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The Bellarine Peninsula (
Wadawurrung The Wadawurrung nation, also called the Wathaurong, or Wathaurung, are an Aboriginal Australian people living in the area near Melbourne, Geelong, and the Bellarine Peninsula in the state of Victoria. They are part of the Kulin alliance. The W ...
: ''Balla-wein'' or ''Biteyong'') is a
peninsula A peninsula is a landform that extends from a mainland and is only connected to land on one side. Peninsulas exist on each continent. The largest peninsula in the world is the Arabian Peninsula. Etymology The word ''peninsula'' derives , . T ...
located south-west of
Melbourne Melbourne ( , ; Boonwurrung language, Boonwurrung/ or ) is the List of Australian capital cities, capital and List of cities in Australia by population, most populous city of the States and territories of Australia, Australian state of Victori ...
in
Victoria, Australia Victoria, commonly abbreviated as Vic, is a state in southeastern Australia. It is the second-smallest state (after Tasmania), with a land area of ; the second-most-populated state (after New South Wales), with a population of over 7 million; ...
, surrounded by
Port Phillip Port Phillip (Kulin languages, Kulin: ''Narm-Narm'') or Port Phillip Bay is a horsehead-shaped bay#Types, enclosed bay on the central coast of southern Victoria (Australia), Victoria, Australia. The bay opens into the Bass Strait via a short, ...
,
Corio Bay Corio Bay is one of numerous internal bays in the southwest corner of Australia's Port Phillip, and is the bay on which abuts the City of Geelong. The nearby suburb of Corio takes its name from Corio Bay. Etymology When Hamilton Hume and Will ...
and
Bass Strait Bass Strait () is a strait separating the island state of Tasmania from the Mainland Australia, Australian mainland (more specifically the coast of Victoria (Australia), Victoria, with the exception of the land border across Boundary Islet). The ...
. The peninsula, together with the
Mornington Peninsula The Mornington Peninsula is a peninsula located in the south of Greater Melbourne, Victoria (state), Victoria, Australia. It is surrounded by Port Phillip to the west, Western Port to the east and Bass Strait to the south, and is connected to ...
, separates
Port Phillip Bay Port Phillip ( Kulin: ''Narm-Narm'') or Port Phillip Bay is a horsehead-shaped enclosed bay on the central coast of southern Victoria, Australia. The bay opens into the Bass Strait via a short, narrow channel known as The Rip, and is comple ...
from
Bass Strait Bass Strait () is a strait separating the island state of Tasmania from the Mainland Australia, Australian mainland (more specifically the coast of Victoria (Australia), Victoria, with the exception of the land border across Boundary Islet). The ...
. The peninsula itself was originally occupied by
Indigenous Australian Indigenous Australians are people with familial heritage from, or recognised membership of, the various ethnic groups living within the territory of contemporary Australia prior to History of Australia (1788–1850), British colonisation. The ...
clans of the
Wadawurrung The Wadawurrung nation, also called the Wathaurong, or Wathaurung, are an Aboriginal Australian people living in the area near Melbourne, Geelong, and the Bellarine Peninsula in the state of Victoria. They are part of the Kulin alliance. The W ...
nation, prior to European settlement in the early 19th century. Early European settlements were initially centred on wheat and grain agriculture, before the area became a popular tourist destination with most visitors arriving by paddle steamer on
Port Phillip Port Phillip (Kulin languages, Kulin: ''Narm-Narm'') or Port Phillip Bay is a horsehead-shaped bay#Types, enclosed bay on the central coast of southern Victoria (Australia), Victoria, Australia. The bay opens into the Bass Strait via a short, ...
in the late 19th century. Today, approximately 70,000 people live on the Bellarine, and this population doubles at peak periods during summer. The peninsula is a growing tourist region with a variety of beaches and seaside resorts and wineries; most of the peninsula is a part of the
City of Greater Geelong The City of Greater Geelong is a local government area in the Barwon South West region of Victoria, Australia, located in the western part of the state. It covers an area of and, had a population of 271,057 as of the 2021 Australian census. I ...
.


