Port Lincoln

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Having just come off the Nullarbor and spending time in some smaller towns along the Great Australian Bight we were in need of replenishing our freezer supplies so it was off to Port Lincoln at the “pointy end” of the Peninsula. It is quite a large town with a huge grain facility at its wharf. Fishing, naturally, is a big business here with Southern Bluefin Tuna being one of its biggest catches. The Lincoln Cove Marina is where all the fishing boats moor. There is definitely some money tied up at the wharf!











A walk along the foreshore was quite breezy as the sun glistened on the waters of the Spencer Gulf. We spotted 3 bronze statues which warranted a photo – the first was of Makybe Diva the horse that won, amongst other races, the Melbourne Cup three years in a row 2003, 04 and 05. Her earnings are estimated at over $14million from racing alone – imagine the fees for breeding! The connection to Port Lincoln is that her owner was a local fisherman. The second statue is dedicated to the Tuna Polers of the area who pioneered the exhilarating and dangerous form of fishing for tuna. As we were looking at the third bronze of Matthew Flinders and his cat a kindly gentleman offered to take our photo. He was definitely a fan of the navigator and his achievements and he happily reeled off facts and figures – it was like a history lesson, but more enjoyable!











We wanted to buy some fresh fish so we drove out to The Fresh Fish Place where we hungrily devoured some sweet Pink Snapper n chips for lunch before stocking up on some Nannygai (red snapper), a piece of tuna and some pickled squid. It was definitely a very popular spot for lunch with locals and tourists alike.





Some Fishy Facts:



Tuna can live for up to 40 years and weigh up to 200kgs



Australia harvests 6,000 tonnes of Southern Bluefin Tuna annually, most of which is exported to Japan



World record price for a single tuna is $2million

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Comments

[Lyn Wills]

Amazing journey
Reading all about it and seeing the wonderful photos, makes us feel as we’ve been on the journey with you!