Located in Narooma, (a five-hours drive from Sydney or 3 hours from Canberra), Australia Rock is an interesting geological feature bearing a resemblance to the shape of the Australian continent (without Tasmania). The shape is the result of thousands of years of erosion of the ancient chert and shale headland.
We parked at the Bar Rock Lookout carpark, which gives spectacular ocean views over the breakwalls and out to Montague Island. You also get a lovely outlook over to Bar Beach and the Wagonga Inlet.
Near the carpark is a memorial plaque to the Lady Darling, an 895-ton iron steamer that sank in thirty metres of water off Mystery Bay on 10 November 1880. It was on a voyage from Newcastle to Melbourne with a cargo of coal, and struck rocks about four miles south of Montague Island. Attempts were made to reach the shore but the Lady Darling filled rapidly and the crew abandoned ship. All made the safety of the Island.
From the lookout, stairs lead down to the break wall and Australia Rock. If you don’t want to take the stairs, you can drive down as there is a carpark.
An interesting place with some great views. Worth the visit is you are in the area.
Lady Darling Memorial on Bar Rock LookoutSeal Rocks from Bar Rock LookoutAustralia RockLove Locks on Bar Rock Lookout
Containing many large artefacts from Port Kembla’s military and industrial past, the Port Kembla Heritage Park is both an interesting and educational to visit. We parked at the end of Gloucester Boulevard, although you could also use the carpark at Foreshore Road.
The area formed an integral part of the defences of Port Kembla during the Second World War, with several large guns emplaced here. Along with the battery at Hill 60, they defended the vital steel works from a potential Japanese invasion. The guns are long gone with the only reminder they were here being the large concrete emplacements and command tower which is now the Breakwater Battery Museum.
The field of white painted concrete tetrahedrons is one of the first things you see when arriving. Originally placed on the beach to impede enemy tanks they now form a display near the old gun emplacements. They are similar to the ones at Stockton that are sometimes visible at low tide.
Gun Emplacement with anti-tank tetrahedronsTetrahedron anti-tank obstacles
Breakwater Battery Museum
Although closed during our visit, the museum houses local military memorabilia. Housed in the old command centre for the gun battery, it is only open every 2nd and 4th Sunday of each month from 11AM to 4PM. If you intend visiting, check the opening times because they may change.
Sited next to the museum is a German 77mm field gun captured by the 45th Battalion AIF on the 8th of August 1918.
Breakwater Battery MuseumGerman 77mm Field Gun
Monuments and Memorials
Scattered around the park are several monuments and memorials to significant local events. The largest memorial is to the Dalfram Dispute of 1938. The dispute was a political industrial dispute at Port Kembla, protesting the export of pig iron from Australia to Japan during the Second Sino-Japanese War. It became famous for providing the nickname of Pig Iron Bob to Attorney General Robert Menzies, later to serve as Prime Minister.
Two monuments to the dispute are located here, one that looks like a giant grenade and a smaller plaque with a picture of the Dalfram.
Representing the area’s industrial past, a large Cowans-Sheldon 30 Ton Steam Crane sits below the museum. Nearby are several anchors and a dredge bucket, representing Port Kembla’s shipping heritage.
Dalfram Dispute Memorial
Dalfram Dispute MemorialAnchor from the Gabriella. Memorial to lives lost when she capsizedCowans-Sheldon 30 Ton Steam CraneDredge bucketAnchor and Chain
To see what else there is to do in New South Wales, please see some of our other stories.
A place of significant cultural value, Bass Point Reserve is Heritage Listed, due to extensive Aboriginal and Colonial use of the area. Archaeological evidence indicates that the Elouera people lived here at least 20,000 years ago. Colonial settlers arrived 1803, although European explorers had passed through before this. Settled by cedar cutters and graziers, much of the area was cleared. Land clearing, disease and hostility by Europeans resulted in the collapse of the Aboriginal population.
The Gravel Loader
One of the first sites you see at Bass Point is the gravel loader which services the local basalt quarry. It forms an interesting contrast to the other more natural heritage areas because of its industrial use.
The Gravel Loader
Bass Point
Walking through the Reserve, we saw some small lizards, but no other wildlife, although larger native animals inhabit the area. The eroded basalt on the shore has places where colourful orange algae grow, adding some colour to the otherwise dull rocks.
Lizard at Bass PointWeathered Basalt and Orange Algae at Bass Point Reserve
US Cities Service Boston & 6th Machine Gun Battalion Memorial
On 16 May 1943, the US oil tanker US Cities Service Boston grounded here during a storm. Australian soldiers from the 6th Australian Machine Gun Battalion camping nearby assisted in the rescue of the 62 crew on board. All lives from the Boston were saved but four Australian soldiers perished in the rescue. Each year, a remembrance service commemorates the loss.
6th Machine Gun Battalion Memorial“US Cities Service Boston” & 6th Machine Gun Battalion Memorial“US Cities Service Boston” & 6th Machine Gun Battalion Memorial
Bushrangers Bay
At the end of Bass Point Tourist Road is a small carpark that services Bushrangers Bay. This beautiful bay has vegetation growing down to the water line. A well-maintained wooden walkway provides access down to the pebble beach.
A viewing platform designed to provide views over the bay sits above and to the left of the steps but was overgrown when we visited. This obscured what would otherwise have been a great view.
Bushrangers Bay is a Marine Reserve, so fishing or removing anything from the area is prohibited.
Wooden steps down to Bushranger BayBushranger Bay
To see what else there is to do in New South Wales, please see some of our other stories.