History

The area of
Geelong Geelong ( ) (Wathawurrung language, Wathawurrung: ''Djilang''/''Djalang'') is a port city in Victoria, Australia, located at the eastern end of Corio Bay (the smaller western portion of Port Phillip Bay) and the left bank of Barwon River (Victo ...
and the Bellarine Peninsula was originally occupied by
Indigenous Australian Indigenous Australians are people with familial heritage from, or recognised membership of, the various ethnic groups living within the territory of contemporary Australia prior to History of Australia (1788–1850), British colonisation. The ...
clans of the
Wadawurrung The Wadawurrung nation, also called the Wathaurong, or Wathaurung, are an Aboriginal Australian people living in the area near Melbourne, Geelong, and the Bellarine Peninsula in the state of Victoria. They are part of the Kulin alliance. The W ...
nation, prior to European settlement in the early 19th century. This area was a favourite and extensive camping place for the Wadawurrung people. One Wadawurrung name for the area is 'Balla-wein' which refers to 'balla' meaning 'elbow' or 'reclining at the elbow'. The
convict A convict is "a person found guilty of a crime and sentenced by a court" or "a person serving a sentence in prison". Convicts are often also known as "prisoners" or "inmates" or by the slang term "con", while a common label for former convicts ...
William Buckley escaped from the Sullivan Bay settlement in 1803, and lived among the Wadawurrung people for 32 years on the Bellarine Peninsula. In 1835,
John Batman John Batman (21 January 18016 May 1839) was an Australian Pastoral farming, grazier, entrepreneur and explorer, who had a prominent role in the foundation of Melbourne, founding of Melbourne. He also was involved in many attacks against Indigen ...
used Indented Head as his base camp, leaving behind several employees whilst he returned to
Tasmania Tasmania (; palawa kani: ''Lutruwita'') is an island States and territories of Australia, state of Australia. It is located to the south of the Mainland Australia, Australian mainland, and is separated from it by the Bass Strait. The sta ...
(then known as
Van Diemen's Land Van Diemen's Land was the colonial name of the island of Tasmania during the European exploration of Australia, European exploration and colonisation of Australia in the 19th century. The Aboriginal Tasmanians, Aboriginal-inhabited island wa ...
) for more supplies and his family. In this same year, Buckley surrendered to the party led by
John Helder Wedge John Helder Wedge (1793 – 22 November 1872) was a surveyor, explorer and politician in Van Diemen's Land (now Tasmania, Australia).G. H. Stancombe'Wedge, John Helder (1793 - 1872), Australian Dictionary of Biography, Online Edition Early life ...
and was later
pardon A pardon is a government decision to allow a person to be relieved of some or all of the legal consequences resulting from a criminal conviction. A pardon may be granted before or after conviction for the crime, depending on the laws of the j ...
ed by Lieutenant-Governor Sir George Arthur, and subsequently given the position of
interpreter Interpreting is translation from a spoken or signed language into another language, usually in real time to facilitate live communication. It is distinguished from the translation of a written text, which can be more deliberative and make use o ...
to the natives. By the 1850s, the peninsula was known as ‘the
granary A granary, also known as a grain house and historically as a granarium in Latin, is a post-harvest storage building primarily for grains or seeds. Granaries are typically built above the ground to prevent spoilage and protect the stored grains o ...
of the colony’ and Portarlington became a major player in the wheat industry. Transport was by sea on Port Phillip Bay due to the poor roads. By the 1870s, excursion traffic to the peninsula commenced, with tourists travelling from
Melbourne Melbourne ( , ; Boonwurrung language, Boonwurrung/ or ) is the List of Australian capital cities, capital and List of cities in Australia by population, most populous city of the States and territories of Australia, Australian state of Victori ...
by
paddle steamer A paddle steamer is a steamship or steamboat powered by a steam engine driving paddle wheels to propel the craft through the water. In antiquity, paddle wheelers followed the development of poles, oars and sails, whereby the first uses were wh ...
s to enjoy fishing and swimming by the bay, with the coastal towns being major holiday resorts. In 1879, one of the first branch railways was built in Victoria, from South Geelong station to Drysdale and Queenscliff. Encouraging the growth in agricultural production and leading to the decline in the bay steamer traffic to towns along the way, the line did not close until 1976. In recent years, with improved roads, the peninsula has become popular with people employed in Geelong, with population growth in towns such as
Leopold Leopold may refer to: People * Leopold (given name), including a list of people named Leopold or Léopold * Leopold (surname) Fictional characters * Leopold (''The Simpsons''), Superintendent Chalmers' assistant on ''The Simpsons'' * Leopold B ...
, Drysdale and Ocean Grove. The Seachange demographic phenomenon has also led to increased growth. Ironically, the Australian TV series ''
SeaChange ''SeaChange'' is an Australian television program that ran from 1998 to 2000 on the ABC and in 2019 on the Nine Network. It was created by Andrew Knight and Deborah Cox and starred Sigrid Thornton, David Wenham, William McInnes, John Howard ...
'' was filmed at various locations on the peninsula, particularly at
Barwon Heads Barwon Heads (previously known as Point Flinders) is a town on the Bellarine Peninsula, near Geelong, Victoria, Australia. It is situated on the west bank of the mouth of the Barwon River below Lake Connewarre, and is bounded to the west by fa ...
, which helped promote tourism on the peninsula. The peninsula is showing signs of environmental consciousness and attitudes towards
sustainability Sustainability is a social goal for people to co-exist on Earth over a long period of time. Definitions of this term are disputed and have varied with literature, context, and time. Sustainability usually has three dimensions (or pillars): env ...
, much the same as the
Mornington Peninsula The Mornington Peninsula is a peninsula located in the south of Greater Melbourne, Victoria (state), Victoria, Australia. It is surrounded by Port Phillip to the west, Western Port to the east and Bass Strait to the south, and is connected to ...
.


