This was published 9 years ago
Augusta, Western Australia: Travel guide and things to do
Augusta, WA
There is a sense in which Augusta really lies on the edge of the world. There it is this small, attractive town and beyond it lies Cape Leeuwin with that unforgettable sign dividing the oceans and indicating that to the south lies the Southern Ocean and to the west is the Indian Ocean.
Located 317 km south of Perth, Augusta is the third oldest settlement in West Australia.
The first Europeans to make contact with the Augusta area were the Dutch who, sighting the southwestern tip of Australia in March 1622 named it 't Landt van de Leeuwin' meaning the land of the lioness. There is some confusion over the exact origins of the discovery. The name Leeuwin appears on a Dutch map drawn by Hessel Gerritsz in 1627 with a note saying that it was discovered in 1622. There is a school of thought which argues that the area was named after the Dutch ship Leeuwin which reached Batavia in 1622. Although this seems like a plausible explanation there is no evidence to support the claim.
The coastline was explored extensively during the late eighteenth and early nineteenth centuries.
It was, however, Matthew Flinders who named the southwestern tip Cape Leeuwin. Flinders arrived in the area on 6 December 1801 in the Investigator. He discovered that Cape Leeuwin, which had previously been thought to be an island, was part of the mainland and duly named it with consideration to the Dutch who had first sighted the rocky headland.
Like so much of the southern coast of Western Australia, the first European 'settlers' in the area were the whalers and sealers who sought protection from the storms of the southern ocean.
Concerns about the likelihood of a French settlement on the Western Australian coast combined with a determination to close the penal colony at Port Macquarie saw the establishment of Albany in 1826. Two years later Captain James Stirling and Captain Fremantle had established settlements along the Swan River.
Reports of the richness of the land were good and on 12 March 1830 the barque Warrior arrived in Fremantle from England with a full complement of prospective new settlers. Finding that most of the good land along the Swan River had already been taken they moved south to the present site of Augusta. They were accompanied by Captain James Stirling who was eager to explore the area and investigate the possibility of a new settlement. The original landing site is located on the foreshore between Deere and Trigg streets and is marked by a plaque at the bottom of Loch street.
Never have the original inhabitants of a settlement been so easily identified. The excellent book In and Around Augusta and Margaret River details the first inhabitants as follows:
'Settlers on board included three groups from Warrior: Captain John Molloy, a Waterloo veteran, his wife Georgiana, and an establishment of eight other persons; James Woodward Turner, a London builder and surveyor, his wife Maria and seven children, and an establishment of twenty-one other persons; and four brothers, John, Charles, Vernon and Alfred Bussell, and their one servant.
'Also on board were a few settlers not attached to any establishment, together with Assistant Surveyor John Kellam, and a detachment of four men from HMS Sulphur under the command of Admiralty Mate Richard Dawson.'
It is likely that around this time Captain Stirling named the new township Augusta to honour the second daughter of King George III, Princess Augusta Sophia.
The first settlers had little success with the area. The Bussels and the Molloys moved out of the area quite quickly.
The early settlement was beset with problems. Supplies from Perth came infrequently, the local hardwood timber was difficult to clear, crops failed, tempers flared, people abandoned the harsh land. Only James Woodward Turner, who had been granted 20 000 acres where Augusta now stands, persisted but eventually he too retreated to the comfort of Perth.
Turner moved to Turnwood near North Bay and tried to farm the land but he was forced out when the local Aborigines fired the area (an annual custom) and destroyed his house in the process. He then moved to Cape Leeuwin but had no more success there. Turner's original Augusta grant was located where the Turner Park Caravan Park now stands.
People continued to try and settle in the area but it really wasn't until the 1870s that the potential of the local hardwoods was realised. The revitalisation of the area was the result of efforts by Maurice Coleman Davies who established sawmills at Coodardup, Karridale, Boranup and Jarrahdene. These mills were serviced by the ports of Flinders Bay and Hamelin Bay. Almost singlehandedly Davies created a market for karri and jarrah hardwoods. His karri and jarrah paving blocks were used on the streets of London.
Near the corner of Caves Road and Bushby Road is the solitary chimney which is now all that is left of the once thriving sawmilling township of Karridale. Built by Davies there was a time when Karridale supported a population of 300 timber workers and had its own school and hospital. The mill closed down in 1913 and the workers drifted away from the town. In 1961 a fire went through the derelict town. Now all that is left is the chimney of the mill.
It is hardly surprising that when the Augusta Road Board was established in 1891 Davies became the first chairman. The township of Augusta developed slowly and uncertainly. The Augusta Hotel was built in 1912. Supplies for the town were brought down the coast every three months until the railway line reached Augusta from Busselton in 1925 (it was closed down in 1957) and after the war the area was used for soldier settlement with a number of dairy farms being taken up by returned soldiers.
Things to do
Cape Leeuwin
One of the highlights of any visit to Augusta is to continue down the coast for 8 km (it is remarkably beautiful in this area) until reaching the rocky headland of Cape Leeuwin which Matthew Flinders described as 'the southern and most projecting part of Leeuwin's Land'. The walk up to the lighthouse, through an area which is often ablaze with wildflowers, and the view out over the point where the Southern and Indian oceans meet, is one of the great experiences on the Western Australian coast.
