walk, a 1-km loop-track, leads through the Ironbark Basin, a nature reserve with a profusion of birdlife.
Surf Classes
Go Ride a Wave offer learn to surf classes in the area, tel: (03) 5263 2111.
A Book About The Great Ocean Road
The best book about the Great Ocean Road is the remarkably cheap ($19.95 for a full colour hardback) book by Port Campbell photographer, Rodney Hyett. It is 96 pages long and has everything you could possibly want - great photographs, maps of the area, a potted history of the area, details about national parks and visitor information centres, accommodation, walking tracks, even details of the region's eight lighthouses and succinct (not as detailed as this website) pieces of information about all the major destinations from Queenscliff to Cape Bayswater. If you are planning to travel the Great Ocean Road and explore the totality of its attractions this is a small masterpiece of publishing and a great travel guide. It is available from many shops along the way, for more details see http://www.rodneyhyett.com.au/guideinfo.html
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