Geography

The Bellarine Peninsula is a gently to moderately undulating landform that protrudes in an east and north-easterly direction into
Port Phillip Port Phillip (Kulin languages, Kulin: ''Narm-Narm'') or Port Phillip Bay is a horsehead-shaped bay#Types, enclosed bay on the central coast of southern Victoria (Australia), Victoria, Australia. The bay opens into the Bass Strait via a short, ...
. The peninsula is generally considered to begin its protrusion between the town of
Torquay Torquay ( ) is a seaside town in Devon, England, part of the unitary authority area of Torbay. It lies south of the county town of Exeter and east-north-east of Plymouth, on the north of Tor Bay, adjoining the neighbouring town of Paignt ...
and east of
Geelong Geelong ( ) (Wathawurrung language, Wathawurrung: ''Djilang''/''Djalang'') is a port city in Victoria, Australia, located at the eastern end of Corio Bay (the smaller western portion of Port Phillip Bay) and the left bank of Barwon River (Victo ...
. It is surrounded by
Corio Bay Corio Bay is one of numerous internal bays in the southwest corner of Australia's Port Phillip, and is the bay on which abuts the City of Geelong. The nearby suburb of Corio takes its name from Corio Bay. Etymology When Hamilton Hume and Will ...
and the Outer Harbour to the north,
Port Phillip Port Phillip (Kulin languages, Kulin: ''Narm-Narm'') or Port Phillip Bay is a horsehead-shaped bay#Types, enclosed bay on the central coast of southern Victoria (Australia), Victoria, Australia. The bay opens into the Bass Strait via a short, ...
to the north-east and east,
The Rip The Rip is the narrow waterway entrance connecting the Bass Strait to the Port Phillip Bay in southern Victoria, Australia, and is the only route of maritime transport and thus seaport access into Melbourne and Geelong, Victoria's two larg ...
to the south-east and
Bass Strait Bass Strait () is a strait separating the island state of Tasmania from the Mainland Australia, Australian mainland (more specifically the coast of Victoria (Australia), Victoria, with the exception of the land border across Boundary Islet). The ...
to the south. The peninsula's eastern regions host several bays and islands such as
The Rip The Rip is the narrow waterway entrance connecting the Bass Strait to the Port Phillip Bay in southern Victoria, Australia, and is the only route of maritime transport and thus seaport access into Melbourne and Geelong, Victoria's two larg ...
, Lonsdale Bay,
Swan Bay The Swan Bay is a shallow, marine embayment at the eastern end of the Bellarine Peninsula in Port Phillip, Victoria, Australia. The township of Queenscliff lies at its southern end, and St Leonards at its northern. It is partly separated fro ...
, Swan Island, Rabbit Island and various other small islands. The central and north-eastern regions host a gently undulating topography with no major rivers, mountains or significant landforms. The most distinct feature in the western region of the peninsula is the Barwon River which flows through a series of large lakes and extensive wetlands before emptying into
Bass Strait Bass Strait () is a strait separating the island state of Tasmania from the Mainland Australia, Australian mainland (more specifically the coast of Victoria (Australia), Victoria, with the exception of the land border across Boundary Islet). The ...
at
Barwon Heads Barwon Heads (previously known as Point Flinders) is a town on the Bellarine Peninsula, near Geelong, Victoria, Australia. It is situated on the west bank of the mouth of the Barwon River below Lake Connewarre, and is bounded to the west by fa ...
.