Cape Leeuwin Lighthouse
The lighthouse, which is open from 9.30 a.m. - 3.00 p.m. Tuesday to Sunday, was officially opened by Sir John Forrest on 10 December 1896. Set on foundations which reach 6.71 m below the surface to the bedrock, the lighthouse is built of local stone and the light itself, which is 56 m above sea level, can be seen 25 nautical miles out to sea. It is possible for the energetic to climb to the top of the lighthouse.
Nearby is the interesting old Waterwheel which was built in 1895 to tap a spring and provide water for the workers building the lighthouse. It continued to operate until 1928. Today it stands idle and encrusted with salt beside a pleasant picnic spot.
Leeuwin-Naturaliste National Park
Stretching north along the coast almost to Prevelly is the Leeuwin-Naturaliste National Park, an area of coastline which intersperses granite headlands and promontories with some of the most beautiful beaches in the country. This is an area where the sands are impossibly white and the sea changes from aquamarine near the shore to a dark Prussian blue on the horizon.
Hamelin Bay
The places of particular interest in the Park (apart from Cape Leeuwin lighthouse) are Hamelin Bay and the remarkable Jewel Cave.
Hamelin Bay, once the port for the sawmills at Karridale, is a sleepy little settlement which is now no more than a camping area, a beautiful beach, some islands near the shore, and a couple of remnant jetties which are literally no more than a few pylons and weathered timbers. At its height Hamelin Bay was a major timber port. The main jetty was 549 m long. However exposure to the open sea was always a problem and in 1900, during a period of particularly violent storms, five ships were wrecked in the vicinity.
Hamelin Bay Wreck Trail
Hamelin Bay boasts the most unusual Heritage Trail in the state. The Hamelin Bay Wreck Trail requires a boat and diving qualifications. It explores the numerous wrecks which lie in Hamelin Bay. The trail's description of the afternoon and evening of 22 July 1900 explains why a wreck trail is appropriate for Hamelin Bay.
'A letter of 1 August 1900 from Mr G. F. McGregor to his son Alexander tells of the storm and describes a violent wind initially from the north-north-west and 'the sea going right over the jetty'.
'The wind then backed to the south-west and strengthened to such a force that sheets of water were lifted from the sea and carried inland with such force as to fill McGregor's rain water tank with sea water. The wind forced those on the jetty to crawl on all fours to safety while clinging to the railway line that ran along the length of the structure.
'Dawn revealed a scene of great destruction. Two of the Katinka's masts (with the crew grimly attached) were all that could be seen of that vessel. The Danish barque Norwester and the Norwegian barque Lovspring lay stranded on the beach amongst floating wreckage and violent seas.'
Jewel Cave
Nearby is the Jewel Cave which was discovered in 1880 but not fully explored until 1958. It is an excellent limestone cave with an antechamber and two main caves one of which features the 'organ pipes' while the other is the 'jewel cave'. The main cave is 100 m high and 90 m long and has the usual run of features with names like 'the karri forest', 'the cauliflower' and 'the white canopy'. The fossil of a Tasmanian tiger which was carbon dated as being 25 000 years old was discovered in the cave.
Today Augusta, in spite of its long history, is a modern town relying on professional fishing, timber and the local tourist industry for its survival.
Augusta Historical Museum
The major attraction in the town is the Augusta Historical Museum which has recorded the history of the area in great detail. There are displays covering the history of the construction of the Cape Leeuwin lighthouse, the importance of Davies to the local timber industry, and a photographic display describing the rescue of a school of whales which beached themselves near the town.
On 30 July 1986 114 false killer whales stranded themselves on Augusta's main beach. People came from all over the south west and for two days and nights they laboured to relaunch the school The result was that 96 of the whales were successfully sent back out to sea.
Lumen Christi Catholic Church
Also of interest is the unusual Lumen Christi Catholic Church, a modern addition to the town made from rammed earth and with a very idiosyncratic front porch.
Augusta-Busselton Heritage Trail
There is also a very interesting Heritage Trail, Augusta-Busselton Heritage Trail, which covers the 100 km from Augusta to Busselton and traces the early history of the area through the movements of the Bussel and Molloy families who settled in Augusta only to move further up the coast looking for suitable agricultural land.
The booklet In and Around Augusta-Margaret River provides detailed instructions concerning the locations of some of the early farms in the area.It is a good, easy to read, and well illustrated history of the area published by the Augusta Historical Society.
Tourist Radio
Additional information - particularly very good up-to-the-minute information - about this town can be accessed by checking out Western Tourist Radio at http://www.touristradio.com.au < http://www.touristradio.com.au> . Not only does it provide excellent information for people planning to visit Augusta but it also provides access to information for people while they are actually travelling through the area. Check it out. It is very useful information.
Tourist Information
Augusta Visitor Centre
Corner of Ellis Street and Blackwood Avenue, Augusta
+61 8 9758 0166
Email: augusta@margaretriver.com
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