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| Looking south across
Crooked River and Seven Mile Beach
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Gerroa and Seven Mile Beach
Sleepy holiday town at the northern end of the long and
peaceful Seven Mile Beach
Gerroa is located 130 km south of Sydney via the Princes
Highway. Once a popular retreat for various religious orders
much of the land in the area is still owned by various
churches although in recent times a combination of
commuters, from both Nowra and Wollongong and retirees and
holidaymakers have seen the town grow rapidly. Its location
on the southern side of a hill makes it very vulnerable to
the southerlies which blow up the coast.
The first Europeans to set foot in the area were probably
the survivors of the wreck of the Sydney Cove who, in 1797,
made their way from Preservation Island in Bass Strait to
Sydney. Only three of an initial seventeen survived the
ordeal. Their reports prompted George Bass to undertake a
southern voyage of exploration later that year. He sailed
alongside Seven Mile Beach and crossed the shoals at the
entrance to the Crookhaven river which he named the
Shoalhaven.
The beach became a venue for horseracing as early as the
1860s and, later for car and bike races. With this history
it is not surprising that it was the site upon which the
speed of 100 m.p.h. was first attained, on land, in
Australia. Gold was reputedly discovered amidst its black
sand in 1894.
In 1933 Seven Mile Beach was used by Sir Charles
Kingsford Smith as the runway for the first commercial
flight between Australia and New Zealand. Flares were lit
upon the beach to mark out the runway and several thousand
people came from Sydney and the local area to witness the
2.30 am take-off, turning on their car headlights to provide
the aviators with extra illumination.
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| A cement Southern Cross
at Kingsford Smith Park |
Things to see:
Seven Mile Beach National Park
Gerroa lies at the northern end of Seven Mile Beach National
Park, a stretch of coastline that extends south to
Shoalhaven Heads. The National Park is no more than 1.2 km
across at its widest and is bordered by swampland to the
west. The area is used extensively for studying the
characteristics and development of sand dunes and their
vegetation. Radiating outwards from the beach are spinifex,
coast wattle, tea-tree, coast banksia, and a hinterland
forest of she-oaks, bangalay, saw banksia, southern mahogany
and burrawangs.
There is also a large bird population in the district,
including honeyeaters, currawongs, crimson rosellas,
thornbills, kookaburras, ravens, grey fantails, eastern
whipbirds and white-0throated treecreepoers, and the
occasional white-breasted sea eagle.
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| Fishermen on Seven Mile
Beach |
Seven Mile Beach is also noted for the availability of
whiting in the summer months as well as flathead, mulloway,
salmon and tailor. There are two walking tracks south of the
main picnic area which lead inland to the woodland boundary.
There is a bush camping area with limited facilities at the
northern end of the park. Camping in any other area is not
permitted but there is plenty of accomodation in the
vicinity.
Kingsford Smith Memorial Park
The historic Kingsford Smith journey from Seven Mile Beach
to New Zealand is commemorated by the Kingsford Smith
memorial and lookout. These can be found at the top of the
hill at the intersection of Headlands Drive and Crooked
River Road. The lookout offers panoramic views over Seven
Mile National Park. The memorial consists of a small pillar
and plaque and a flat, one-dimensional concrete rendering of
Kingsford Smith's aeroplane, the Southern Cross. (3/4 size).
Crooked River Estuary
At Gerroa Crooked River reaches the sea. The estuary is a
good spot for prawns, bream and flathead. It is the
combination of river, flat beach, safe swimming and fishing
prospects that has made the township a popular place for
family outings. For the more adventurous there is also
surfing, windsurfing and, further upstream, canoeing. A
pleasant picnic area with swings, toilets and barbeque has
been established with access to the beach via a footbridge.
To get there turn off Crooked River Road down Headland Drive
and take the right at the stop sign down Riverleigh Avenue.
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| Black Head rock platform
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Black Head
At the end of Stafford St is Black Head. There is a car park
and tracks leading to the rock platform below. This is a
popular and well-established site for geography and geology
excursions. It has one of the best displays of fossils on
the coast. Breaking or removing the rocks is forbidden. All
you have to do is know what you're looking for - there are
plenty of examples of tree fossils and, if you look
carefully, you will see small sea creatures.
The rock platform is said to be ideal for catching tuna,
kingfish, snapper, drummer, trevally, salmon, tailor and
groper. However, be careful, as the waves can be dangerous.
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Gerroa
