PORTLAND

TUESDAY 12.5.2015: Began the day at the Portland Botanic Gardens which were started in 1861. Again, local word has it that the gardens are now being tended by two ladies and from the people we spoke to everyone is impressed by the work they have undertaken. 

CURATOR'S RESIDENCE BUILT 1857

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Next stop was at the Cape Bridgewater Blowhole. Unfortunately the tide was out so we did not have large waves.



A forest that isn't .....The Petrified Forest. Called the Petrified Forest, the name comes from an early theory that advancing sand engulfed an ancient forest of coastal trees, petrifying them for all time. The formation is actually a collection of hollow tubes of limestone called 'solution pipes', eroded by millions of years of rainfall. The process starts when water gathers in a shallow pan of sand and seeps downwards dissolving the limestone. The mineral saturated water then cements the sand, forming hard, trunk-shaped pipes. Most pipes around Cape Bridgewater are one to three metres high, although some areas are as high as 20 metres. Have to say, it felt as though you were on another planet!

 

Took our leave from Portland and except for the weather, thoroughly enjoyed our stay. Next stop is Nelson which was named and surveyed by Lindsay Clarke in 1852. Nelson is on the Victorian border, but the Information Centre was able to provide us with details on the Dry Creek free camp situated just across the border in South Australia which is where we plan to spend the next two days.