Towns in Gippsland South
Venus Bay
Venus Bay is a small coastal town situated in the west of the Gippsland South electorate, 180km south-east of Melbourne, on a narrow peninsula of land, bordered on one side by Bass Strait and on the other by Anderson Inlet.
It has a population of 509, but that swells into the many thousands during the summer holiday period.
Venus Bay has a small commercial centre situated on Jupiter Boulevard and features a general store and a number of speciality shops.
Several surf beaches are located in Venus Bay, with boating and fishing are popular along the extensive waters of Anderson Inlet.
Venus Bay is central to many natural attractions in the South Gippsland area, including Wilson’s Promontory National Park, which is just under an hour's drive east.
Leongatha
Leongatha is a major commercial centre located 135km south east of Melbourne, on the western side of the Gippsland South electorate between the smaller towns Korumburra and Meeniyan.
The town has a population 4818, the majority of which are aged between 25 and 54.
Leongatha’s large commercial centre is situated on the wide boulevards of Blair Street and McCartin Street and service’s its local population and the surrounding smaller towns. It feature many of the towns oldest buildings including the post office (built in 1887), court house (1912) and Mechanics Institute (1912) which now serves as a local history museum.
Leongatha's main industry is agricultural with Murray-Goulburn Dairy (Devondale) having a factory just north of the town centre. The factory is the largest co-operative in the country, producing milk-based products for Australian and overseas markets.
Leongatha is also the first point of call on the Great Southern Rail Trail which travels 53kms south-east to Foster.
Foster
Foster is 174km south-east of Melbourne and is located in the south of the Gippsland South electorate, just north of Wilsons Promontory National Park.
The town has a population of 2,175, but this almost triples in the summer holiday month’s thanks to its proximity to Wilsons Promontory.
Foster was once a thriving gold town, after the gold rush of the 1870s, but now services the South Gippsland dairy industry.
The town centre has a good range of shops along Main Street which also support the smaller outlying communities in the area. One of the town’s proudest buildings is the Exchange Hotel built n 1907, which features a unique conical tower.
Foster is also the final stop on the Great Southern Rail Trail which travels 53kms down from Leongatha.
Waratah Bay
Waratah Bay is located at the south west of the Gippsland South electorate, 180kms south east of Melbourne.
The quiet town of just 150 people and is only a short drive to Wilsons Promontory National Park and surrounding attractions.
Waratah Bay is a quiet beach town with no shops, just a caravan park and holiday houses, which allows the towns population to swell significantly during the summer months.
The beaches at Waratah Bay are popular with surfers and swimmers, offering great expanses of sandy coastline.
Yanakie
Yanakie is located in the south west of the Gippsland South electorate, 190km south east of Melbourne.
The town of 243 residents rests on the narrow strip of land which joins the Wilsons Promontory National Park with the mainland.
The coast on the western side of Yanakie fronts Shallow Inlet, while the east coast fronts Corner Inlet.
Yanakie is the last town before the entrance gates to the Wilsons Promontory National Park and is a popular spot for visitors to the park and surrounding areas.
The commercial centre of Yanakie is small, consisting of a general store, petrol station and public hall.
Most of the residents in the area are either involved in the tourism industry or in dairying, with large cattle farms located in the fields surrounding the town.
Yarram
Yarram is located in the south of the Gippsland South electorate, 221 km south east of Melbourne.
Yarram has a population of 2106 and is as a major service centre for the surrounding coastal communities east of Wilsons Promontory.
The South Gippsland Highway passes through Yarram on its journey between Sale and Leongatha.
The town features several historical buildings, including the landmark Regent Theatre (built in 1928) and the courthouse which now functions as a local visitor information centre and gallery.
Yarram is close to the Strzelecki Ranges and the magnificent Tarra Bulga National Park.
The National Park has many features including the Tarra River and scenic Tarra Falls, as well as a grand pedestrian suspension bridge which spans a lush fern valley.
Mirboo North
Mirboo North is a farming town with a population of 2688, located 155km east-south-east of Melbourne.
It is situated in the centre of the Gippsland South electorate in the scenic Strzelecki ranges between the major towns of Morwell and Leongatha.
It is primarily an agricultural district and together with the neighbouring town of Thorpdale in the north, it supplies up to 80 percent of the state's brushed potato market for six months of the year.
Mirboo North's commercial centre is situated on Ridgeway Street and includes a supermarket and a collection of shops and historic buildings, some of which are decorated with colourful murals depicting scenes of the region's bygone days.
