Landsat 7 composite imagery of the bay.

Port Phillip, and usually known locally just as "the Bay", Port Phillip (official name) is a large bay in southern Victoria, Australia. Geographically, Port Phillip is a large marine bay 745 square-miles (1,930 km² or 476,900 acres[1]) in area which has a coastline length of 164 miles (264 km). The bay is extremely shallow for its size, and mostly navigible. The deepest portion is only 24 m (80 ft), and half the region is shallower than 8 m (26+ ft), making in effect a hugh sea water lake perfect for fishing, scuba, snuba, and snorkeling category:Outdoor recreation recreational sports. Its volume is around 25 cubic kilometres. Image File history File links Port_Phillip_Bay. ... Image File history File links Port_Phillip_Bay. ... Landsat 7 is the latest satellite of the Landsat program. ... The bay at San Sebastián, Spain A headland is an area of land adjacent to water on three sides. ... Emblems: Pink heath (floral)Weedy Seadragon (Aquatic) helmeted honeyeater (bird) Leadbeaters possum (faunal) Motto: Peace and Prosperity Slogan or Nickname: Garden State, The Place To Be, On The Move Other Australian states and territories Capital Melbourne Government Const. ... Look up Mile in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. ... KM, Km, or km may stand for: Khmer language (ISO 639 alpha-2, km) Kilometre Kinemantra Meditation Knowledge management KM programming language KM Culture, Korean Movie Maker. ... Ft is an abbreviation that may refer to the following: The foot, a unit of length, see foot (unit of length) The Hungarian Forint A fort, especially when used as a placename, for example Ft. ... Fishing is the activity of hunting for fish by hooking, trapping, or gathering animals not classifiable as insects which breathe in water or pass their lives in water. ... may refer to: Scuba diving, the use of a self-contained breathing set to stay underwater for periods of time. ... Snuba is a portmanteau word formed from snorkel and scuba. In it, the swimmer uses the fins, mask, and breathing apparatus commonly used in scuba diving, but the air tanks which are usually strapped to the back are instead laid horizontally in 5-long canoe-like rubber pontoon rafts that... A snorkeler amid corals on a coral reef near Fiji. ...

Melbourne, the state's capital city, is located at its northern end, near the mouth of the Yarra River. Melbourne's suburbs extend around much of the northern and eastern shoreline, and the city of Geelong is located on Corio Bay, a subsidiary bay in the southwest. Melbournes Yarra River is a popular area for walking, jogging, cycling, rowing and for relaxing on the banks with a picnic Melbourne (pronounced ) is the second most populous city in Australia, with a metropolitan area population of approximately 3. ... The states and territories of Australia make up the Commonwealth of Australia under a federal system of government. ... Melbourne as seen from south-east side along the Yarra River, home of many rowers and active crew teams The Yarra River is a river in southern Victoria (Australia); it is the river on which the city of Melbourne was founded. ... This is a list of places in the State of Victoria, Australia. ... Moorabool St, Geelong A view of Corio Bay from Moorabool Street. ... Boats on Corio Bay, overlooking Geelong Corio Bay, one of numerous bays in Port Phillip lies in the southwest part of Port Phillip, and is the bay on which abuts Geelong, the second largest city in Victoria, Australia. ...

Port Phillip seen from Frankston on the eastern shore of the bay.

Photo by Adam Carr This image has been released into the public domain by the copyright holder, its copyright has expired, or it is ineligible for copyright. ... Photo by Adam Carr This image has been released into the public domain by the copyright holder, its copyright has expired, or it is ineligible for copyright. ... Frankston is a suburb in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia. ...

