Port Hughes is a town and locality in the Australian state of

South Australia South Australia (commonly abbreviated as SA) is a States and territories of Australia, state in the southern central part of Australia. With a total land area of , it is the fourth-largest of Australia's states and territories by area, which in ...

located on northern

Yorke Peninsula The Yorke Peninsula, known as Guuranda by the original inhabitants, the Narungga people, is a peninsula located northwest and west of Adelaide in South Australia, between Spencer Gulf on the west and Gulf St Vincent on the east. The peninsula ...

about north-west of the state capital of

Adelaide Adelaide ( , ; ) is the list of Australian capital cities, capital and most populous city of South Australia, as well as the list of cities in Australia by population, fifth-most populous city in Australia. The name "Adelaide" may refer to ei ...

. It is considered part of the Moonta urban area by the

Australian Bureau of Statistics The Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) is an List of Australian Government entities, Australian Government agency that collects and analyses statistics on economic, population, Natural environment, environmental, and social issues to advi ...

. At the , Port Hughes had a population of 571.

Description

Port Hughes is a popular tourist destination, with attractions including a

Greg Norman Gregory John Norman (born 10 February 1955) is an Australian former professional golfer who spent 331 weeks as List of World Number One male golfers, world number one in the 1980s and 1990s. He won 88 professional tournaments, including 20 PGA ...

-designed links style golf course, the beach and the historic timber jetty. The beach is regarded as safe for swimming, which attracts families going on vacation. People fish in Port Hughes from the jetty or from boats in Spencer Gulf which can be easily launched at the local boat ramp. Boats are also available for charter to go fishing. Tourists and visitors can find accommodation at the caravan park, which features onsite cabins and villas. Port Hughes also has a general store and tavern.

Jetty

The current Port Hughes jetty was built in 1914 and is a popular

fishing Fishing is the activity of trying to catch fish. Fish are often caught as wildlife from the natural environment (Freshwater ecosystem, freshwater or Marine ecosystem, marine), but may also be caught from Fish stocking, stocked Body of water, ...

spot. An earlier jetty fell into disrepair and was condemned by 1908. The site was considered favourable for a jetty as it was able to reach into deeper water than the nearby jetty at Moonta. In the 21st century, the jetty is regarded as one of the best

scuba diving Scuba diving is a Diving mode, mode of underwater diving whereby divers use Scuba set, breathing equipment that is completely independent of a surface breathing gas supply, and therefore has a limited but variable endurance. The word ''scub ...

sites in South Australia, notable for its extensive soft coral growth ( Carijoa sp.). The jetty reaches out into water 6–7 metres deep and is approximately 250 metres long. Due to its relatively shallow waters (by contemporary standards) and predictable conditions, the jetty can also be enjoyed by beginners divers, underwater photographers, snorkelers and free-divers. The jetty endured storm damage in August 2020 and was closed until repairs were completed in December that year.

History

The government town of Port Hughes was surveyed in April 1863 and named after Sir Watson Hughes. The boundary of the town was extended in April 1960 and again in October 1985. Boundaries were created for the locality now known as Port Hughes in January 1999 which include the full extent of the former government town. The locality was enlarged in July 2008 by the addition of land from the adjoining locality of

Moonta Bay Moonta may refer to: Places *Moonta, South Australia, a locality in the Copper Coast Council including: ** East Moonta ** Moonta Bay **Moonta Cemetery ** Moonta Mines ** North Moonta *Corporate Town of Moonta, a former local government area *New ...

. In recent years, Port Hughes has been the subject of significant interest from land developers, with several land subdivisions in the local area. The most significant recent developments are the Patrick's Cove and Patrick's View land subdivisions, which have resulted in new housing being constructed and an influx of new residents. In June 2007, "The Dunes Port Hughes", a major new residential development was announced, including the construction of the first

designed golf course in Australia, as well as a hotel and convention facility, as part of a major housing development. On 11 July 2012 Ferrier Hodgson partners David Kidman and Martin Lewis were appointed as receivers and managers to sell the remaining allotments and development properties.

Governance

Port Hughes is located within the federal

Division of Grey The Division of Grey is an Divisions of the Australian House of Representatives, Australian electoral division in South Australia. The division was one of the seven established when the former Division of South Australia was redistributed on 2 ...

, the state

electoral district of Narungga Narungga is a single-member Electoral districts of South Australia, electoral district for the South Australian House of Assembly. It was created by the redistribution of 2016, and was contested for the first time at the 2018 South Australian sta ...

and the local government area known as the

Copper Coast Council The Copper Coast Council is a local government area in the Australian state of South Australia located at the northern end of the Yorke Peninsula. It was established in 1997 and its seat is in Kadina. Description The Copper Coast Council is lo ...

Gallery

File:South Beach Port Hughes.jpg, South Beach Port Hughes File:Port Hughes Foreshore.jpg, Port Hughes Foreshore File:PortHughesJetty.JPG, Port Hughes Jetty

References

External links

official local government webpage
{{authority control Coastal towns in South Australia Spencer Gulf Tourist attractions in South Australia Beaches of South Australia Underwater diving sites in Australia