• Adventuring Down Under
    Mary MacKillop window at the All Saints Catholic Church — Portland, VIC.
    Stained glass windows at the All Saints Catholic Church — Portland, VIC.Bay View House ... where Mary MacKillop established a seminary for young ladies — Portland.At the Bay View House — Portland.Walking a small section of the Great South West Trail — Portland, VIC.Tree with a bird of prey statue — Portland, VIC.Nuns Beach and the Lee Breakwater from the Great South West Trail — Portland, VIC.Nuns Beach and the Lee Breakwater from the Great South West Trail — Portland, VIC.Nuns Beach and the Lee Breakwater from the Great South West Trail — Portland, VIC.Distance Marker ... the Great South West Trail — Portland, VIC.Portland Lighthouse — Portland, VIC.2Koala in the wild ... Great South West Trail — Portland, VIC.Along the cliff top walk — Portland, VIC.Great South West Trail — Portland, VIC.WWII Museum and lookout ... in the old water tower — Portland, VIC.Anderson Point Stairs down to the beach ... our path back to the jetty — Portland, VIC.Anderson Point Beach ... have to get around Whaler's Point to reach the jetty — Portland, VIC.Looking back and forward ... Anderson Point Beach — Portland, VIC.On the way to Whaler's Point — Portland, VIC.Interesting boulders on the way to Whaler's Point — Portland, VIC.A breakwater of boulders protects us from the surf as we round Whaler's Point — Portland, VIC.Surf's up along Nuns Beach ... from the Lee Breakwater — Portland, VIC.

    Portland: A-wanderin’ in the Afternoon

    January 18, 2024 in Australia ⋅ 🌬 63 °F

    With Regatta scheduled to depart at 8:30p tonight, we had plenty of time to continue exploring Portland after lunch.

    For our afternoon meanderings, we decided to head to the Portland Lighthouse. Since our route took us by the All Saints Catholic Church, we popped in to take a look at the stained glass windows … charmed particularly by the one installed by the parishioners when Mary MacKillop was beatified in 1995. The window depicts her teaching children … as she did in real life when she lived in Portland with her family.

    From the church, we crossed over to the cliff top trail … part of the Great South West Walk, which is a bush walking trail that is about 155-mile long. We only did a couple of those miles! The cliff top views of the beaches below were beautiful and kept us going not just to the Portland Lighthouse, but to the WWII Museum and Lookout Tower, which is housed in an old water tower. Along the way, a local pointed us to a tree where we saw another koala. Three koalas on the same day. How lucky are we?

    At the WWII Museum, we skipped going inside. Instead, we took the Anderson Point Steps down to the beach, and from there we followed the path to Nuns Beach at the jetty … via Whaler’s Point. Thanks to the breakwater placed between the waves crashing ashore and the trail along the base of the cliff, we managed not to get wet. I can see why they have gates to lock down the trail when the weather is particularly bad.

    It was almost 4:00p when we returned to the ship. Mui was ready for a nap. Not me. Slightly chilled by the wind, afternoon tea in Horizons was beckoning me. A good time and place to write up the footprints for today.

    With Regatta departing on time, we are now at sea … rocking and pitching in some heavy swells. When we checked the weather earlier, Mui and I saw a gale warning posted for the island where we will be tendering tomorrow. So far, however, Captain Giulio expects that we will be able to go ashore as planned. 🤞🏻    Read more