Bays and beaches

Port Phillip contains many bays and beaches including Beaumaris Bay, Corio Bay, St Kilda Beach, Brighton Beach, Hobson's Bay and others. The narrow entrance to the bay, called the Rip, between Point Lonsdale and Point Nepean, features strong tidal streams made turbulent by the uneven contours of the seabed. The best time for small craft to enter the Rip is at slack water. Large ships require expert local guidance to enter and exit, provided by the Port Phillip Pilot Service. There is currently a proposal to deepen the entrance, to allow newer, larger container ships to access Melbourne's docks. Beaumaris Bay is a bay in Port Phillip, Victoria, Australia. ... Boats on Corio Bay, overlooking Geelong Corio Bay, one of numerous bays in Port Phillip lies in the southwest part of Port Phillip, and is the bay on which abuts Geelong, the second largest city in Victoria, Australia. ... St Kilda () is a inner city suburb of the Victorian capital of Melbourne. ... Coat of arms of Filth Kikeville Brighton is a suburb in Melbourne Victoria, Australia, 11 km SE of the city. ... The Rip is a dangerous piece of water connecting Port Phillip in Victoria to Bass Strait - the water between southern Victoria and the island state of Tasmania in Australia. ... Point Lonsdale is a coastal township near Geelong, Victoria, Australia. ... Point Nepean marks the northern entrance to Port Phillip Bay Victoria, Australia. ... Slack water is the time during which no appreciable current in flowing in a body of water. ... Container ship Rita being loaded at Copenhagen; note crew standing on deck, and stacks of containers on shore. ...

Map of the Port Phillip area

The eastern side of the bay is characterised by sandy beaches extending from St Kilda, Sandringham, Beaumaris, Carrum, and down the Mornington Peninsula to Frankston, Safety Beach/Dromana and Rye to Portsea. Longshore drift carries sand from south to north during winter and from north to south during summer. Cliff erosion control has often resulted in sand starvation, necessitating offshore dredging to replenish the beach. Image File history File links Portphillip. ... Image File history File links Portphillip. ... St Kilda () is a inner city suburb of the Victorian capital of Melbourne. ... Sandringham is a suburb in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia. ... Beaumaris is a suburb of Melbourne, Victoria, Australia. ... Carrum is a suburb of Melbourne, Victoria, Australia. ... A beach on the Mornington Peninsula A beach on the Mornington Peninsula A beach on the Mornington Peninsula The Mornington Peninsula is a peninsula located south-east of Melbourne in Victoria, Australia, surrounded by Port Phillip, Western Port Bay and Bass Strait. ... Frankston is a suburb in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia. ... Safety Beach is a suburb in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia. ... Dromana is a suburb in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia. ... Rye is a suburb in the Morning Peninsula, Victoria, Australia. ... Portsea is a suburb in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia. ... In geography, longshore drift (LSD) (shore drift or littoral drift) is a process by which sediments move along a beach shore. ... Patterns in the sand Sand is a granular material made up of fine rock particles. ... Winter is one of the four seasons of temperate zones. ... Summer is a season that is astronomically defined as beginning around June 21, and ending around September 23 in the Northern Hemisphere. ... Severe soil erosion in a wheat field near Washington State University, USA. Erosion is the displacement of solids (soil, mud, rock and other particles) by the agents of wind, water or ice, by downward or down-slope movement in response to gravity or by living organisms (in the case of... A dredge is a small waterborne craft used to remove sediment from the bottoms of rivers and harbors. ...

On the western side of the bay there is a greater variety of beach types, seen at Queenscliff, St Leonards, Indented Head, Portarlington, and Eastern Beach. Queenscliff is a small town that lies on the Bellarine Peninsula. ... St Leonards is a coastal township near Geelong, Victoria, Australia, located on the Bellarine Peninsula. ... Indented Head is a coastal township in Victoria, Australia. ... Portarlington (Cúil an tSúdaire in Irish, meaning Tanners Corner) is a town in County Laois, straddling the border with County Offaly in the midlands of Ireland. ... Eastern Beach, Geelong, Victoria is Geelongs main recreational beach area, located on Corio Bay. ...

