Apollo Bay
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Apollo Bay is a coastal town in southwestern
Victoria Victoria most commonly refers to: * Victoria (Australia), a state of the Commonwealth of Australia * Victoria, British Columbia, provincial capital of British Columbia, Canada * Victoria (mythology), Roman goddess of Victory * Victoria, Seychelle ...
,
Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a Sovereign state, sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous List of islands of Australia, sma ...
. It is situated on the eastern side of
Cape Otway Cape Otway is a cape and a bounded locality of the Colac Otway Shire in southern Victoria, Australia on the Great Ocean Road; much of the area is enclosed in the Great Otway National Park. History Cape Otway was originally inhabited by the Gadub ...
, along the edge of the Barham River and on the
Great Ocean Road The Great Ocean Road is an Australian National Heritage listed stretch of road along the south-eastern coast of Australia between the Victorian cities of Torquay and Allansford. Built by returned soldiers between 1919 and 1932 and dedicated t ...
, in the
Colac Otway Shire The Shire of Colac Otway is a local government area in the Barwon South West region of Victoria, Australia, located in the south-western part of the state. It covers an area of and in June 2018 had a population of 21,503. It includes the towns ...
. The town had a population of 1,790 at the . Its population swells throughout the bustling holiday seasons and is considered a major tourist destination in Victoria. It is host to the annual Apollo Bay Seafood Festival, Winter Wild and the Great Ocean Road Running Festival. Off season, Apollo Bay is home to families and retirees alike. In winter to spring,
southern right whale The southern right whale (''Eubalaena australis'') is a baleen whale, one of three species classified as right whales belonging to the genus ''Eubalaena''. Southern right whales inhabit oceans south of the Equator, between the latitudes of 20 ...
s come to the area mainly to breed, to bear their calves, and to raise them in the warmer, calm waters of South Australia during their migration season. Less frequently,
humpback whale The humpback whale (''Megaptera novaeangliae'') is a species of baleen whale. It is a rorqual (a member of the family Balaenopteridae) and is the only species in the genus ''Megaptera''. Adults range in length from and weigh up to . The hu ...
s can be seen off the coast.


History

Apollo Bay is part of the traditional lands of the
Gadubanud The Gadubanud (Katubanut), also known as the Pallidurgbarran, Yarro waetch or Cape Otway tribe ( Tindale), are an Aboriginal Australian people of the state of Victoria. Their territory encompasses the rainforest plateau and rugged coastline of ...
, or King Parrot people, of the Cape Otway coast. By the early 19th century, the area was being frequented by
sealers Sealer may refer either to a person or ship engaged in seal hunting, or to a sealant; associated terms include: Seal hunting * Sealer Hill, South Shetland Islands, Antarctica * Sealers' Oven, bread oven of mud and stone built by sealers around 18 ...
and
whaler A whaler or whaling ship is a specialized vessel, designed or adapted for whaling: the catching or processing of whales. Terminology The term ''whaler'' is mostly historic. A handful of nations continue with industrial whaling, and one, Japa ...
s from
Sydney Sydney ( ) is the capital city of the state of New South Wales, and the most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Located on Australia's east coast, the metropolis surrounds Sydney Harbour and extends about towards the Blue Mountain ...
. One local Indigenous name for the area, of uncertain language origin, is 'Krambruk'. In the 1840s the Henty brothers established a
whaling Whaling is the process of hunting of whales for their usable products such as meat and blubber, which can be turned into a type of oil that became increasingly important in the Industrial Revolution. It was practiced as an organized industry ...
station at Point Bunbury on the western end of the bay. The bay was named by a Captain Loutit in 1845 when he sheltered his vessel, the ''Apollo,'' here from a storm. The first European settlers were timber cutters in the 1850s who subsequently established
sawmill A sawmill (saw mill, saw-mill) or lumber mill is a facility where logs are cut into lumber. Modern sawmills use a motorized saw to cut logs lengthwise to make long pieces, and crosswise to length depending on standard or custom sizes (dimensi ...
s. Although the bay provided a relatively sheltered anchorage, the lack of a suitable pier meant that logs were floated out to sea to be loaded on to ships. A township on Apollo Bay was surveyed in 1853 and named Middleton. In the 1860s, farming land was made available and in the mid 1870s, the first blocks in the township were offered for sale. Middleton post office (with a fortnightly mail delivery) opened on 1 May 1873. A school was opened in 1880. In 1881, the town and post office was renamed Krambruk. That was changed to Apollo Bay in 1898. During this period almost the only access to the area was by sea, but a coach service from
Birregurra Birregurra is a town on Gulidjan Country in Victoria, Australia approximately south-west of Melbourne. The town is located within the Colac Otway Shire. At the 2016 census, Birregurra had a population of 828. Birregurra is an Aboriginal word t ...
to Apollo Bay was inaugurated in 1889. The pier at Point Bunbury was swept away in a storm, as was a second pier at that site. Consequently, the "Long Pier" was built at a more sheltered site in 1892. The town plan indicated that Pascoe Street would be the main thoroughfare, but the erection of several buildings on Collingwood Street meant that it became Apollo Bay's commercial centre. With the upgrade of the road to the town in 1927, and then the completion of the
Great Ocean Road The Great Ocean Road is an Australian National Heritage listed stretch of road along the south-eastern coast of Australia between the Victorian cities of Torquay and Allansford. Built by returned soldiers between 1919 and 1932 and dedicated t ...
in 1932, the area became a tourist destination and an important fishing port. On 10 July 1932 the coastal steamer ''Casino'' sank while attempting to berth at the town jetty. Ten people died. Many earlier shipwrecks had occurred along the
Cape Otway Cape Otway is a cape and a bounded locality of the Colac Otway Shire in southern Victoria, Australia on the Great Ocean Road; much of the area is enclosed in the Great Otway National Park. History Cape Otway was originally inhabited by the Gadub ...
coastline. In 1936 a submarine telegraph and telephone cable from Apollo Bay to
Stanley Stanley may refer to: Arts and entertainment Film and television * ''Stanley'' (1972 film), an American horror film * ''Stanley'' (1984 film), an Australian comedy * ''Stanley'' (1999 film), an animated short * ''Stanley'' (1956 TV series) ...
provided the first telephone connection to
Tasmania ) , nickname = , image_map = Tasmania in Australia.svg , map_caption = Location of Tasmania in AustraliaCoordinates: , subdivision_type = Country , subdi ...
from the mainland. The Apollo Bay Telegraph station closed in 1963 and is now a museum.


