Sandy Cape

JURIEN BAY

HEMA Map reference 76/H3

30° 17' 24" S 115° 02' 23" E

Statistics

Caravan Parks

Jurien                     08 9652 1595

Services

Attractions

Dynamite Bay, South Bay, Pebbly beach, Caves, Fisherman’s Islands, Stockyard Gully, Sandy Cape, Fishing, Marina, Leseur National Park, Golf course.

Buildings of note

Unknown

Calendar of events

November: Blessing of the fleet. Monthly: Sunday markets.

Sandy Cape

Description

Situated on the coast opposite Escape Island, the town was named by Commodore Nicolas Baudin in 1801 after a French naval administrator called Charles Marie, Vicomte Jurien.

Despite extensive charting of the area there were a number of ship wrecks off the coast and evidence of some can still be seen at low tide.

Settlement in the district dates from the 1850s when Walter Padbury took up land holdings. His nephew John Grigson managed the property and with a new industry the need for a jetty led to construction occurring in 1885.

A shipping and landing reserve was declared in 1887 and a church reserve gazetted in 1930.

Fishing has been important since as early as the 1900s and gradually a small settlement built up around the jetty. In 1931 a church was erected but this was demolished by the Australian Army in 1942 as it was considered it may have given aid to a Japanese landing. Using this skewed logic it should follow that all buildings near the coast should have been demolished right along the north of the state.

The townsite was surveyed in 1956 and started off with the name Jurien Bay. In 1959 it was changed to just Jurien but in 1999 it went back to being Jurien Bay again as that is the most popular local name used for the site.

The cray fishing industry originally had problems getting the produce to markets in Perth and freezer ships used to stand off the coast collecting catches from the smaller cray boats. With the construction of an airstrip the problem was finally solved and crays could reach the markets in peak condition.

In 1988 a new marina catering for 72 commercial fishing boats was opened at a cost of around 8 million dollars.

On the first Saturday of November each year there is a celebration and blessing of the fleet just prior to the opening of the rock lobster season.

Local attractions in the area include Drover’s Cave National Park which contains a number of interesting limestone caves. Most are only accessible by 4wd. (Beware of the bees which live in large hives at the cave entrances.)

The squatters huts along the coast north of Jurien used to be a terrific place to visit but since the government moved in and destroyed them the area has lost most of its original charm. On the plus side the council has established a campsite where the old huts used to stand.

The nearby Nambung National Park and the Pinnacles draw thousands of visitors every year.

Jurien is developing fast and two storey mansions are replacing the old fibro holiday houses that used to be the main type of housing in the town. Like all attractive places Jurien is in grave danger of being over-developed and ruined. When the road south to Lancelin connects this part of the coast direct to the northern suburbs of Perth it will be changed forever.