Geology

The uplifted block of the Bellarine Peninsula forms a very weakly dissected undulating plain of low elevation, less than 150m. Drainage from the remnant
basalt Basalt (; ) is an aphanite, aphanitic (fine-grained) extrusive igneous rock formed from the rapid cooling of low-viscosity lava rich in magnesium and iron (mafic lava) exposed at or very near the planetary surface, surface of a terrestrial ...
s of the
Palaeogene The Paleogene Period ( ; also spelled Palaeogene or Palæogene) is a geologic period and system that spans 43 million years from the end of the Cretaceous Period Ma (million years ago) to the beginning of the Neogene Period Ma. It is the fir ...
Older Volcanics forms a vaguely radial pattern on the elevated
plateau In geology and physical geography, a plateau (; ; : plateaus or plateaux), also called a high plain or a tableland, is an area of a highland consisting of flat terrain that is raised sharply above the surrounding area on at least one side. ...
. A narrow strip of deeply weathered
Cretaceous The Cretaceous ( ) is a geological period that lasted from about 143.1 to 66 mya (unit), million years ago (Mya). It is the third and final period of the Mesozoic Era (geology), Era, as well as the longest. At around 77.1 million years, it is the ...
Otway Group rocks occurs in outcrop along the southern edge of the Curlewis
Monocline A monocline (or, rarely, a monoform) is a step-like fold in rock strata consisting of a zone of steeper dip within an otherwise horizontal or gently dipping sequence. Formation Monoclines may be formed in several different ways (see diagram) ...
, which forms the northern boundary of the peninsula. Landslides and narrow gullies have formed along the northern edge of the monocline. A sheet of marine sands of Late
Neogene The Neogene ( ,) is a geologic period and system that spans 20.45 million years from the end of the Paleogene Period million years ago ( Mya) to the beginning of the present Quaternary Period million years ago. It is the second period of th ...
age covers the southern portion of the uplifted Bellarine block. The majority of soils on the peninsula consist of grey-brown sedimentary sandy loams, overlaying medium to heavy textured clay. The Bellarine Hills are a significant variation with heavy black self mulching clay loams being well suited to intensive crop production. Mining of
shell grit Grit is a material eaten by birds to aid in their diets and digestion. Wild birds find grit naturally while foraging, and farmers can purchase grit for their domestic fowl. There are two forms: soluble grit, which dissolves in a bird's digestive sy ...
for glass making was an important industry on the shores of
Swan Bay The Swan Bay is a shallow, marine embayment at the eastern end of the Bellarine Peninsula in Port Phillip, Victoria, Australia. The township of Queenscliff lies at its southern end, and St Leonards at its northern. It is partly separated fro ...
.


