Watsons Bay
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 Camp Cove Beach, Watsons Bay |
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Watsons Bay is a suburb of Sydney on a bay of the same name in Port Jackson . Watsons Bay is located approximately 11 km northeast of downtown Sydney and is part of the Woollahra administrative district . The bay lies on the inside of the headland that forms the southern part of the mouth of Sydney Harbor into the Pacific.
Scenic sights
From the beach there is a picturesque view to the west over the harbor to the Sydney skyline and the Harbor Bridge . If you climb up the hill a few hundred meters from the beach in an easterly direction, you will reach the vertical drop of the cliffs to the Pacific. The cliff above the rocky bay, Gap Bluff or The Gap for short , offers spectacular views over the Pacific and the surf at the foot of the rocks. To the north you can see the harbor entrance and beyond it the peninsula of Manly .
The bush and heather vegetation on the cliffs has colorful flowers, and seabirds and cockatoos nest in the niches and ledges of the rocks. Large areas above the cliffs with the natural history trails running through them are part of the Sydney Harbor National Park .
tourism
The bay is a popular destination, especially on non-working days. In addition to the scenic attractions mentioned, it offers some sandy, child-friendly, surf-free beaches and an official nudist beach, as well as anchorage for a number of sailing and motor boats. The Doyles , which opened in 1885 and is one of the most renowned restaurants in Sydney and which claims to be the oldest seafood restaurant in Australia , is in a prime location right on the beach promenade . The shady spots in the park behind the beach promenade are popular picnic spots.
colonization
The place, a sought-after residential area, consists essentially of single and small multi-family houses.
traffic
The harbor ferry takes just under 30 minutes from the central hub Circular Quay to Watsons Bay. However, it only runs during the day, roughly every three quarters of an hour. Outside the ferry times, regular and frequent buses can take you from Circular Quay to the bay within 45 minutes .
history
Watsons Bay is named after Robert Watson (1756-1819), who was appointed Harbor Master of Sydney in 1811. Initially, Watsons Bay was a single fishing village. In 1857 the place gained notoriety due to a shipping tragedy: The management of a ship named Dunbar mistook the rocky bay of the Gap for the entrance to Sydney Harbor . The ship crashed on the cliffs, 121 people lost their lives.
Around 1860 it began to develop as a bathing beach and tourist attraction.
From around 1870 the military importance of the place prevented further development for decades. The rock head south of the port entrance played a key role in defending the port and thus the city. 1895-1941 occupied the artillery school of the Australian Army these positions. In 1942 the Australian Navy took possession of it. In 1942, one end of a submarine protection net was attached to Green Point in Watsons Bay. The network was destroyed after the war; only the foundation walls of the old winch house from which it was operated are preserved. Part of the site is still home to the HMAS Watson marine training center today .
In modern times, the Gap Bluff cliffs have become a notorious hotspot for suicide .
literature
- Frences Pollen (Editor): The Book of Sydney Suburbs , Angus & Robertson Publishers, 1990, ISBN 0-207-14495-8
Web links
Individual evidence
- ^ Australian Bureau of Statistics : Watsons Bay ( English ) In: 2016 Census QuickStats . June 27, 2017. Retrieved May 1, 2020.
- ↑ See ferry timetable ( Memento of the original from March 27, 2008 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was automatically inserted and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. , Website accessed on April 2, 2008
- ↑ See timetable information for buses , visited on April 2, 2008
