Snug Cove, Eden
A former whaling centre on Twofold Bay on the New South Wales south coast, Eden is now a fishing port and increasingly popular holiday resort town. Eden occupies a position on the narrowest section of the coastal plain, surrounded by rugged hills that lead into the Great Dividing Range.
Twofold Bay was named and visited twice by explorer George Bass during his voyages of discovery down the New South Wales coast in 1797 and 1798 the latter time with Matthew Flinders on their way to Tasmania). Whaling began in the area from as early as 1791. The first white settler was John Raine who established the first shore whaling station on mainland Australia in 1828. In the early 1830s the three Imlay Brothers entered the whaling business, training local Aborigines as whalemen.
Eden became famous for its killer whales that aided the whalers in catching Humpback and Southern Right Whales during their annual migration up and down the coast. Yuin aboriginals, employed as whaling boat crew, refused to kill orcas, and a new policy encouraged collaboration between whalers and the killer whales; the killer whales would trap humpback whales that entered Twofold Bay, the whales would then be harpooned, and the orcas rewarded with prize pieces of the humpback carcasses.
Eden Killer Whale Museum tells the story of whaling at Twofold Bay, with a particular focus on the killer whale.
Eden became famous for its killer whales that aided the whalers in catching Humpback and Southern Right Whales during their annual migration up and down the coast. Yuin aboriginals, employed as whaling boat crew, refused to kill orcas, and a new policy encouraged collaboration between whalers and the killer whales; the killer whales would trap humpback whales that entered Twofold Bay, the whales would then be harpooned, and the orcas rewarded with prize pieces of the humpback carcasses.
Though whaling declined in the 1920s and ended in 1930, interest in the whales that pass through Twofold Bay has been revived since a worldwide ban on whaling has led to a revival in numbers. During the whale watching season (late September to late November) whales that have wintered around Hervey Bay, make their way slowly down the coast. As Twofold Bay is rich with krill (a favourite food for whales), large humbers of Humpback Whales pause at the bay to feed before heading further south.
Boyd's Tower, sometimes called Boyd's Folly, was never completed. It was designed by Oswald Brierly who became Marine Painter to Queen Victoria.
Once a more substantial township than Eden at the southern end of Twofold Bay, it was the original settlement in the bay, founded by Benjamin Boyd in 1843 to service his properties on the Monaro plains. Boyd, who was for a time one of the largest landholders and graziers of the Colony of New South Wales, imported sandstone from Sydney to construct a lighthouse on south head. He also commissioned inns and churches, housing and store rooms, wharves and stock-yards. Boydtown fell into decline after Benjamin Boyd encountered financial troubles. The town lay abandoned from the 1840s until the first renovation of the Seahorse Inn in the 1930s.
The remains of whaling stations and the local landmark Boyd's Tower, a stone spotting tower used to look for whales, are all nearby. In modern times, Boydtown is the smaller of the two towns in the bay, consisting mainly of housing, tourist caravan parks and the refurbished Seahorse Inn.
Davidson Whaling Station stands as a reminder of the early whaling days when a pod of Killer Whales led by 'Old Tom' assisted the whalers in the hunt for baleen whales. Located on the shores of the Kiah Inlet at Twofold Bay, it was the longest-operating shore-based whaling station in Australia and the last of its type to close down. Protected today as an historic site, the station gives a unique insight into the lives and industry of the 19th century whalers. Shore based whaling was conducted from 1826 to 1932. Three generations of the Davidson family worked from this site to hunt migrating whales. They were the only whalers known in the world to work in partnership with killer whales (orcas).
Interpretative signs incorporating historic photographs and sketches have been installed around this site to explain the whaling operations. A viewing platform has been erected around the remains of the 'Tying Down Works' (The area where the whale blubber was boiled to extract the oil).
Ben Boyd National Park comprises two rocky and beautiful stretches of coastline north and south of Twofold Bay featuring vivid rock formations, flowering heaths and banksia forest. The Pinnacles feature red and white earth formations; Green Cape Light House is the most southerly of the NSW coastal lighthouses. Boyd's tower and Davidson Whaling Station Historic Site stands as a reminder of the early whaling days when a pod of Killer Whales led by 'Old Tom' assisted the whalers in the hunt for baleen whales.
Camping is available in the southern part of the park, at Saltwater Creek and Bittangabee Bay campgrounds. Both can be stops on the Light to Light track and can also be accessed by road. Bookings are required during summer and Easter school holidays. Striking coastal scenery, remnants of early European settlement and opportunities to watch whales in spring are a feature of Ben Boyd National Park. Whether bushwalking, kayaking or boating, the park’s landscape is unique.
Ben Boyd National Park from Pambula Beach
Striking features in the northern section include coastal lookout and earth history hot spot The Pinnacles, where you can also see Lennards Island and Haycock Point. Access to the northern section of the park is via Pambula Beach, and Haycock Road which leaves the Princes Highway 8km north of Eden.
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