Picnic Bay, Queensland
Encyclopedia
- Picnic Bay is also an alternative name of Sok Kwu WanSok Kwu Wanthumb|250px|Sok Kwu Wan viewed from [[Lamma Island]] walkSok Kwu Wan or Picnic Bay is a bay in the Middle East coast of Lamma Island, Hong Kong...
, Hong KongHong KongHong Kong is one of two Special Administrative Regions of the People's Republic of China , the other being Macau. A city-state situated on China's south coast and enclosed by the Pearl River Delta and South China Sea, it is renowned for its expansive skyline and deep natural harbour...
.
Picnic Bay (19°10′S 146°50′E) refers to both a bay on the south-east corner of Magnetic Island
Magnetic Island
Magnetic Island is an island offshore from the city of Townsville, Queensland, Australia. This mountainous island in Cleveland Bay has effectively become a suburb of Townsville, with 2,107 permanent residents. The island is accessible from Townsville Breakwater to Nelly Bay Harbour by ferry...
(offshore from Townsville in Queensland
Queensland
Queensland is a state of Australia, occupying the north-eastern section of the mainland continent. It is bordered by the Northern Territory, South Australia and New South Wales to the west, south-west and south respectively. To the east, Queensland is bordered by the Coral Sea and Pacific Ocean...
, Australia) and the island's main town. At the 2006 census
Census in Australia
The Australian census is administered once every five years by the Australian Bureau of Statistics. The most recent census was conducted on 9 August 2011; the next will be conducted in 2016. Prior to the introduction of regular censuses in 1961, they had also been run in 1901, 1911, 1921, 1933,...
, Picnic Bay had a population of 360.
Until recently, the bay was the landing site for ferry services from the mainland, but ferries now arrive at a new terminal at nearby Nelly Bay, Queensland
Nelly Bay, Queensland
Nelly Bay is a village on Magnetic Island, and a suburb of the City of Townsville, Australia. A tourism hub on the island, it is especially significant as the site of the ferry terminal, which links it to Townsville...
. The town of Picnic Bay features an open-air shopping complex, The Picnic Bay Mall, and a patrolled beach along the waterfront. The town also hosts the Magnetic Island Golf Course and the Magnetic Island Police Station. Off the coast the wreck of the George Rennie
George Rennie (ship)
The George Rennie was a steel hulled ship scuttled in the lee of Hawking Point, Magnetic Island, Queensland, Australia. It was built in 1885 in Middlesex as a 151 gross ton paddle steamer. In 1896 the vessel was purchased by Howard Smith and Company who converted it into a lighter...
is visible at low tide.
Transport
Picnic Bay is connected to the other bays of Magnetic Island by road. It is connected to the island's eastern towns by Nelly Bay Road, which climbs Hawkings Point from the northeastern corner of the bay, east over the point where it follows the coastline down into Nelly BayNelly Bay, Queensland
Nelly Bay is a village on Magnetic Island, and a suburb of the City of Townsville, Australia. A tourism hub on the island, it is especially significant as the site of the ferry terminal, which links it to Townsville...
. It is also connected to the western towns, Cockle Bay and West Point, by partially sealed West Point Road, which starts at the end of Yule Street in the northwestern corner of the bay.
The town is serviced by Magnetic Island Bus Service, which runs regular services to coincide with Ferry arrivals and departures at the Nelly Bay Ferry Terminal. The foreshore bus stop, which is located at the base of the Picnic Bay Jetty is the terminus
Bus terminus
A bus terminus is a designated place where a bus or coach starts or ends its scheduled route. The terminus is the designated place that a timetable is timed from. Termini can be located at bus stations, interchanges, bus garages or simple bus stops. Termini can both start and stop at the same...
for bus services which run from Horseshoe Bay
Horseshoe Bay, Queensland
Horseshoe Bay is a village on Magnetic Island, Queensland, Australia. It is considered the tourist strip of the island. From September 2006, Horseshoe Bay was undergoing a string of housing development behind the existing residential area to the southern part of the bay. It is also a major...
, via Arcadia
Arcadia, Queensland
Arcadia is a village and town on Magnetic Island, Australia. Arcadia is more residential focused with around 97% of the dwellings being Housing or unit type dwellings....
and Nelly Bay. Picnic Bay is also serviced by Magnetic Island Taxi Service and a number of vehicle hire companies operate in Picnic Bay and Nelly Bay which allow tourists to hire vehicles for use on the Island's road network. Use of hire vehicles on West Point Road is discouraged by vehicle hire companies due to a large portion of the road being unsealed and impassible in most vehicles.
