This is a work in progress.
To Do:
As with Ballarat in April, this was a practice run for my Great Trains trip in August. I had been to Geelong a couple of times in the 80's and 90's, but not with a camera. I have no coherent memories of those visits.
My February weekend in Geelong, like my Easter weekend in Ballarat, is largely lost to memory. As with Ballarat, nothing I wrote has survived. I can find no receipts or tickets. What I do have is a bank statement and exactly 83 APS photos. My camera did not record photo times, but the back of each print gives me the date. Some times can be approximated based on context, sun angle and distance covered since the last photo. However, all times in this draft are subject to later correction so I've omitted that.
I have written this tale definitively, to avoid too much flopping between I-remember-doing-this to I-must-have-done-this-but-I-can’t-recall waffle. It makes a better yarn and does little damage to its veracity, given the amount of reconstruction involved.
§
I took a VLine down on Friday night and checked in for two nights at the Innkeeper Motel (9 Aberdeen St, now the Kingsway Motel) about 10 minutes from the Geelong Railway Station. At 25 years remove, I have no idea why I selected that motel. It's listed in the 2000 Lonely Planet Australia, which is the edition I was using at the time, for $59–$90 per night for a double; I paid $90. But the even more conveniently located Carlton central Hotel is also listed, at $30/$40/$60 for single/double/triple including breakfast, and would have been my first choice. I took a photo of it on Saturday, so I knew it was there. Likely it was full that weekend.
The City1📷 2📷 38°08'47.6"S 144°21'28.3"E Geelong Art Gallery and Johnstone Park establishing shots.
3📷 38°08'48.4"S 144°21'31.8"E Carlton Central Hotel.
4📷 38°08'09.0"S 144°21'18.8"E Corio Bay from above Griffin Gully.
5📷 38°08'49.9"S 144°21'04.9"E Innkeeper Motor Inn/Huntsman Restaurant.
I started my day on the edge of Johnstone Park near the Art Gallery. The Art Gallery was probably closed, and I went north to the Naval & Maritime Museum, then back to the motel for a rest, before starting the walk after lunch.
The Shore6📷 38°08'38.5"S 144°21'44.8"E Sails art installation by Steampacket Pier
7📷 8📷 38°08'36.5"S 144°21'42.8"E Cunningham Pier and The Carousel
9📷 10📷 38°08'27.3"S 144°21'45.5"E On Cunningham Pier
11📷–18📷 38°08'37.8"S 144°21'46.1"E The Carousel
19📷 38°08'46.4"S 144°22'04.2"E West end of Eastern Beach
20📷 38°08'48.5"S 144°22'22.5"E Eastern Beach Reserve Main Pool
21📷–23📷 38°08'50.8"S 144°22'24.8"E Eastern Beach Fountain
24📷 25📷 38°08'52.3"S 144°22'24.7"E Eastern Beach
26📷–28📷 38°08'46.8"S 144°22'41.4"E Eastern Beach
29📷–32📷 38°08'44.4"S 144°22'54.7"E Eastern Beach
Along the foreshore to Eastern Beach. I spent a while snapping pics in the Carousel, then more time trotting up and down the steps at Eastern Beach.
The Gardens33📷 38°08'59.6"S 144°22'40.7"E Dolphin steps
34📷–36📷 38°09'00.7"S 144°22'42.2"E Traill Fountain
37📷 38°09'01.3"S 144°22'43.9"E Heron sculpture
38📷 38°09'01.7"S 144°22'44.4"E Botanical rotunda
39 📷 38°08'59.6"S 144°22'40.7"E Dolphin steps again
40📷 Flowers
1📷 2📷 38°08'54.9"S 144°21'41.9"E (Location a guess) Market Square Mall
From Eastern Beach I went inland and into the Botanic Gardens. Retracing my steps to the entrance, I went back into town along an inland route and probably back to my motel room. In the evening I ventured out again to find dinner in the pedestrian section of Little Malop St labelled “Market Square Mall”.
Queenscliffe3📷 38°08'37.9"S 144°21'47.6"E Redcoat Bollards
4📷 38°08'39.3"S 144°21'52.0"E On the waterfront
5📷 38°08'37.7"S 144°21'45.9"E Livesaving Bollards
6📷 38°08'34.1"S 144°21'37.7"E Cunningham Pier
I dropped my pack in left luggage and checked out of the motel then went down to the foreshore to have breakfast and kill time, although I could have eaten in the Mall.