Flora and fauna

Much of the native vegetation throughout the peninsula has been cleared for agriculture, notable exceptions being areas of land around Swan Bay, parklands in Portarlington, coastal areas along the Barwon Coast and some small remnant pockets around the Barwon River lakes and wetlands, many of these last remaining areas are protected or included in parklands. The largest area of original native woodland vegetation remaining on the Peninsula lies in the 143 hectare
Ocean Grove Nature Reserve The Ocean Grove Nature Reserve is a rectangular, 1.43 km2 nature reserve next to the town of Ocean Grove, Victoria, Ocean Grove and 25 km south-east of the city of Geelong, Victoria, Geelong, on the Bellarine Peninsula, Victoria, Austr ...
. The peninsula contains several significant
wetland A wetland is a distinct semi-aquatic ecosystem whose groundcovers are flooded or saturated in water, either permanently, for years or decades, or only seasonally. Flooding results in oxygen-poor ( anoxic) processes taking place, especially ...
s, many of which form part of the
Port Phillip Bay (Western Shoreline) and Bellarine Peninsula Ramsar Site The Port Phillip Bay (Western Shoreline) and Bellarine Peninsula Ramsar Site is one of the Australian sites listed under the Ramsar Convention as a wetland of international importance. It was designated on 15 December 1982, and is listed as Ram ...
and are of international significance for the protection of
waterbird A water bird, alternatively waterbird or aquatic bird, is a bird that lives on or around water. In some definitions, the term ''water bird'' is especially applied to birds in freshwater ecosystems, although others make no distinction from seabi ...
s and the
critically endangered An IUCN Red List critically endangered (CR or sometimes CE) species is one that has been categorized by the International Union for Conservation of Nature as facing an extremely high risk of extinction in the wild. As of December 2023, of t ...
orange-bellied parrot The orange-bellied parrot (''Neophema chrysogaster'') is a small parrot endemic (ecology), endemic to southern Australia, and one of only three species of parrot that bird migration, migrate. It was described by John Latham (ornithologist), John ...
. They are also recognised by
BirdLife International BirdLife International is a global partnership of non-governmental organizations that strives to conserve birds and their habitats. BirdLife International's priorities include preventing extinction of bird species, identifying and safeguarding i ...
in the Bellarine Wetlands and
Swan Bay and Port Phillip Bay Islands Important Bird Area The Swan Bay and Port Phillip Bay Islands Important Bird Area comprises a cluster of disparate sites centred at the eastern end of the Bellarine Peninsula, and the southern end of Port Phillip, in Victoria (Australia), Victoria, south-eastern A ...
s. Brushtail and Ringtail Possums (Wadawurrung: 'Walert' for Brushtail and 'Barnong' for Ringtail) are endemic to the region and live within the Townships,
Swamp Wallabies The swamp wallaby (''Wallabia bicolor'') is a small macropod marsupial of eastern Australia. This wallaby is also commonly known as the black wallaby, with other names including black-tailed wallaby, fern wallaby, black pademelon, stinker (in Que ...
also live in the Ocean Grove Nature Reserve. Marine mammals visit here include whales ( southern right and southern humpback), endemic
Burrunan dolphin The Burrunan dolphin (''Tursiops australis'') is a proposed species of bottlenose dolphin found in parts of Victoria, Australia first described in 2011. Its exact taxonomy is debated: numerous studies support it as being a separate species within ...
s,
Australian fur seal The brown fur seal (''Arctocephalus pusillus''), also known as the Cape fur seal, and Afro-Australian fur seal, is a species of fur seal. Description The brown fur seal is the largest and most robust member of the fur seals. It has a large an ...
s and
Australian sea lion The Australian sea lion (''Neophoca cinerea''), also known as the Australian sea-lion or Australian sealion, is a species of sea lion that is the only endemic pinniped in Australia. It is currently Monotypic taxon, monotypic in the genus ''Neopho ...
s.