Early European settlement
The first known settlement of Picnic Bay was by Harry Butler and his family who established a small dairy, orchard and mixed farm in Picnic Bay in 1877 when Magnetic Island was declared a quarantine station. The family experimented in the cultivation of pineapples in the bay and as part of a tourism venture built a guest house establishing an intermittent ferry service from Townsville. The Butler family cared for the sick who were quarantined on the island prior to the construction of the permanent quarantine station at West Point.Having purchased the Butler family's huts in Picnic Bay in 1898 Robert Hayles
Eustace Robert Hayles
Eustace Robert Hayles, commonly known as Robert Hayles Sr. was an Australian entrepreneur who formed a series of passenger and cargo ferry services in the north of Australia after 1889....
, an entrepreneur formerly a pastoral worker in western Queensland, erected a two storey hotel, dance hall and a temporary jetty at the western end of the bay to establish a larger tourist operation in the bay.
1900-1949
In 1900 Hayles applied to build a permanent wooden jetty (6 feet wide and 100 feet long). The jetty was approved by the Queensland Marine Department in March 1900 and the jetty hurriedly constructed. In 1903 Cyclone Leonta struck Townsville and Magnetic Island and caused serious damage to Hayles' new jetty. Hayles carried out extensive repairs on the structure but by 1910 the structure was in poor condition. In 1909 Hayles was granted a creek-front location in Ross CreekRoss Creek
Ross Creek is an estuary inlet within the city of Townsville, Queensland. It separates the Townsville CBD from Ross Island. The only passage across Ross Creek was by ferry until Victoria Bridge was completed in 1889.-History:...
on the mainland and was able to establish a consistent passenger service to Magnetic Island. With Hayles establishing a regular ferry service to Magnetic Island the permanent population of the Island began to grow.
In June 1910 Hayles was granted another permit to construct a jetty in Picnic Bay. Although it is unclear whether the second jetty was constructed in addition to the one constructed in 1900 or to replace it, a letter dated February 1917 from the Townsville Harbour Board to the Marine Department acknowledges the presence of two privately owned jetties in the bay. In 1911, Hayles' hotel was destroyed by a fire and a new hotel began construction. At around the same time, Hayles further expanded his business on magnetic island launching further tourism ventures in Nelly Bay
Nelly Bay, Queensland
Nelly Bay is a village on Magnetic Island, and a suburb of the City of Townsville, Australia. A tourism hub on the island, it is especially significant as the site of the ferry terminal, which links it to Townsville...
, Horseshoe Bay
Horseshoe Bay, Queensland
Horseshoe Bay is a village on Magnetic Island, Queensland, Australia. It is considered the tourist strip of the island. From September 2006, Horseshoe Bay was undergoing a string of housing development behind the existing residential area to the southern part of the bay. It is also a major...
and Arcadia
Arcadia, Queensland
Arcadia is a village and town on Magnetic Island, Australia. Arcadia is more residential focused with around 97% of the dwellings being Housing or unit type dwellings....
. In June 1920 the Townsville Harbour Board were vested control of the jetty at Picnic Bay, as well as those established in other bays.
With the outbreak of war in 1939 Hayles' facilities in Picnic Bay were commandeered by Australian defense forces as a rest and recreation camp for service personnel and were not returned until the end of World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
in 1945. Hayles undertook a large upgrade of the facilities on Magnetic Island during the period following the war including upgrades of roads, buildings and the dredging of a channel for vessels entering Picnic Bay.
1950 onwards
On Christmas Eve 1971 Magnetic Island and Townsville were struck by Cyclone Althea, While the Picnic Bay jetty remained structurally sound despite receiving some damage, serious damage was inflicted upon most buildings in the bay and foliage stripped off trees.
In 1977 a shelter was erected for passengers waiting for ferries at the end of the Picnic Bay jetty by the Townsville City Council. In 1985 the Townsville Harbour board gained approval to build a larger shelter shed on the Jetty. Following the completion of Magnetic Harbour in 2003 ferry operations to the Picnic Bay jetty ceased and a large number of local retailers moved their businesses to newer premises in Nelly Bay. As such a large number of premises in the Picnic Bay Mall became empty. Shortly after this a development company attained a large amount of land (including that currently used by the Picnic Bay Hotel) and began work on a new multistory apartment complex with retail premises on the ground floor. Unfortunately due to the death of the developer and a series of legal issues work has halted on the project.