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Saturday 23rd February 2008 - Portland . At various
times Portland's tourism has been described at an odd mix
of history and industry, and in fact for the last five weeks
the cities historic attractions have taken a back seat to
the huge oil platform, "Ocean Patriot" which has
been undergoing a $12 million refit in the Portland Harbour
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The platform dominates the skyline and is the first thing
you see as you enter the city.
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Standing 22 stories high and with an upper
deck the size of a football field, the platform is a very
impressive sight, especially from close up. Pictured here
with one of its associated tugs ( the Ocean Wrangler) it is
preparing to leave within the next day or so. The final process
will be the loading of eight, 250 ton anchors each with its
own 1.6 kilometer anchor chain
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In 1947 Reg Ansett ( of Ansettt Airlines fame) imported
a luxury Greyhound Clipper coach, to test the market for
luxury coach travel. Due to the austere conditions following
the war it wasn't popular and to this day is the only one
of its type in Australia. It has been recently restored
and returned to its original livery, and now runs nostalgia
tours around Victoria.
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| Looking back from the Lee Breakwater towards
the town with some of Portland's fishing and pleasure fleet
anchored in the harbour |
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| Portland's other major industrial
attraction is the huge Alcoa aluminium smelter which produces
300,000 tons of aluminium per year. The huge pipe in the foreground
is actually a covered conveyor system which transports the Bauxite
ore from the port several kilometers away |
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Aluminum has been appropriately described
as solid electricity and this photo shows both products in
the process. The ingot storage yards with the final product
awaiting shipment and the 500,000 volt power lines which feed
the smelter
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| This photo was something of a
bonus as it is not often you get to see crews working on 500,000
volt lines. |
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For anyone who finds skydiving or bull fighting a little
too boring then working on 500,000 volt live lines should
fit the bill nicely. This crew were replacing the insulators
on one of the towers close to the Alcoa plant. Looking a little
like astronauts, the crew are all wear special high voltage
suits which allow them to work in this very dangerous environment
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Interesting &
out of the way places to visit
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Fletcher
Jones Story
David
Fletcher Jones left school before his 13th birthday and worked
in a small market garden before enlisting in the army and serving
in France during WW1. A shell burst just metres away, left him
severely |
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and he was told by army doctors that he would never work
again. In spite of his injuries, a scant education and a profound
stammer, went on to become the worlds largest clothing manufacturer.
Now some 40 years after his passing, the Warrnambool manufacturing
facility has gone and factory he built has been sold to a developer
- To find out more about this inspirational man then click the
photo or the link above |
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Lake
Pertobe
Mini Golf
open 7 days a week from 10 AM to 4 PM
close to the beach on Pertobe Road Warrnambool
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Warrnambool Information
Page
The first in a series of information pages covering the major
towns and cities in the region - for more information on planning
your summer holiday in Warrnambool - please click on the picture
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