Port Albert
Port Albert is a small coastal community of 248 people situated 236 kilometres kilometres south-east of Melbourne
It is located in the south east of the Gippsland South electorate fronting Bass Strait, just east of Wilsons Promontory and 13 kilometres south of Yarram.
Port Albert is one of Victoria's oldest sea ports, established in 1841 by explorer Angus McMillan.
The town's collection of historical buildings includes the Port Albert Hotel (licensed in 1842) which fronts the town's jetties and wharf, and the general store which dates back to 1856.
Port Albert's jetty and wharf area is a base for fishing fleets and is popular with boating enthusiasts..
The coast from Port Welshpool to east of Port Albert is part of the Nooramunga Coastal Park which consists of shallow marine waters, mudflats and a collection of granite and sand islands.
Port Welshpool
Port Welshpool is a scenic coastal town with a population of 198 and is located in the south east of the Gippsland South electorate between the dairying community of Toora and historic Port Albert.
It is located 199km south east of Melbourne via the South Gippsland highway.
Port Welshpool's small commercial centre is located towards the eastern end of Lewis Street and consists of a hotel and general store.
At the western end of Lewis Street is Long Jetty which is over a kilometre in length and was built in 1938. It was closed to public access in 2004 due to fire damage.
Directly across the road is the town's wharf area which is a base for a tourist cruise service to Wilsons Promontory, ocean fishing vessels and some cargo boats which operate between Tasmania and the Gippsland coast.
Five kilometres north of Port Welshpool is the service town of Welshpool which features a hotel, food outlets and service stations.
Korumburra
Korumburra is commercial centre located 120km south east of Melbourne in the foothills of the Strzelecki Ranges, just west of Leongatha.
The name Korumburra is the Aboriginal word for blow-fly.
The town was an important black coal mining centre in the late 1800s, but as that industry declined, Korumburra turned to dairying due to its fertile soils and reliable rainfall.
Burra Foods operate a large factory in Korumburra, producing a range of dairy ingredients including milk, cream, yoghurt and cheese.
Korumburra's shopping precinct is located along the wide boulevard of Commercial Street, enjoying an attractive backdrop of green hills.
Korumburra is centrally located to a number of attractions in the area including Wilsons Promontory National Park and bushwalking in the Strzelecki Ranges.
Poowong
Poowong is a small dairying town located in the north west of the Gippsland South electorate, eight kilometers north-west of Korumburra and 111km south east of Melbourne.
Poowong has a population of 587 who service the surrounding dairy industry.
For a town of its size, Poowong is quite well off with regard to its facilities which include four tennis courts, two netball courts, an indoor basketball stadium, a primary school, large community hall, heated swimming pool, a number of churches and a football oval.
Port Franklin
Port Franklin is a small fishing village located in the south of the Gippsland South electorate between the towns of Toora and Foster and is 182km south east of Melbourne.
The town has a small population of just 121 people who service the agricultural and fishing industries.
Port Franklin is situated on the banks of the Franklin River between Toora and Foster.
The river is lined with small commercial fishing boats, privately-owned pleasure craft as well as commercial charter vessels.
Nyora
Nyora is a small town of 450 people located on the north west border of the Gippsland South electorate, 100km south east of Melbourne.
Nyora is best known for its Speedway track which attracts vistors from Gippsland and Melbourne for its regular meetings.
The town has a long history servicing the surrounding agriculture industry with the towns Post Office opening in September 1890.
Nyora has been featured in numerous television productions with it’s railway station and general store included in the popular ABC TV program Something In The Air. The township also featured in the TV series Emu Springs.
Nyora is home to the former V/Line railway station of the same name, which served primarily as a freight and goods transfer facility as well as the branch station for the former Foster - Leongatha and Wonthaggi lines.
Wilsons Promontory
Wilsons Promontory is a peninsula in the south of the Gippsland South electorate, 220km south east of Melbourne, and forms the southernmost part of the Australian mainland.
Evidence of Aboriginal occupation at Wilsons Promontory dates back at least 6,500 years before European settlement
The first European to see the promontory was George Bass in January 1798, however it didn’t become a National Park until 1898.
Wilsons Promontory National Park, also known as "the Prom", contains the largest coastal wilderness area in Victoria.
The only settlement within Wilsons Promontory is Tidal River which lies 30 km south of the park boundary and is the focus for tourism and recreation.
