Phototastic

What a Wander in Mornington Peninsula!
Over a jam packed long weekend of Friday through to Monday, we had a great time in the Mornington Peninsula. Only 90 minutes from the city where we live, it’s wonderful to have so much to do that’s so close.

I’m more of a photo guy, so I’ll let the pictures do the talking, but as for a quick overview in words:

Friday; Lunch, Day Spay Treatment and High Tea at Woodman Estate. Such an amazing old building. See for your self, and remember this building was built in 1988. It feels over 100 years old. Seriously great food and beautiful vibes.

From there it was to our campsite, which was sorted out from Happy Glamper; I’ve never slept so well, or in so much style in a tent!

After finding out base for the next couple nights, it was time to explore. The thing I love about this part of Victoria is how close the calm waters of Port Phillip Bay are, to the wild back-beaches facing Bass Strait.

And that was day 1. Starting off the new day, I decided to get up for a sunrise shoot. Once again, given the fizzer of a sunset the night before, I decided to head to Gunnamatta Surf Beach. Such an awesome space, and I managed to get a nice shot to start the day.

Next up, and this is what I was looking forward to most, was the Polperro Dolphin Swim”. Given the underwater nature of this, I was pretty excited becuase I was going to be testing out a new waterproof camera rig. Sorry to say, sadness followed. The bloody thing leaked and my camera died. So that was that, on the photography front. That said, Amy had an awesome moment where she got a beautiful 45 second swim right next to a dolphin. Eye to eye, right there in the water. What a thing to experience. And then we got to swim with the seals. Seriously awesome. The best way I can describe dolphins and seals is to think of them as cats and dogs. The dolphins just do their thing, and if you’re a part of it, it’s totally their call. They move with grace, they can hang about, or before you know it, they’re gone. Seals on the other hand are like boisterous dogs who wanna rough-and-tumble. They knock in to you, they stink (haha!), but they are so fun. All up though, something for everyone.

Following the swim, it was time to get in to some very different water, of a hot-spring kind. I wont lie, the Mornington Hot Springs aren’t really my thing, but Amy totally loved it. That said, it was nice to chill out for a bit after a frantic few days.

Once we’d done our max-relax in the sun, time for some more exploring. Me being the sucker-for-beaches I am, back to the back-beaches.

And then it was time for dinner; off to the Portsea Hotel for a feed. Love the views around this place.

When ever I’m on the Peninsula, I’ve got to visit Cape Schanck… Sorry, but it was a bit dark. Here’s a 30 second exposure where I really had to push the settings of the camera. It was sooo dark!

After a nice sleep, it was time to head down the tip of Mornington Peninsular. Needed a coffee, and The Picknic Basket hit the spot. Awesome little joint, great coffee.

Then it was time for a stand up paddle at Peninsula Stand Up Paddle. The weather was overcast, but that didn’t stop us. In fact, it really just gave us more space which was great.

After a paddle, it was time for a walk. I’ve come down to the Peninsula a few times, but never made the trip to the tip of Point Nepean. Fort Nepean, right at the end, is well worth the walk. Great signage around the place giving some real pieces of history.

Feed time at Cakes & Ale. Ripping lunch, great staff!

Sadly, I couldn’t get many photographs of our next adventure, but going for a horse ride was great fun. It had been over 15 years since I jumped on a horse, but it was like getting back on a bike. Something pretty awesome about riding in the surf… Guys at Gunnamatta Trail Rides were awesome.

After our Daryl Braithwaite moment, we headed for a night of a little more luxury at the Flinders Hotel. Sunset was a stunner on the Flinders Ocean Beach. Beautiful night!

The next morning was a the start of an unplanned day of exploring. Started off at Flinders Jetty and had a nice little wander.

Also, nice to get a re-gram from the great @VisitMelbourne team 🙂

What a way to farewell summer – with bobbing boats in a bay. Flinders in the @officialmorningtonpeninsula captured by @regularsteven. Bring on Autumn!#wandervictoria #visitvictoria #visitmelbourne #seeaustralia

A photo posted by Melbourne (@visitmelbourne) on Feb 29, 2016 at 1:03am PST

Swung by the Bass & Flinders distillery. Don’t mind me a Gin!

From there it was up to Arthurs Seat. Didn’t get a snap, but a bunch of Kangeroos bounced by and it was pretty awesome. And that gave us the the idea for the sunset. You’ll see below…

We had an afternoon of cruising around and found the beautiful coffee joint Cafe Del Sol. Good brew!

And then it was back to Arthurs Seat State Park for sunset. The Kangaroos were out in force and it was awesome! I think I got my favourite shots from the weekend up here. Magic times.