Numerous sandbanks and shoals occur in the southern section of the bay, so that the shipping channels from the Rip to the deeper northern section must be continually dredged. The Mud Islands, off Sorrento, are an important breeding habitat for Silver Gull, Australian Pelican and Pacific Gull. Australian Gannets also breed on navigation beacons in this area, and it also hosts breeding colonies of Australian Fur Seal. Saltmarsh in the northwestern sections of the bay is listed as significant wetlands with the Ramsar Convention and the critically-endangered Orange-bellied Parrot is found at three wintering sites around Port Phillip and the Bellarine Peninsula. A sandbank is a patch of sand in water, which creates a shallow area which may pose a hazard to boats. ... Look up Shoal in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. ... Mud Islands Marine Reserve The Mud Islands are located within Port Phillip Bay, south of Melbourne, Australia, approximately 10km inside Port Phillip Heads, 7km north of Portsea and 9km east of Queenscliff. ... Sorrento is a township of Victoria, Australia, almost at the far tip of the Mornington Peninsula about 1 and a half hours south of the Capital, Melbourne. ... Binomial name Larus novaehollandiae Stephens, 1826 The Silver Gull (Larus novaehollandiae) is the most common gull seen in Australia. ... Binomial name Pelecanus conspicillatus Temminck, 1824 The Australian Pelican or Goolayyalibee (Pelecanus conspicillatus) is an unmistakable large water bird, widespread on the inland and coastal waters of Australia and New Guinea, also in Fiji, parts of Indonesia and as a vagrant to New Zealand. ... Binomial name Larus pacificus Latham,, 1802 The Pacific Gull (Larus pacificus) is a very large gull, native to the coasts. ... Binomial name Morus serrator Gray, 1843 The Australian Gannet (Morus serrator or Sula bassana) is a large seabird of the gannet family, Sulidae. ... Binomial name Arcetocephalus pusillus Schreber, 1775 The Cape Fur Seal (also known as the South African Fur Seal) and the Australian Fur Seal are two subspecies of the Arctocephalus pusillus species of fur seal. ... An Atlantic coastal salt marsh in Connecticut. ... The Ramsar Convention is an international treaty for the conservation and sustainable utilization of wetlands, i. ... Binomial name Neophema chrysogaster (Latham, 1790) The Orange-bellied Parrot (Neophema chrysogaster) is a small broad-tailed parrot endemic to Australia. ... The Bellarine Peninsula is a peninsula located south-west of Melbourne in Victoria, Australia, surrounded by Port Phillip, Corio Bay and Bass Strait. ...

Transport

Searoad ferry at Sorrento

Two ferries travel across the mouth of the bay each hour, between Queenscliff and Sorrento. The service is known as the Searoad ferry. Ferries also run from St Kilda to Williamstown, Victoria across Hobsons Bay. These ferries, like the many recreational cruises mostly operate for tourists and run around the bay in various locations. Image File history File links Searoad. ... Image File history File links Searoad. ... MV Queenscliff in Port Phillip Bay Peninsula Searoad Transport Pty Ltd (PST, commonly known as Searoad) is an Australian company operating ferries near Melbourne, Victoria, Australia, between Queenscliff on the Bellarine Peninsula and Sorrento on the Mornington Peninsula, across the heads of Port Phillip, It is operates two vehicle and... Sorrento is the name of many cities and towns: Sorrento,_Italy Sorrento,_Florida, United States of America Sorrento, suburb of Melbourne, Victoria, Australia Sorrento, suburb of Perth, Western Australia, Australia Sorrento, Hong Kong, the largest residential development on Kowloon Station This is a disambiguation page — a navigational aid which... Queenscliff is a small town that lies on the Bellarine Peninsula. ... Sorrento is a township of Victoria, Australia, almost at the far tip of the Mornington Peninsula about 1 and a half hours south of the Capital, Melbourne. ... Categories: Stub ... St Kilda () is a inner city suburb of the Victorian capital of Melbourne. ... Royal Yacht Club of Victoria, Williamstown Nelson Place, a popular street to visit in Williamstown consisting of many cafés. ... The City of Hobsons Bay is a Local Government Area in Victoria, Australia. ...

Today the Port of Melbourne has grown to become Australia's busiest commercial port, serving Australia's second largest city and handling an enormous amount of imports and exports into the country. The Port of Geelong also handles a large volume of container traffic, as does the nearby Port of Hastings in Westernport Bay. The Port of Melbourne is Australias largest port for containerised and general cargo. ... Western Port looking west from French Island to the Mornington Peninsula Western Port (also known as Western Port Bay) is an inlet on the southern coast of Australia from Bass Strait and the Pacific Ocean, adjacent and to the east of Port Phillip on which is sited Melbourne, the capital...