Demographics

The peninsula is covered by two local government areas with a population of approximately 70,000. 35 per cent of residents on the Bellarine are aged sixty years or older, which is significantly higher than the national average of 23 per cent. The
Borough of Queenscliffe The Borough of Queenscliffe is a Local government areas of Victoria, local government area in the Barwon South West region of Victoria (Australia), Victoria, Australia, located in the southern part of the state. It is the smallest local governmen ...
, situated on the peninsula, is the last remaining
borough A borough is an administrative division in various English language, English-speaking countries. In principle, the term ''borough'' designates a self-governing walled town, although in practice, official use of the term varies widely. History ...
left in Victoria, and was the only
local government area A local government area (LGA) is an administrative division of a country that a local government is responsible for. The size of an LGA varies by country but it is generally a subdivision of a federated state, state, province, division (politica ...
not changed in the mass Victorian municipality reorganisation of 1993 enacted by then Liberal Premier
Jeff Kennett Jeffrey Gibb Kennett (born 2 March 1948) is an Australian former politician who served as the 43rd Premier of Victoria between 1992 and 1999, Leader of the Victorian Liberal Party from 1982 to 1989 and from 1991 to 1999, and the Member for ...
. The remainder of the peninsula is part of the
City of Greater Geelong The City of Greater Geelong is a local government area in the Barwon South West region of Victoria, Australia, located in the western part of the state. It covers an area of and, had a population of 271,057 as of the 2021 Australian census. I ...
, having been part of the
Rural City of Bellarine In general, a rural area or a countryside is a geographic area that is located outside towns and cities. Typical rural areas have a low population density and small settlements. Agricultural areas and areas with forestry are typically describ ...
before this time. The peninsula is also one of the parishes of the County of Grant, one of the
Cadastral divisions of Australia Lands administrative divisions of Australia are the cadastre, cadastral divisions of Australia for the purposes of identification of land to ensure security of land ownership. Most States of Australia, states term these divisions as county, coun ...
.


Shipwrecks

Some of the more significant and historical shipwrecks include; *''
Earl of Charlemont Earl () is a rank of the nobility in the United Kingdom. In modern Britain, an earl is a member of the peerage, ranking below a marquess and above a viscount. A feminine form of ''earl'' never developed; instead, ''countess'' is used. The titl ...
'' - sunk off the coast of
Barwon Heads Barwon Heads (previously known as Point Flinders) is a town on the Bellarine Peninsula, near Geelong, Victoria, Australia. It is situated on the west bank of the mouth of the Barwon River below Lake Connewarre, and is bounded to the west by fa ...
in (1853) *'' Mountain Maid'' - sunk off Swan Island after a collision with the ''SS Queen'' (1856) *''
Ozone Ozone () (or trioxygen) is an Inorganic compound, inorganic molecule with the chemical formula . It is a pale blue gas with a distinctively pungent smell. It is an allotrope of oxygen that is much less stable than the diatomic allotrope , break ...
'' - scuttled off Indented Head (1925) *''
HMAS J3 HMS ''J3'' (later HMAS ''J3'') was a ''J''-class submarine operated by the Royal Navy and the Royal Australian Navy. Design and construction The J class was designed by the Royal Navy in response to reported German submarines with surface s ...
'' - scuttled in
Swan Bay The Swan Bay is a shallow, marine embayment at the eastern end of the Bellarine Peninsula in Port Phillip, Victoria, Australia. The township of Queenscliff lies at its southern end, and St Leonards at its northern. It is partly separated fro ...
(1926)


