Local resident, Janet Harris, found this photo (above) while sorting through some of her mother’s possessions and thought it would be interesting for readers to see.
“Given that Bullock Island is a topical subject currently, I thought it would be timely to show the island in its natural simplicity in the 1960s,” Janet said.
“My parents would take us to the lagoon which was safe, protected and beautifully clean. It was here we swam.”
Janet’s father had built a small dinghy for them and it was off Bullock Island that they were taught how to row the boat in a safe environment.
The photo, which is taken from a slide, shows the Rowe children Margaret, 6, Peter, 9, and Ian, 18 months, with Janet, 11, rowing the boat enjoying the calm waters of the lagoon in February, 1963.
“Our other sister Christine, 18 months, must’ve been having a nap or chasing tiddlers in the shallows,” Janet said.
From memory Janet thinks the lagoon was to the right side of the new car park.
“We would go over the old wooden bridge and along the sandy tracks. There were no buildings on the island or jetties it was just natural beauty and a lot more sand,” she said.
“The photo is a reminder of the simplicity of summer holidays and what families are looking for.”
Janet does question whether too much emphasis is being placed on development of the commercial side of Lakes Entrance.
Many locals have commented on the diminishing places to swim in the lake and the development of stonewalls, jetties, shops, restaurants and man-made attractions.
“The piece of land opposite the No. 1 resort is about the only natural vegetation and beach left along the esplanade,” one concerned resident said.
Janet has seen the proposed plans for Bullock Island and thinks they are a great idea.
“But I do worry it will become too commercialised, with more traffic and the rubbish dumping issues will need to be addressed,” she said.
Janet, like many residents, is concerned about the amount of rubbish about town.
“I walk every morning and am constantly picking up other people’s litter,” she said.
“We really need to do some sort of campaign to remind people not to litter.
“Whenever we went to Bullock Island as a family, everything was taken home with us.
“When I look at this photo, to me it epitomises summer holidays in Lakes Entrance, it illustrates what we have got and what we haven’t got anymore.”
IMAGE:
The Rowe children – Margaret, 6, Peter, 9, and Ian, 18 months, with Janet, 11, rowing a boat enjoying the calm waters of the lagoon around Bullock Island in February, 1963.
