Fathers’ Day at Seal Cove

Due to the Covid lock down none of our children could visit us but Della and I could still go for a drive together. Such freedom. That’s what we all fought for!

We headed down to a secret place along the Gippsland coast where we thought we might be able to scramble down the cliffs to a private cove. I won’t say whether it is legal or not to walk down there. There are many things (simple pleasures) I will never live long enough to enjoy legally – likewise my tiny dogs who though they are good Australians who pay all their taxes on their dog food (and will never take a dollar of tax in return) are yet forbidden from so many parts of our beautiful country – though they are devoted ‘leave no trace’ believers!

That is my Superlight Hunting Pack (193 grams) having a workout.

Anyway we are always off-track walkers and really only want to go where we will find no other people anyway so what odds? It turned out we could (even in my seventies – women as is well known, do not age) though it is pretty steep and thick in places. It turned out to be a really beautiful little cove about a kilometre long. Some great fishing to be had off the rocks I would say, and with hog deer walking right down onto the beach of a night! We saw many of their tracks. A paradise all our own!

It was pretty steep getting down though!

But there was a Lorelei there – and two dogs.

A beautiful little cove – the view one way:

And the other. There is a little flat place we could camp right about the middle behind that flat gray space about half way along. It might need a minor ‘adjustment’ as to level. Room for one small tent anyway, perhaps two.

This is the best bit. Amongst the rocks between this cove and the next a tiny hidden stream. It was flowing about as quickly as a kitchen tap. Clear cool fresh water! Looked quite permanent to me too.

I thought the next cove looked even better. I could almost taste the whiting and Australian salmon I would catch off that tiny isolated beach.

It did not appear very accessible though. We first tried ‘the high road’. It looked as if it might end in a small precipice – only about 10 feet, but that is enough when you are my age. I thought I would try to climb down the cliffs below and try to angle around for a better look. Over the edge I went.

I shuffled and winkled my way along a rock ledge with a yawning drop into a churning sea below for some time. apparently it was an anxious time for Spot who is peering over the edge wondering where I have gone. Evidently it was for Della too who called me a number of times which I failed to answer (due to the roar of the sea or my own deafness – who knows). I was ‘blissfully’ unaware. Mind you there were a couple of times I thought I might plunge down onto the jagged rocks and the turmoil of foam below – but I have survived up until now!

I did not quite get around to the next cove but I did spy a way around which I can manage Della and the dogs across next time. It is invisible from this side. That means we will have it to ourselves for sure. Probably the first one too, but who knows. it always pays to have a line of retreat from people if needed. Hopefully there is a rill of water tricking from between the rocks over there somewhere too. This is quite a common phenomenon along the Gippsland coast.

Oh, and there was a young seal basking on the rocks in ‘our’ cove. The dogs drew our attention to it. it barked back too! And showed some pretty impressive teeth! Neither I nor the dogs was going any closer. In fact we were going further away: Pronto!

So we left it to its basking.

The sun too was just basking the western horizon as we topped out on the way out. We will be back for an overnight stay (or longer) next time. If I was younger I would be swimming off those rocks with a snorkel and hand spear and have such a feed of crays (at least). Probably abalone too. In the calmer water of the next cove I may even do so still.

See Also:

Nuts to Leave no Trace

PS: I reposted this on Facebook (as I usually do). Bizarrely it occasioned a veritable swathe of negative responses (I suspect mainly from people  who did not even read it). It was not meant as any sort of comment on our government’s handling of the Covid situation (though I doubt they have really covered themselves in glory there). It was about the locking up of our public lands (for ‘future generations’ – and the like). I am not going to be one of those ‘future generations’. Indeed we and our generation have pretty nearly passed. While I am still here though if I so desire I will take the risk of fines (or whatever) to go some places I once was free to roam or where I wish to still do so. Such places are almost always where I expect to never encounter anyone else anyway (whether they were allowed or not). I do no harm there, as on this occasion – as you can see. I believe we have over-many unnecessary rules. Like Thoreau (‘On Civil Disobedience’) I will break some of those rules. You are free to think what you like about that as I am free to think what I like about the rules. Neither thought makes us bad people.

In Scotland whence Della’s father came people have the ‘right to roam’ ie to walk anywhere on public or even private land (but not to do harm there or just anything they wish). But to walk and look, that is their freedom. It was thus amongst the English too before the time of King John and the passing of the Crown Law Act which usurped the public land (which were the property of all) to the exclusive privilege of the Crown to give or withhold as he saw fit. This usurpation was not ended by Magna Carta and yet remains. A dreadful injustice which I will not abide. I will roam the public lands just to see their beauty (but do no harm) whether it is legal or not. In Victoria it is not. Most of our public lands (certainly in our National Parks) it is forbidden to walk anywhere except on a designated road or walking track with just a few exceptions. This is an unjust and onerous law which I will not obey.