Recreation and Sport

Beacon Cove beach and exclusive apartments in Port Melbourne.

Port Phillip's mostly flat topography and moderate waves make perfect conditions for recreational cycling, running, swimming, parasurfing, rollerblading, windsurfing, sailing, boating and other sports. Image File history File linksMetadata Beacon_cove_beach_port_melbourne. ... Image File history File linksMetadata Beacon_cove_beach_port_melbourne. ... Port Melbourne is a suburb of Melbourne, Victoria, Australia. ... This road bicycle is built using lightweight, shaped aluminium tubing and carbon fiber stays and forks. ... This article or section does not cite its references or sources. ... Swimming is a technique that humans, and other animals, use to move through water using only movements of the body, for exercise, fun and competition. ... Catching a breeze in Australia Parasurfing is a relatively new form of surfing, where participants use a wakeboard to skim across the surface of a body of water, propelled by a type of parasail attached to a waist harness. ... Roller skating girl in Rome, Italy (soul grind) Roller skating is travelling on smooth terrain with roller skates. ... A windsurfer with modern gear tilts the rig and carves the board to perform a planing gybe (downwind turn) close to shore in Maui, Hawaii, one of the popular destinations for windsurfing. ... Sailing at sunset Wooden sailing boat Sailing is the skillful art of controlling the motion of a sailing ship or sailboat, across a body of water. ... Boating on the Royal Military Canal at Hythe. ...

Port Phillip is home to 36 Yacht clubs. It also hosts the Melbourne to Hobart and Melbourne to Launceston Yacht Races. Port Phillip is also home to numerous marinas, including large marinas at St Kilda, Geelong and Brighton. A yacht club is a club ostensibly for the owners of yachts but more generally serving as a social club. ... View of the Hobart downtown district and Mt Wellington from Constitution Dock Hobart is the state capital and most populous city of the Australian island state of Tasmania. ... Launceston City Council, Coat of Arms Launceston is a small city in the north of the state of Tasmania, Australia, population approximately 103,000, located at the juncture of the North Esk, South Esk, and Tamar rivers. ... A small marina at Brixham, Devon, England. ...

Dozens of lifesaving clubs dot Port Phillip, especially on the east coast from Altona to Frankston. These clubs provide volunteer lifeguard services and conduct sporting carnivals. This page is on surf lifesaving in Australia; for surf lifesaving in New Zealand, see Surf Life Saving New Zealand. ... Altona Beach and Pier Altona () is a south-western suburb of Melbourne, Victoria, Australia. ... Frankston is a suburb in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia. ...

History

The memorial at Sorrento marking the site of the first European settlement on Port Phillip in 1803

Port Phillip was formed about 10,000 years ago at the end of the last Ice Age, when the sea-level rose to drown what was then the valley of the Yarra, which flowed down what is now the eastern side of the bay. The Aboriginal people were in occupation of the area long before the bay was formed, having arrived at least 20,000 years ago and possibly 40,000 years ago. Large piles of semi-fossilised sea-shells known as middens, can still be seen in places around the shoreline, marking the spots where Aboriginal people held feasts. They made a good living from the abundant sea-life, which included penguins and seals. In the cold season they wore possum-skin cloaks and elaborate feathered head-dresses. This image has been released into the public domain by the copyright holder, its copyright has expired, or it is ineligible for copyright. ... This image has been released into the public domain by the copyright holder, its copyright has expired, or it is ineligible for copyright. ... Variations in CO2, temperature and dust from the Vostok ice core over the last 400 000 years For the animated movie, see Ice Age (movie). ... // Definition Mean sea level (MSL) is the average height of the sea, with reference to a suitable reference surface. ... Australian Aborigines are the main indigenous people of Australia. ... A midden, or kitchen midden, is a dump for domestic waste. ... Sewn and incised possum-skin cloak of Wurundjeri origin (Melbourne Museum) Possum-skin cloaks were a form of clothing worn by Australian Aborigines in the south-east of the continent – present-day Victoria and southern New South Wales. ...

