Storm Damage

After more photography on the beach at Second Valley, it was on to the historic spot nearby called Rapid Bay. It is almost a ghost town with many empty or boarded up buildings. Its beauty as a beach and site of 2 very interesting jetties is part of its appeal.

Rapid Bay is known for its imposing cliffs, caves and beach, a pair of jetties with a resident colony of leafy sea-dragons. It is considered to be one of Australia's premiere scuba diving sites. The older jetty built by BHP, was damaged (smashed) by storms in 2004 and was progressively closed in stages to prevent public access for safety reasons.

A new 240 m jetty located 50 metres east of the BHP jetty was completed in 2009 to replace the one lost by the closure of the BHP jetty. My blip is taken from near the mid point of the new jetty looking across to the destroyed section. A polarising filter was used to improve the colour differences in the water on this extremely bleak and windy day.

Bigger gap.

In 2002, HMAS Hobart, a decommissioned guided missile destroyer, was scuttled in 30 metres (98 ft) of water, 5 kilometres (3.1 miles) north-northwest of Rapid Head (i.e. the headland at the west side of the bay). It is now a popular scuba diving site.

BHP constructed the town, an ore-loading jetty and a high voltage power line from Willunga during the period 1938 to 1942 as part of the works undertaken to establish the limestone quarry. Mining commenced in 1942 and use of the jetty ceased in 1991. At this time it was owned by Adelaide Brighton Cement, and the quarry now remains in mothballs.

South Australia Colonial Surveyor General, Colonel William Light, made his first landfall on mainland South Australia at Rapid Bay on 8 September 1836. The site was named after Light's ship, the 162 ton brig Rapid.