Climate

Apollo Bay has an
oceanic climate An oceanic climate, also known as a marine climate, is the humid temperate climate sub-type in Köppen classification ''Cfb'', typical of west coasts in higher middle latitudes of continents, generally featuring cool summers and mild winters ( ...
(''Cfb'') with mild summers and damp winters.


Events and festivals in Apollo Bay

Events and festivals held in Apollo Bay include: * Winterwild * Great Ocean Road Running Festival * Apollo Bay Seafood Festival * Apollo Bay and Otway District Show * The Apollo Bay Music Festival (first held in 1993 and last held in 2013). A poster for the festival of 1999 by Jeff Ragus was featured on a
postage stamp A postage stamp is a small piece of paper issued by a post office, postal administration, or other authorized vendors to customers who pay postage (the cost involved in moving, insuring, or registering mail), who then affix the stamp to the fa ...
issued by
Australia Post Australia Post, formally the Australian Postal Corporation, is the government business enterprise that provides postal services in Australia. The head office of Australia Post is located in Bourke Street, Melbourne, which also serves as a post o ...
in 2006.


Sport

*Th
Apollo Bay Surf Lifesaving Club
was established in 1952 as a result of a meeting held on the foreshore by interested townspeople and Surf Lifesaving Victoria officials. The Apollo Bay SLSC became the ninth club to be affiliated with Surf Lifesaving Victoria. It is now affiliated with the new amalgamation between two Victorian lifesaving organisations: Life Saving Victoria.

*The Apollo Bay Sailing Club aims to provide a wide range of opportunities in sailing to a diverse range of abilities and age groups.Apollo Bay Sailing Club web site
/ref> *Apollo Bay Golf Club is on Nelson Street-
website
and Apollo Bay Pony Club -
website
. *The town has an
Australian Rules Australian football, also called Australian rules football or Aussie rules, or more simply football or footy, is a contact sport played between two teams of 18 players on an oval field, often a modified cricket ground. Points are scored by k ...
football team competing in the
Colac & District Football League The Colac & District Football Netball League (CDFNL) is a minor country football league based in the South West of Victoria in the city of Colac. The CDFNL has 10 clubs, all located in the Colac Otway Shire, with the exception of Lorne, whic ...
. *See als
Sports & Recreation
on th
Apollo Bay Community Website
*Apollo Bay has hosted overnight stops on the Great Victorian Bike Ride six times (1991, 1996, 2000, 2004, 2009 and 2016), including serving as the host for the rest day on the last four of those visits.


People born or raised in Apollo Bay

*
Neil Melville Neil Melville is an Australian actor. He was born in Sydney, but spent most of his childhood in Apollo Bay, Victoria. In the early 1970s he was lead singer of Geelong rock band "The Iliad". Melville graduated from Adelaide's Flinders Universit ...
– an actor born in
Sydney Sydney ( ) is the capital city of the state of New South Wales, and the most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Located on Australia's east coast, the metropolis surrounds Sydney Harbour and extends about towards the Blue Mountain ...
, but spent his childhood in Apollo Bay * Sid O'Neil, Ted O'Neil, Michael Fitzgerald – members of the rock band
The Vasco Era The Vasco Era were an Australian three piece rock/blues band based in Melbourne. Career Originally from Apollo Bay, but now based in Melbourne, the band's members are brothers Sid (vocals, guitar, lapsteel, rototoms) and Ted (bass) O'Neil and ...
* H. A. Willis – essayist, spent his early childhood in Apollo Bay


References


External links

*
Apollo Bay
- Community Website
Apollo Bay
- Official government tourism website. {{authority control Towns in Victoria (Australia) Coastal towns in Victoria (Australia) Bays of Victoria (Australia) Otway Ranges Western District (Victoria)