7📷 38°11'39.3"S 144°34'51.3"E (location not accurate) Headed to Queenscliffe on the Bellarine Railway
8📷 38°15'50.7"S 144°39'36.8"E Nearing Queenscliffe Railway Station
The Bellarine Railway steam train was operating from Drysdale to Queenscliffe in 2001. I would have caught a bus from Geelong station or thereabouts to get to Drysdale. Nowadays bus 60 or 61 takes 30 mins, but in 2001? Bellarine’s Seaside Explorer departs 10:30 today and offers a 4-hour "experience". D 10:30, Q 11:20, Q 13:45, D 14:35. If it was similar in 2001, I had about 2 hours to see Queenscliffe before the return train left.
9📷 38°16'04.4"S 144°40'04.6"E Queenscliffe South Pier
10📷–14📷 38°16'06.0"S 144°40'06.9"E View from the end of South Pier
15📷 38°16'02.8"S 144°40'03.4"E On the beach near South Pier
16📷 38°16'00.3"S 144°40'13.2"E The ferry terminal from the beach
17📷 18📷 38°15'57.4"S 144°40'17.4"E Boarding a carriage in Queenscliffe
19📷 38°15'57.8"S 144°40'18.2"E Looking over to South Pier
20📷 38°15'54.5"S 144°40'13.7"E The yacht squadron from a carriage
21📷 38°16'08.3"S 144°39'37.3"E (location may not be correct) Lathamstowe and Ozone over Queenscliffe roofs from the carriage
22📷 38°16'03.0"S 144°39'39.6"E The carriage outside the Visitor Information Centre in Hesse St
23📷 38°16'10.3"S 144°39'41.4"E A red posting pillar near Lathamstowe
24📷–26📷 38°16'14.3"S 144°39'40.1"E Fort Queenscliffe
27📷 28📷 38°16'26.0"S 144°39'30.6"E View from a lookout near White Lighthouse
29📷 38°16'26.0"S 144°39'30.6"E White Lighthouse
30📷 38°16'25.7"S 144°39'31.7"E Buoy in the car park
31📷 38°16'17.0"S 144°39'37.3"E Fort and Black Lighthouse
32📷 38°16'13.5"S 144°39'39.6"E Old cottage
33📷 38°16'10.3"S 144°39'41.2"E “Lathamstowe”
34📷 38°16'09.5"S 144°39'42.2"E Now Ozone Hotel
35📷 38°16'06.7"S 144°39'43.9"E Lathamstowe and Ozone
36📷 38°15'59.9"S 144°39'47.6"E Queenscliffe Hotel
37📷 38°15'56.4"S 144°39'49.9"E Esplanade Hotel
At Q it would have been a 10 minute walk from the Station to South Pier, but I know I explored side streets. Then north along the beach to the ferry terminus, where I took a horse-drawn carriage ride south-west through the streets, getting out near what is now (and probably was then) Tourist Information in Hesse St. From there I walked down Stokes to Gellibrand, south to the Lookout near the White Lighthouse, then back north to the Station. (~16 minutes walk from the Buoy to Esplanade Hotel, but I would’ve taken a different route and dawdled.)
Fort Queenscliffe. Can’t remember if I went in. Nowadays they demand ID (Passport for non-Australian cits) and I probably wasn’t carrying any. Tour takes 1.5 hrs and I wouldn’t have had time before the return train ride. So I’m guessing I gave it a miss.
Putting my known spots together adds up to about an hour of walking and an hour of standing around and gawping, which is a pretty good match for my estimate of how much time I had to see Queenscliffe. I don’t recall stopping to eat lunch, so I probably didn’t. I would have arrived back in Geelong by bus between 15:00 and 16:00.
38📷 38°15'55.6"S 144°39'49.3"E Giant shackle
39📷 38°15'52.2"S 144°39'43.1"E Bellarine Peninsula Railway Station
40📷 38°08'50.0"S 144°21'27.6"E Lion outside Geelong Town Hall
The Lion photo suggests I didn't ride the bus from Drysdale to Geelong Station but got out somewhere around Malop and Gheringhap. I would have walked up to the motel to collect my pack, then down to Geelong Station, taking the next available train back to Melbourne.
Homebound1📷 2📷 38°08'41.8"S 144°21'18.8"E Geelong Railway Station
3📷 38°08'40.8"S 144°21'18.8"E Stopped clock in Geelong Railway Station
Spencer Street Station by 18:00, depending on the Sunday timetable, then walk to Flinders St and jump a 48 or 75 tram. I could have taken a train to East Richmond, but memory suggests not.
Updated 01/05/2026; repointed Winterknell.net links to Vapourware.net
