Green Head is a small

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 ...

n coastal town in the

Shire of Coorow The Shire of Coorow is a local government area located in the Mid West region of Western Australia, about north of Perth, the state capital, and about south of the city of Geraldton. The Shire covers an area of and its seat of government is ...

. The town is situated between

Geraldton Geraldton (Wajarri: ''Jambinu'', Wilunyu: ''Jambinbirri'') is a coastal city in the Mid West region of the Australian state of Western Australia, north of the state capital, Perth. At June 2018, Geraldton had an urban population of 37,648. ...

and

Perth Perth is the capital and largest city of the Australian state of Western Australia. It is the fourth most populous city in Australia and Oceania, with a population of 2.1 million (80% of the state) living in Greater Perth in 2020. Perth is ...

in the

Mid West The Midwestern United States, also referred to as the Midwest or the American Midwest, is one of four Census Bureau Region, census regions of the United States Census Bureau (also known as "Region 2"). It occupies the northern central part of ...

region of

Western Australia Western Australia (commonly abbreviated as WA) is a state of Australia occupying the western percent of the land area of Australia excluding external territories. It is bounded by the Indian Ocean to the north and west, the Southern Ocean to th ...

along

Indian Ocean Drive Indian Ocean Drive is a coastal highway in the Australian state of Western Australia which services the coastal communities along the Indian Ocean immediately north of the state capital Perth, linking the northern suburb of Yanchep with the Bra ...

. Its beaches and lifestyle provide a relaxed holiday atmosphere. It is the home of what was a significant, but now declining, rock lobster industry.

History

The first Europeans known to visit the Green Head coast were Dutch sailors in the 1600s, sailing to Indonesia for trade. Several Dutch ships were wrecked on the Western Australian reefs, among them the ''

Vergulde Draeck The ''Vergulde Draeck'' (), also spelled ''Vergulde Draak'' and ''Vergulde Draek'', was a , ship constructed in 1653 by the Dutch East India Company ( nl, Vereenigde Oostindische Compagnie, commonly abbreviated to VOC). The wrecking of the ''V ...

'' (Gilt Dragon). Abraham Leeman and crew from the ''Waeckende Boey'', while searching in the ship's small boat for survivors of the ''Vergulde Draeck'', were marooned on Fishermans Island just south of Green Head in 1658. The town was named after the nearby headland, which was originally named in 1875 by Staff-Commander William Edwin Archdeacon R.N., who was in charge of the Admiralty survey of the coast of Western Australia. The name is descriptive. Land was set aside for a camping reserve in 1946 and the popularity of the area led to a demand for building blocks in the 1950s. Lots were surveyed in 1959 and the townsite was gazetted on 7 January 1966.

Tourism

Green Head is a popular tourist destination and has a number of accommodation choices. Local attractions include

sea lions Sea lions are pinnipeds characterized by external ear flaps, long foreflippers, the ability to walk on all fours, short and thick hair, and a big chest and belly. Together with the fur seals, they make up the family Otariidae, eared seals. ...

a short boat ride off the Green Head coastline at North Fishermans Island, which hosts the second largest population of sea lions on the Mid West coast. Numbers fluctuate between 40 and 80,depending on the breeding cycle. Interaction can be experienced with these inquisitive mammals by a government licensed charter. Green Head has numerous vantage points for beach fishing, where catches include whiting,

herring Herring are forage fish, mostly belonging to the family of Clupeidae. Herring often move in large schools around fishing banks and near the coast, found particularly in shallow, temperate waters of the North Pacific and North Atlantic Oceans, i ...

tailor A tailor is a person who makes or alters clothing, particularly in men's clothing. The Oxford English Dictionary dates the term to the thirteenth century. History Although clothing construction goes back to prehistory, there is evidence of ...

, skippy, and

cobbler Cobbler(s) may refer to: *A person who repairs, and sometimes makes, shoes Places * The Cobbler, a mountain located near the head of Loch Long in Scotland * Mount Cobbler, Australia Art, entertainment and media * ''The Cobbler'' (1923 film) ...