Coastal features include expansive intertidal mudflats, sandy beaches and sheltered coves interrupted by prominent headlands and plunging granite cliffs in the south, backed by coastal dunes and swamps.
Tidal River is the main river in Wilsons Promontory and runs into Norman Bay and swells with the tide (hence the name 'Tidal River'). The river is a very interesting colour, a purple-yellow. This is due to the large amount of tea trees in the area, which stain the water with tannin, giving it a tea-like appearance.
Wilsons Promontory is home to many marsupials, native birds and other creatures. One of the most common marsupials found in the prom is the wombat, which can be found in much of the park (especially around camp-sites where it has been known to invade tents searching for food).
The peninsula is also home to kangaroos, wallabies, koalas and emus. Some of the most common birds found on the promontory include crimson rosellas, Yellow-tailed Black Cockatoos and superb fairy-wrens.
Sandy Point
Sandy Point is small coastal community 187km south east of Melbourne and is situated at the entrance of a narrow peninsula that fronts both Waratah Bay and Shallow Inlet
Located at the northern end of Wilsons Promontory National Park, Sandy Point is a perfect and accessible base for exploring the beauty of the natural attractions in the area.
The commercial centre of Sandy Point features a cafe, general store and mini golf facility on Beach Parade, which is separated from the beach by the row of sand dunes which constitute the Sandy Point Foreshore Reserve.
Sandy Point is primarily a holiday retreat town, with the majority of residences being holiday houses and apartments.
The beaches fronting Waratah Bay are popular with swimmers and surfers.
On the opposite side of town, Sandy Point Road leads to Shallow Inlet where the compacted sand at the end of the road allows visitors to drive their vehicles right out onto the beach and close to the water's edge.
Shallow Inlet is popular with windsurfers and sailing's world speed record was set there.
Sale
Sale is a major commercial centre and the largest town in Gippsland South electorate with a population of 13,366.
It is situated 214km east of Melbourne in the north-east corner of the Gippsland South electorate, roughly mid-way between the large Gippsland centres of Traralgon and Bairnsdale.
Sale is home to the East Sale RAAF base and services the Oil and Gas fields of Bass straight.
Sale has a long history dating back to 1840 when two famous Gippsland explorers, Paul Strzelecki and Angus McMillan passed through the area.
The town was first gazzetted in 1851 and became a river port in 1890 due to the construction of a man-made canal linking the town centre with the Gippsland Lakes and the open sea via the Thomson River.
The historic Port of Sale has been preserved and redeveloped with extensive berthing facilities, a boardwalk, fishing platform, boat ramp and BBQ facilities.
Adjacent to the port precinct is the Gippsland Art Gallery, council offices and the town's performing arts centre.
Sale has an attractive commercial centre which extends along Raymond Street and into intersecting Cunninghame Street, part of which is a pedestrian mall that is dominated by a large clock tower.
Several historic buildings of interest can be found in Sale's town centre including the former municipal offices in Foster Street (built in 1863) which are now home to the Sale Historical Museum which showcases local history and artefacts.
Near the corner of Foster Street and York Street are the Lake Guthridge Parklands which cover over 35 hectares. There are two lakes within the park - Lake Guthridge and the smaller Lake Guyatt. Adjacent to the lakes is a native fauna park and botanic gardens.
The nearby 308 hectare Sale Common State Game Refuge features numerous boardwalks and viewing areas to see the wildlife in extensive marsh and grassland areas.
The historic Swing Bridge is located 5 kilometres south of Sale. This 45 metre long wrought-iron structure was built in 1883 and spans the La Trobe River at the Thomson River junction. Its design allowed the bridge to swing open to allow steam boats travelling between the Port of Sale and Melbourne to pass through during the late 1800s and early 1900s. The bridge is now open to pedestrians only.
Rosedale
Rosedale is a pastoral and agricultural town of 1486 people, 184 kilometres east of Melbourne in the north west of the Gippsland South electorate.
It is located midway between the major Gippsland towns of Traralgon and Sale.
The commercial centre of Rosedale is located along the Princes Highway, making it an ideal truckstop, and features numerous eateries, general shops, pharmacy, bakery and petrol stations.
The town’s major emloyer is the tannery which makes leather products for both the local and export makets.
The earliest European inhabitant in the district is thought to have been a man named Blind Joe who lived in a hut on the Latrobe River, with Blind Joe’s Creek on the western side of the town named in his honour.
The town itself was named after and built upon the site of a station owned by David Parry-Okedon, who, in 1843, called his run Rosedale after his wife, Rosalie.
