Explorer William Hovell first discovered black coal in the cliffs at Cape Paterson in 1826. In 1858.
2,000 tons of coal were hauled to the coast at Cape Paterson and taken by whaleboat to ships for transportation to Melbourne. Tram rails on the beach are reminders of further attempts to remove coal from the area later in the century, which still remain on the beach to the west of No 2 surf beach
.The Cape Paterson Caravan & Camping Park was originally the “holiday resort” of the Wonthaggi coal miners. There used to be basic shacks all along the cliffs where coal miners would bring their families and feed them fish and lobster!
The owner of a nearby farm, Mr. Fulton, planted the Monterey Pines that you see running down to the coast for wind protection. A lot of these majestic trees have recently been removed as they are becoming dangerous to campers, with a few nasty incidents occurring lately.
The cache is a 250 ml Sistema container hidden under a root of a tree surrounded by rocks. Please return it exactly as you found it as it has been muggled a few times.