The first Europeans to see Port Phillip were the crew of the Lady Nelson, commanded by John Murray, which entered the bay on 15 February 1802. Murray named the bay Port King after the Governor of New South Wales, Philip Gidley King, but King later renamed it Port Phillip, in honour of his predecessor Arthur Phillip. The Lady Nelson was a vessel used in the exploration of the coast of Australia in the early years of the 19th century. ... John Murray (1775? - ????) was a seaman and explorer. ... February 15 is the 46th day of the year in the Gregorian Calendar. ... --69. ... List of Governors of New South Wales See Governors of the Australian states for a description and history of the office of Governor. ... Philip Gidley King Naval pioneer and colonial governor Captain Philip Gidley King RN (23 April 1758 – 3 September 1808) was an English naval officer and colonial administrator. ... Admiral Arthur Phillip (1786 portrait by Francis Wheatley, National Portrait Gallery, London) Admiral Arthur Phillip, RN (11 October 1738 – 31 August 1814) was a British naval officer and colonial administrator. ...

About ten weeks after Murray, Matthew Flinders in the Investigator also found and entered the bay, unaware Murray had been there. The official history of Nicholas Baudin's explorations in Le Geographe claimed they too had sighted the entrance at that time (30 March 1802) but this is almost certainly a later embellishment or error, being absent from the ship's logs and Baudin's own accounts.^[1] Captain Matthew Flinders. ... Nicolas Baudin Nicolas-Thomas Baudin (February 17, 1754 - September 16, 1803) was a French explorer. ... March 30 is the 89th day of the year in the Gregorian Calendar (90th in a leap year). ... --69. ...

As a result of Murray's and Flinders' reports, King sent Lieutenant Charles Robbins in the Cumberland to explore Port Phillip fully. One of his party, Charles Grimes, became the first European to walk right round the bay, and thus to discover the mouth of the Yarra, on 2 February 1803. Charles Grimes (February 24, 1772 - February 19, 1858) was an English surveyor of Australia. ... February 2 is the 33rd day of the year in the Gregorian Calendar. ... 1803 was a common year starting on Saturday (see link for calendar). ...

King decided to place a convict settlement at Port Phillip, mainly to stake a claim to southern Australia ahead of the French. In October 1803 a party led by Lt-Col David Collins and consisting of about 400 people landed near the modern site of Sorrento, where they established a settlement called Hobart. Lack of fresh water and good timber, however, led this, the first attempt at European settlement in Victoria, to be abandoned in May 1804. Collins and party sailed to Tasmania, where they established the modern Hobart. Prior to abandonment one convict, William Buckley, escaped from the settlement in a stolen canoe. Buckley later took up residence in a cave near Point Lonsdale on the western side of the bay's entrance, The Rip. 1803 was a common year starting on Saturday (see link for calendar). ... David Collins (March 3, 1754 – March 24, 1810) was the inaugural Governor of the Colony of Van Diemens Land, founded in 1804, which in 1901 became the state of Tasmania in the Commonwealth of Australia. ... Sorrento is a township of Victoria, Australia, almost at the far tip of the Mornington Peninsula about 1 and a half hours south of the Capital, Melbourne. ... 1804 was a leap year starting on Sunday (see link for calendar). ... Emblems: Flora - Tasmanian Blue Gum; Mineral - Crocoite Motto: Ubertas et Fidelitas (Fertility and Faithfulness) Slogan or Nickname: The Apple Isle; Holiday Isle Other Australian states and territories Capital Hobart Government Const. ... View of the Hobart downtown district and Mt Wellington from Constitution Dock Hobart is the state capital and most populous city of the Australian island state of Tasmania. ... William Buckley is the name of two Americans: William Francis Buckley, CIA employee who was captured and tortured by Hezbollah. ... The Rip is a dangerous piece of water connecting Port Phillip in Victoria to Bass Strait - the water between southern Victoria and the island state of Tasmania in Australia. ...

