The Lighthouses

Dotting the coastline around Port Phillip Heads are a series of lighthouses and beacons that provide critical guidance for ships moving through the area. And standing guard atop the rocky cliffs of Shortland Bluff on Queenscliff’s southeastern edge are the black lighthouse and the white lighthouse. Erected in 1862, they are positioned roughly 200m apart in a north south line, forming what is called a leading line; a visual bearing used to indicate the line of a channel which should be used to safely cross a dangerous body of water. In this case, the notorious Rip. The black lighthouse, officially known as the Queenscliff High Light, sits 40m above sea level, while the white lighthouse, or the Queenscliff Low Light, shines at an elevation of 28.6m. As the white lighthouse sits in front of the black lighthouse, approaching vessels are able to angle their path so that the two lights align vertically ahead of them, defining the safest passage through the heads. Interestingly, the black lighthouse is made from basalt and is one of only three such lighthouses in the world. Today, the Low Light is flanked by a pair of skeletal lighthouses, the Hume and Murray Towers, which blink red and green lights in unison with the Low Light to define alternative passages through the Rip. In addition, the Point Lonsdale Lighthouse, situated roughly 4km southeast of the Queenscliff lights, provides mariners with their first visual confirmation that they have reached the Port Phillip Heads. In the days before radio communication, sailors would eagerly await the glow of the Point Lonsdale light after losing sight of the Cape Wickham, Cape Otway or Cape Schanck lights. The 360 tower, located next to the Queenscliff ferry terminal, itself also acts as a navigational beacon. Emitting a laser powered light that can be seen 11 nautical miles, or approximately 21km away, it is designed to support the High and Low Lights.