Cape Schanck Lighthouse Cottages 


On the southern Victorian coast looking perched high above the cliff overlooking Bass Strait is perfect for the Sea Captain in us all.

Cape Schanck Lighthouse 

The Cape Schanck Lighthouse has served shipping since 1859. It was built from dressed limestone and sandstone and is significant because the original mechanisms are still in place, with the light still guiding mariners today.

In 1841, due to the frequent shipwrecks occuring between Western Port and Port Phillip Bay, it was determined to construct a lighthouse station at Cape Schanck. Significantly, for today's visitors the original Keepers Quarters are still intact and available for overnight visitors to utilise.

Staying in one of the old cottages will delight anyone raised on tales of smugglers' coves and shipwrecks. It's not that the accommodation is extraordinary, but being in the compound, sitting atop the towering cliffs with the thundering surf below as the huge light switches on is just fabulous.

It's easy to imagine you are the lighthouse keeper as the warm glow of the light revolves all through the night.

  
There are four places to stay here: a three bedroom keeper's cottage built in 1859; sectioned off from this cottage, a large cosy room, formerly for the visiting lighthouse inspector, with double bed, ensuite and motel-style kitchen facilities; another 1859 cottage, this one with just one bedroom and a separate lounge, kitchen and bathroom; and a three-bedroom 1939 red-brick house.

They're all comfortable without being luxurious. The three-bedroom keepers cottage, for example, has a well-equipped kitchen with plenty of wine glasses for trying local samples, a separate dining room and a small living room with an open fireplace. It doesn't have the 'lay about for hours' quality of some modern beach houses, but what you do get, and the reason for most guests' visit, is to see the lighthouse operations up close and to be part of the National Park.
           
Guests are given the keys to the gate, so that when the daytrippers and cliff walkers have gone, you can still stroll down the long timber boardwalk to the end of the Cape. It's like the end of the earth: one side of the boardwalk is a "beach" littered with black volcanic rock worn smooth by the yellow sandstone. There are other longer walks to more isolated spots like beautiful Bushrangers Beach and Fingal Beach. And, for people less interested in prentending to be old sea-salts, a 10-minute drive will find all the Mornington Peninsula attractions of food, wine, markets and beaches.
 
Checklist

Contact

420 Cape Schanck Rd Mornington Peninsula Ph 03 5988 6184

Tarrif

Room rates start from $75 pp per night

When to Go

Summer and Spring off the best chance of warm weather. For those who enjoy the romance of a winter getaway

Getting Around

Cape Schanck is approximately 1.5hrs drive south from Melbourne. Once you are there, there are plenty of walking tracks so bring some sturdy walking shoes.

We Adore

 Listening to the sounds of the surf crashing into the cliffs far below is quite soothing.

We Abhor

 Icy winds that whip in from Bass Strait necessitate warm clothes most of the year round.









 

Photo Credit: Parks Victoria
Source: The Age



 
 


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