Kevtoberfest #19 Mallacoota
Would we have gone to Mallacoota if we hadn’t first seen it on a television show? Probably not – it meant taking a detour off the highway and staying overnight. But after the little seaside town was featured on ABC’s Back Roads, we decided the extra kilometres might be worth the effort.
The road to Mallacoota, in north-eastern Victoria, was flanked by green lush pastures, perfect for dairy cattle.
The campground in town, located beside the Wallagaraugh River, was surrounded by tall gum trees and from our sheltered site we had a million dollar view.
There were more wonderful views further along the coast. From Bastion Point we could see the mountains where the border separates New South Wales and Victoria.
At Bekta Beach, the Bekta River carved a ever-changing channel in the sand as it flowed into the ocean.
We found, hidden in the bush down a secluded dirt track, a remnant of the past that has remained unchanged for more than 70 years.
The Mallacoota World War II Operations Bunker was one of a chain of high security defence surveillance installations used by the Royal Australian Air Force. During the war, Defence personnel monitored traffic in the southern Pacific Ocean, including Japanese submarines on regular patrols off Australia’s east coast. The bunker ceased operations after the war ended and was restored as a museum in 2002.
Nearby was a lifeboat salvaged from the SS Riverina, which ran aground off the coast of Mallacoota in 1927.
Were we glad we chose to visit Mallacoota? Definitely! It was worth taking a detour to this pretty little town.
Great photos, I love the river and sea views and the sunset is just gorgeous 🙂
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Thanks Eunice. That is actually sunrise – east coast, so the sun sets over land. I woke up in time to see the lovely colour and raced out to get some photos.
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Sorry, I should have realised from the map that you were looking east but sometimes sunrises and sunset looks so similar I find it easy to get them mixed up when looking at a photo 🙂
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I agree, they’re hard to tell the difference, especially over water.
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You chose a particularly lovely day to visit – it looks very inviting!
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It was beautiful, but early spring in Victoria so the nights were decidedly chilly.
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What a great find on this detour. 🙂
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After seeing it on TV, we really wanted to check it out for ourselves. It would be a haven for those who love fishing.
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For sure 😊
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Is a very lovely spot. Great pics
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Thanks. We enjoyed it, but wouldn’t want to be there with 8000 other people at Easter or summer holidays.
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Fabulous. Love it when a plan comes together Carol xx
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It was great to visit, Jo and we managed to fill in the afternoon easily.
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Ooh we’ve been here! We did a long Sydney to Melbourne scenic drive a few years ago 😀
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The coastline is so beautiful, Lorraine.
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It seems it was a perfect place for a detour, with some history thrown in as well! 🙂
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It was a great little place to visit and the bunker was a surprise we didn’t know about before we got there.
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Such a lovely detour. And we are so glad you decided to go there. I love the photos. Good for ABC’s Back Roads. We also get ideas from TV special programs. Thanks for sharing.
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We particularly enjoy this show, which goes to small Australian towns and features the local people.
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Fascinating place Carol. That lifeboat looks well preserved after all these years.
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It’s not well-known that such places existed in Australia during the war. It was top secret then and hasn’t been widely publicised since then. German and Japanese submarines were frequently off the coast of Australia and monitoring was very important.
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Australia has so much to discover. I have never been to this south-east corner so thank you for taking me there.
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You’re in for a treat with the next couple of posts then Jude. It is such a pretty area and there is so much water. Far more than we’re used to.
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The lakes? I have so much more to explore in Australia I really need to get over there every couple of years while I can.
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Definitely, Jude. Come and visit!
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Beautiful photos – you’re making me homesick. 🙂
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You might need to make a flying visit. 🙂
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Tempting…
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A very pretty place, and being off the beaten track it’s no doubt as peaceful as it looks.
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Except at Easter and over the summer school holidays, when the population increases from 900 to 9000. The campground was huge but there weren’t that many amenities blocks. It would be awful at peak times.
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Great to find these hidden gems. Often we find these make far better adventures then the popular tourist destinations.
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It was a lovely place to spend a quiet evening.
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Mallacoota really is pretty. Haven’t been there in years. Thanks for bringing back nice memories.
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We loved it – very peaceful.
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What a lovely detour – definitely one that was worth taking. Your million dollar view from the camp ground is wonderful.
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We thought one of those houses on the hill would make a lovely holiday home. Imagine waking up to that view every morning.
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That would be fabulous. 🙂
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Lovely photos of this landscape. The bunkers are sobering, aren’t they?
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Yes, it’s a reminder of how close the war actually came to Australia’s southern coast. There were Japanese subs and German cruisers all around our coastline and Darwin and Broome, in the far north, were bombed.
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Talk about a win/win – beautiful countryside, water everywhere, and a history lesson. Good one. 🙂
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You’re right, Judy. It was a wonderful combination.
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