Port Phillip was then left undisturbed until 1835, when settlers from Tasmania led by John Batman and John Pascoe Fawkner (who had been at the Sorrento settlement as a child) established Melbourne on the lower reaches of the Yarra. John Batman encountered William Buckley who then became an important in negotiations with the local indigenous tribesmen. In 1838 Geelong was founded, and became the main port serving the growing wool industry of the Western District. For a time Geelong rivalled Melbourne as the leading settlement on the bay, but the Gold Rush which began in 1851 gave Melbourne a decisive edge as the largest town in Victoria. | Come and take it, slogan of the Texas Revolution 1835 was a common year starting on Thursday (see link for calendar). ... John Batman John Batman (21 January 1801 - 5 May 1839) was an Australian farmer and businessman who was one of the first settlers of the Melbourne area. ... John Pascoe Fawkner John Pascoe Fawkner (20 October 1792 - 4 September 1869) was an early pioneer, businessman and politician of Melbourne, Victoria, Australia. ... John Batman John Batman (21 January 1801 - 5 May 1839) was an Australian farmer and businessman who was one of the first settlers of the Melbourne area. ... William Buckley is the name of two Americans: William Francis Buckley, CIA employee who was captured and tortured by Hezbollah. ... | Jöns Jakob Berzelius, discoverer of protein 1838 was a common year starting on Monday (see link for calendar). ... The Western District is a region in the south-west corner of Victoria (Australia), extending to Ballarat in the east and as far north as Ararat. ... A California Gold Rush handbill A gold rush is a period of feverish migration of workers into the area of a dramatic discovery of commercial quantities of gold. ... 1851 (MDCCCLI) was a common year starting on Wednesday (see link for calendar) of the Gregorian calendar (or a common year starting on Friday of the 12-day-slower Julian calendar). ...

As Melbourne prospered its wealthy classes discovered the recreational uses of Port Phillip, and bayside suburbs such as St Kilda and Brighton were established along the coast southeast of the city. Later resorts further south such as Sorrento and Portsea became popular. The more swampy western shores of the bay were not so favoured, and have been used mainly for non-residential purposes such as the Point Cook Royal Australian Air Force base and the Werribee sewerage farm. In recent decades however the population along the western side of the bay has grown more rapidly. St Kilda () is a inner city suburb of the Victorian capital of Melbourne. ... Coat of arms of Filth Kikeville Brighton is a suburb in Melbourne Victoria, Australia, 11 km SE of the city. ... Sorrento is a township of Victoria, Australia, almost at the far tip of the Mornington Peninsula about 1 and a half hours south of the Capital, Melbourne. ... Portsea is a suburb in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia. ... Point Cook is a suburb in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia. ... The Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF) is the air force branch of the Australian Defence Force. ... Werribee is a suburb in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia. ...

Melbourne skyline (circa 2005) viewed from Hobson's Bay

Image File history File linksMetadata Melbourne_skyline_panorama_from_hobsons_bay. ... Image File history File linksMetadata Melbourne_skyline_panorama_from_hobsons_bay. ...

Dredging proposal

In 2004, the Victorian state government tabled plans for deepening of the shallow port to accommodate supertankers. The plans are aimed at maintaining Victoria's shipping status. The Victorian economy relies heavily on the import and export of goods, manufacturing and other ancillary industries. Northern deepwater ports which are capable of catering for supertankers, such as Port of Brisbane and Port of Darwin and with better access to the markets of Asia are a large threat to the Port of Melbourne's marketshare. Concerns have been raised by environmental groups and the plan to deepen the shipping lanes of Port Phillip has been criticised, with a few organised protests in 2005. A supertanker is an unofficial nickname that applies to a certain class of tanker ship built to transport very large quantities of liquids; in practice this typically refers to crude oil. ... Port of Brisbane is the shipping port of Brisbane, Australia. ... World map showing the location of Asia. ...

References

1. ^ Terre Napoleon: A history of French explorations and projects in Australia, by Ernest Scott, available freely at Project Gutenberg

Sir Ernest Scott (21 June 1867 – 6 December 1939) was an Australian historian. ... Project Gutenberg (often abbreviated as PG) is a volunteer effort to digitize, archive, and distribute cultural works. ...

See also

• History of Port Phillip and Victoria

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External link

• a large-scale map of Port Phillip showing beaches and recreational facilities

Coordinates: 38°09′S 144°52′E Map of Earth showing lines of latitude (horizontally) and longitude (vertically), Eckert VI projection; large version (pdf, 1. ...