Stop 8 Wynyard Wharf
In the mid-1850s trading and fishing vessels are recorded as having been moored in the Inglis River at spots from the Cape Road bridge back to Camp Creek on both sides of the river. The Inglis River wharf would become a very busy port until the late 1930s with trading ketches unloading supplies for retail stores and products for the farming industry. Potatoes and timber were the main loads for the return trips.
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Walk along the footpath above the wharf area and look down towards the boats.
- Early photos show construction of the Inglis River wharf, and photos from about 1880 show trading vessels being loaded and unloaded at the wharf. A Customs shed was completed as early as 1880 and used for that purpose until the 1930s. A large shed was completed about 1907 for storage of produce. An open sided rowing shed used in the early 1900s was later enclosed and used to grow fish fingerlings to be released into local rivers and streams.
- During the 1940s, freezing equipment was installed in the old customs shed for the barracouta fishing industry, and from that time until the mid-1950s more than 50 fishing boats, many from Victoria, moored at the wharf and in Camp Creek. ‘Couta cleaning at the wharf was a daily activity.
- The wharf was also very important to the community. Early photos show it being used for regattas and chopping championships. An ex-fire brigade tower was cut down and erected on the wharf to be used as a diving board. During the 1800s and up until the 1950s a ferry operated to carry patrons across the river. When the golf course opened in the mid-1920s the ferry was very popular.
- The main wharf buildings were removed about 1958 and the wharf was strengthened and later concreted. The latest major upgrade to the wharf was completed in 2012 with the addition of the public pontoon which is a popular spot for fishing. Modifications to the access road and carpark were carried out in 2019.
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