. Two recreational boat ramps service the town, one near the jetty in Anchorage Bay and the other at South Bay for smaller boats. A boat provides access to a variety of fish as well as the local crayfish (rock-lobster). There is one main paddle-out surf break at Point Louise, best suited for beginners or malibu riders when the swell is under two metres. Swells bigger than 2 metres create a more powerful wave that suits intermediate to advanced surfers. Green Head has many options to explore off-shore reefs for waves but require use of a boat. Green Head is a well known

sailboarding Windsurfing is a wind propelled water sport that is a combination of sailing and surfing. It is also referred to as "sailboarding" and "boardsailing", and emerged in the late 1960s from the aerospace and surf culture of California. Windsurfing ga ...

destination thanks to the strong

sea breeze A sea breeze or onshore breeze is any wind that blows from a large body of water toward or onto a landmass; it develops due to differences in air pressure created by the differing heat capacities of water and dry land. As such, sea breezes ar ...

that blows from December until February. Although popular amongst the windsurfing community it still remains relatively uncrowded. Sandboarding is another activity available with specific beaches to sandboard where sand erosion is not a problem. The Green Head town site is surrounded by

nature reserve A nature reserve (also known as a wildlife refuge, wildlife sanctuary, biosphere reserve or bioreserve, natural or nature preserve, or nature conservation area) is a protected area of importance for flora, fauna, or features of geological or ...

s and a

national park A national park is a nature park, natural park in use for conservation (ethic), conservation purposes, created and protected by national governments. Often it is a reserve of natural, semi-natural, or developed land that a sovereign state dec ...

Lesueur National Park Lesueur National Park is a national park straddling the boundary between the Wheatbelt and Mid West regions of Western Australia, 211 km north of Perth. The park was gazetted in 1992. It includes two mesas known as Mount Lesueur and Moun ...

covers 2,700 hectares and is renowned for its diversity of wild flowers. 1200 species have been identified but not surprisingly there are still over 300 species to be identified. The Department of Environment and Conservation improved infrastructure by installing a

bitumen Asphalt, also known as bitumen (, ), is a sticky, black, highly viscous liquid or semi-solid form of petroleum. It may be found in natural deposits or may be a refined product, and is classed as a pitch. Before the 20th century, the term a ...

loop road for access to the unique flora and fauna. The best period to see the wildflowers in bloom is from August through until October. A 2.5 km walk trail "3 Bays Walkway" interconnects the three main bays from South Bay at Cliff Park, to Dynamite Bay and continues on to Anchorage Bay in the north. This walk trail has large limestone rock lookouts at strategic viewing locations, numerous interpretive signage along the trail which depict cultural, historic & indigenous information of the area while also allowing providing safe beach access. This walk trail is constructed predominantly of concrete to allow for greater usage regardless of age or abilities.

Beaches

The warm

Leeuwin Current The Leeuwin Current is a warm ocean current which flows southwards near the western coast of Australia. It rounds Cape Leeuwin to enter the waters south of Australia where its influence extends as far as Tasmania. Discovery The existence of the ...

from the north brings tropical sea life that swims with temperate species, creating a diverse diving environment offshore. Hard and soft corals, along with sponges, cover the numerous limestone reefs.

Seagrass meadow A seagrass meadow or seagrass bed is an underwater ecosystem formed by seagrasses. Seagrasses are marine (saltwater) plants found in shallow coastal waters and in the brackish waters of estuaries. Seagrasses are flowering plants with stems and ...

s and the absence of rivers flowing into the sea allows for very healthy conditions for marine life.

Dynamite Bay

Dynamite Bay is an almost circular bay in Green Head that is sheltered from the strong winds off the coast by a low lying rocky cliff that circles the beach. Snorkelling, swimming and wind-surfing are popular activities in the area.

South Bay

South Bay is a long white sand beach with clear turquoise water.

Point Louise

Point Louise, Green Head's main surf break, is also a good location for snorkeling with clear water is very clear and there is more than enough reef to explore it all. Further north are numerous bays ideal for snorkelling, kayaking, swimming and picnic areas with picnic tables. A well maintained gravel road accesses the bays, which were once dominated by squatters' shacks, built since the 1950s. Shack removal in the Shire of Coorow in 1994 enabled development of the coastal drive and a series of recreational sites adjacent to Green Head.

Anchorage Bay

Anchorage Bay is between Dynamite Bay and Point Louise which also harbors the Anchorage Bay jetty, a former Department of Transport (Marine) service jetty and boat launch facility.

References

{{authority control Coastal towns in Western Australia Shire of Coorow