Transport

*Road: The Bellarine Highway is the major road link, running east from Geelong though the middle of the peninsula to Queenscliff. The Geelong-Portarlington Road is an important road link to the northern peninsula towns of Curlewis, Drysdale, Clifton Springs, and the newly built Drysdale Bypass continues on to St Leonards, Indented Head and Portarlington. Grubb Road runs north-south across the peninsula, linking Drysdale and Ocean Grove. *Ferry:
Port Phillip Ferries Port Phillip Ferries is an Australian ferry company that operates on Port Phillip, providing fast ferry services connecting Geelong and Portarlington to Melbourne Docklands. Background Ferries had a long tradition of operating throughout Port ...
have run a twice-daily fast passenger service from Portarlington to Docklands since 2016.
Searoad Ferries Searoad Ferries (formerly known as Peninsula Searoad Transport) is an Australian company that operates a roll-on/roll-off vehicle and passenger ferry service between the heads of Port Phillip, near Melbourne, Victoria (Australia), Victoria, ...
operates a roll on/roll off vehicle ferry service from Queenscliff on the Bellarine to
Sorrento Sorrento ( , ; ; ) is a City status in Italy, city and overlooking the Gulf of Naples, Bay of Naples in Southern Italy. A popular tourist destination, Sorrento is located on the Sorrentine Peninsula at the southern terminus of a main branch o ...
on the
Mornington Peninsula The Mornington Peninsula is a peninsula located in the south of Greater Melbourne, Victoria (state), Victoria, Australia. It is surrounded by Port Phillip to the west, Western Port to the east and Bass Strait to the south, and is connected to ...
and has done so since 1987. *Bus: The Bellarine Transit System operated by McHarry's Buslines provides bus-based public transport to towns on the peninsula. *Train: The Queenscliff railway is no longer operational for commuter services, however the
Bellarine Railway The Bellarine Railway, formerly the Bellarine Peninsula Railway, is a volunteer-operated steam-driven tourist railway located in Victoria, Australia. It operates on a section of a formerly disused branch line on the Bellarine Peninsula betwee ...
operates tourist services between Drysdale and Queenscliff on the former
Victorian Railways The Victorian Railways (VR), trading from 1974 as VicRail, was the state-owned operator of most rail transport in the Australian state of Victoria from 1859 to 1983. The first railways in Victoria were private companies, but when these companie ...
line. Alongside it runs the
Bellarine Rail Trail The Bellarine Rail Trail is a 32 km walking and cycling track on the Bellarine Peninsula, in Victoria, Australia, that follows the route of the former South Geelong, Victoria, South Geelong to Queenscliff, Victoria, Queenscliff branch line. ...
, which continues into Geelong. *Bicycle: The
Bellarine Rail Trail The Bellarine Rail Trail is a 32 km walking and cycling track on the Bellarine Peninsula, in Victoria, Australia, that follows the route of the former South Geelong, Victoria, South Geelong to Queenscliff, Victoria, Queenscliff branch line. ...
runs from South Geelong station to Queenscliff and is a combination of sealed and well-made gravel surfaces. The distance is 32 km. There is much road cycling on the Bellarine, with some of the roads having dedicated bike lanes.


