Cape Schank Victoria Australia Journey to the Stalactite Caves

19th March 1863, The Argus

CAPE SCHANK.
(FROM A CORRESPONDENT.)
De Quincey, in his Autobiographie Sketches, refers to that irresistible impulse which at a certain season of the year seizes the vast herds of wild horses that scour the American
prairies, and hurries them in a body to the region of the " salt licks." A similar impulse, almost equal in intensity, appears at a certain season to drive the fashionable residents of British cities to the bathing-boxes of Bou- logne, the river scenery of the Rhine, or the hoary peaks of the Alps. Although lessened in extent, and diminished in force, we still find the same feature of society in the sunny lands of the south. Melbourne, at Christ- mas, appears very like what Emerson has described New York, a "sucked orange." Its fashionable inhabitants are rusticating at squatting stations, roaming the streets of Hobart Town or Sydney, or recruiting at Queenscliff or Geelong. A week's recess in- volved the important question where to spend it ; and Cape Schank, with its pulpit rock lashed by giant breakers, its stalactite caves and lighthouse, carried the day, and I accord- ingly arranged with two friends for a pedes- trian excursion to the locality. Having fur- nished ourselves with the necessary swag and provision, we took the steamer to Schnapper Point, and after a pleasant sail from Sandridge Pier, reached it about two p.m.
Schnapper Point is too well known to re- quire much description. As a watering-place, it stands almost unrivalled in the colony. The woods which surround the village afford shady walks, the beach has a fine sandy bed, and the hot winds are so much modified by their passage over the waters of the bay as to be scarcely felt. The most prominent build- ing in the vicinity is the mansion of Mr. Grice, which, with its castellated front peering through the trees, has much the appearance of
a fine old English mansion. There are, how- ever, few buildings in the village of any pre-
tensions
Dinner over, we statted off, and after a pleasant walk of five 0r six miles, we camped for the night on the banks of Ruddell's Creek, a small stream with several holes of excellent
Water. The fragrant white smoke of our camp fire soon rose, and in a short time our billy was snugly ensconced among the glowing logs,
and a comfortable mia mia reared, and in the dim and dusky twilight by the fitful flashes of our camp fire, we discussed our evening meal with that relish which country air and
exercise can alone impart. A considerable number of laughing jackasses perched on the neighbouring trees formed our orchestra, and were hardly less merry than ourselves. The laughing jackass (Dacelo gigantea) is a familiar acquaintance of the Australian settler. During the winter it princtpally subsists on the small
fish which are to be found in the creeks and lagoons of the interior, and in the summer it confers a public benefit by living almost entirely on snakes. This alone should be sufficient to secure it from the attacks of the sportsman. At early dawn, the woods are vocal with its peculiar notes, and as the sun sinks in the west, its wild laugh again resounds through the forest. The prospect of an early start in the morning warned us to retire to our novel dormitory as soon as possible, and, after gathering a large pile of dry wood for
replenishing the fire during the night, silence reigned. Before the sun was much above the level of the horizon, we had breakfast over, and were again on the march. It was a lovely morning and the country through which we passed equally so, disversified by hill and dale, and decked with numerous flowering shrubs. The forests consisted principally of the eucalypti, the fine shady wattle (acacia molís- ima), and the sheoak (casuarina ). We passed several clear streams of water, which, how- ever proved to be brackish, and after halting at a solitary hut in the bush for a supply of damper, we reached the township of Dromana, at the foot of Arthurs Seat, and on the shores of Port Philip Bay about noon. The village is prettily situated in a plain, between Mount Martha and the thickly wooded mountain of Arthurs Seat. In front, the waters of the bay wash a beach of dazzling whiteness, and
a jetty of considerable extent is erected for
the convenience of the lighters that occasion- ally visit the spot for firewood. A neat public house, two stores and a few dwellings, com- plete the scene. The ascent of Mount Arthur is very steep, but we were amply rewarded by the magnificent prospect afforded from the summit of the Government Observatory Tower. The view embraces the entire isthmus of Point Nepean, the Heads, a large portion
of Port Philip Bay and Western Port, with
its numerous islands.
A scramble down the mountain, and a dull monotonous walk of sixteen or eighteen miles over poor sandy country, in many parts thickly covored with grass-trees, brought us to Cape Schank, and the lighthouse, with its flagstaff and adjacent buildings, at last appeared, and the broad expanse of the Southern Ocean burst upon our view in all its majestic splendour. The long line of breakers slowly rolled up, as if in sullen grandeur, and then burst in snowy foam upon the rugged rocks, with a sound resem- bling distant thunder, and as we gazed down the perpendicular cliffs to the ocean, upwards
of 300 feet beneath, we could not but recall the burst of joyous gladness which escaped from the 10,000 Greeks as they first obtained a glimpse of the sea, and inhaled its freshen- ing breezes. The lighthouse is a solid stone structure, resting on a limestone bed, over- lying a solid stratum of basalt. It is built on the cliff, at an altitude of 263 feet above sea
level, and the tower is fifty feet high, which gives a height for the light of 328 feet. The light is a very fine one, on the catadioptric principle, and the whole machinery is kept beautifully clean.
Attached to the lighthouse is a telegraph station, from which barometrical reports are daily furnished to Melbourne, and by which the arrival of Sydney and New Zea- land steamers is frequently telegraphed seve- ral hours prior to their appearance in the
bay.
The entrance to the stalactite cave from the beach is somewhat narrow; but the cavern expands into large dimensions, and the pendent stalactites which in some parts al- most meet the stalagmites on the floor, present a great variety of beautiful forms. On the candle which we had brought with us being lighted; the whole had quite the appearance of a fairy scene, and we would gladly have lingered had not the roar of the advancing tide warned us to effect our exit as speedily as possible. At high water, the entrance is sub- merged, and we learned that, during storms, the noise caused by the waves dashing into the cave is heard at a distance of several miles. Pulpit Rock, a large mass of ferrugi- nous sandstone, stands at a little distance, surrounded by the yeasty waves, and affords a secure retreat to swarms of sea fowl.
After spending a day at tho Cape, where we received the utmost kindness, we pursued our journey along the coast, past Barker's Station and the Black Head, and then, in a north-easterly course, across the ranges to Frankston, where we got the Melbourne
coach.
It is not often that a week's pleasure is pur- chased in such an economical manner, and time will not soon efface tho pleasant memo- ries of a trip to Cape Schank.