Utilities

Black Rock on the southern coast (near
Breamlea Breamlea is a locality in Surf Coast Shire, Victoria, Australia. It is located on the south coast of the Bellarine Peninsula, 18 kilometres south of Geelong, and halfway between Barwon Heads and Torquay. It is divided between the City of Greate ...
) is the location of the main
ocean outfall A marine outfall (or ocean outfall) is a pipeline or tunnel that discharges municipal or industrial wastewater, stormwater, combined sewer overflows (CSOs), cooling water, or brine effluents from water desalination Desalination is a process th ...
for
Geelong Geelong ( ) (Wathawurrung language, Wathawurrung: ''Djilang''/''Djalang'') is a port city in Victoria, Australia, located at the eastern end of Corio Bay (the smaller western portion of Port Phillip Bay) and the left bank of Barwon River (Victo ...
's sewage. Opened in 1915, initially the sewage was left untreated before being discharged into the ocean. A primary filtration system was installed in the 1970s, and in the 1980s the current plant was built with an upgraded filtration system, along with a 1.2 kilometre long ocean outfall. The plant was upgraded in 1997, with secondary filtration introduced, and a pipeline installed to transport
recycled water Water reclamation is the process of converting municipal wastewater or sewage and industrial wastewater into water that can be reused for a variety of purposes. It is also called wastewater reuse, water reuse or water recycling. There are many ty ...
to the flower farm at
Torquay Torquay ( ) is a seaside town in Devon, England, part of the unitary authority area of Torbay. It lies south of the county town of Exeter and east-north-east of Plymouth, on the north of Tor Bay, adjoining the neighbouring town of Paignt ...
. A 60 kW capacity
wind generator A wind turbine is a device that converts the kinetic energy of wind into electrical energy. , hundreds of thousands of large turbines, in installations known as wind farms, were generating over 650 gigawatts of power, with 60 GW added each ye ...
is located on Black Rock Road in
Breamlea Breamlea is a locality in Surf Coast Shire, Victoria, Australia. It is located on the south coast of the Bellarine Peninsula, 18 kilometres south of Geelong, and halfway between Barwon Heads and Torquay. It is divided between the City of Greate ...
. Erected in November 1987 by the then
State Electricity Commission of Victoria The State Electricity Commission of Victoria (SEC, SECV or ECV) is a government-owned electricity company in Victoria, Australia. Originally established to generate electricity from the state's reserves of brown coal, the SEC gradually monopoli ...
and the Victorian Solar Energy Council (now Energy Victoria) as a demonstration, it was sold in 1994 to the Alternative Technology Association of
Melbourne Melbourne ( , ; Boonwurrung language, Boonwurrung/ or ) is the List of Australian capital cities, capital and List of cities in Australia by population, most populous city of the States and territories of Australia, Australian state of Victori ...
. Electricity production ceased at 1200hrs on 17 May 2003 due to an
electrical generator In electricity generation, a generator, also called an ''electric generator'', ''electrical generator'', and ''electromagnetic generator'' is an electromechanical device that converts mechanical energy to electrical energy for use in an extern ...
burn-out, caused by moisture, salt, and electrical flash-over. The wind generator remains in place today intact.


See also

*
Edwards Point Edwards Point is a rocky point in the south extremity of Kermen Peninsula and Robert Island in the South Shetland Islands, Antarctica. The point is a southeast entrance point of English Strait and forms the west side of the entrance to Devesil ...
* Lake Connewarre ** Lake Connewarre State Wildlife Reserve *
Lake Victoria Lake Victoria is one of the African Great Lakes. With a surface area of approximately , Lake Victoria is Africa's largest lake by area, the world's largest tropics, tropical lake, and the world's second-largest fresh water lake by surface are ...
*
Swan Bay The Swan Bay is a shallow, marine embayment at the eastern end of the Bellarine Peninsula in Port Phillip, Victoria, Australia. The township of Queenscliff lies at its southern end, and St Leonards at its northern. It is partly separated fro ...
* Swan Island *
William Buckley (convict) William Buckley (born 1776–1780died 30 January 1856), also known as the "wild white man", was an English bricklayer, and served in the military until 1802, when he was convicted of theft. He was then Convicts in Australia, transported to Aus ...
*
Fort Queenscliff Fort Queenscliff, in Victoria, Australia, dates from 1860 when an open battery was constructed on Shortland's Bluff to defend the entrance to Port Phillip. The Fort, which underwent major redevelopment in the late 1870s and 1880s, became the he ...
*
Mornington Peninsula The Mornington Peninsula is a peninsula located in the south of Greater Melbourne, Victoria (state), Victoria, Australia. It is surrounded by Port Phillip to the west, Western Port to the east and Bass Strait to the south, and is connected to ...


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* {{coord, -38.212, 144.527, dim:20000_region:AU, display=title Geography of Geelong Wine regions of Victoria (state) Port Phillip Peninsulas of Victoria (state)