St Kilda Beach, Victoria facts for kids
St Kilda Beach is a popular sandy beach in St Kilda, Victoria, Australia. It's about 6 kilometres (3.7 mi) south of Melbourne city centre and is known as Melbourne's most famous beach. The beach stretches for about 700 metres (2,300 ft) between St Kilda Marina and St Kilda Harbour. It sits in the north-east part of Port Phillip Bay. This location protects it from big ocean waves, but it can still get strong westerly winds. Like other beaches open to the sea, St Kilda Beach has regular tides.
You'll find the St Kilda Sea Baths right on the beach. The St Kilda Pier is another well-known spot. At the end of the pier is the St Kilda Pavilion. This unique building was rebuilt after a fire and is very important to the people of Melbourne. The pier also has a long breakwater that protects St Kilda Harbour and is home to a colony of little penguins!
EPA Victoria checks the water quality at St Kilda Beach. Usually, the water is rated as good. This means it's safe for swimming. However, after heavy rains, the water quality can be lower for about a day. This happens because rainwater washes things into the bay from stormwater drains.
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Fun Things to Do at St Kilda Beach
St Kilda Beach is a great place for many activities. Of course, you can go swimming and enjoy sunbathing on the sand or the nearby grassy areas.
Water Sports and Outdoor Activities
Many people love to do water sports here. You might see windsurfing, sailing, kitesurfing, jetskiing, and waterskiing. On land, rollerblading and beach volleyball are popular. There's also a boardwalk and walking and cycling tracks along the beach. A skate park is also planned for the area near Fitzroy Street.
Sporting Clubs and Events
St Kilda Beach is home to the Royal Melbourne Yacht Squadron, which started in the 1870s. The St Kilda Lifesaving Club was also founded here in 1911. Many sports competitions and cultural events happen on the beach or in the parks next to it. The roads along St Kilda Beach are often used for big sporting events like marathons and bicycle racing.
A Look Back at St Kilda Beach History
In Melbourne's early days, people used the Yarra River for bathing and drinking water. But by the 1850s, the river became quite dirty. Back then, swimming in the open sea wasn't common. People usually swam in large wooden structures to be safe and private.
Early Sea Baths and Transport
The first St Kilda Sea Baths opened in 1860. They had separate areas for men and women. Sea bathing was thought to be good for health, as was getting some sun. Over the years, several sea baths operated along the St Kilda shore. The railway line opened in 1857, making it easy for many people to visit the sea baths. The famous Esplanade Hotel was built in 1878.
Foreshore Improvements and Attractions
In 1906, the St Kilda Foreshore Committee was formed to improve the beach area. Carlo Catani, a chief engineer, designed beautiful parks and gardens over the next 10 years. These included palm tree avenues, cypress trees for wind protection, and rock gardens. Three features are named after him today: the gardens, an arch, and a clocktower.
Many famous attractions appeared in the early 1900s. These included the St Kilda Pier with its kiosk (1904) and the new domed St Kilda Sea Baths (1906). Amusement parks like Dreamland (1906) and later Luna Park (1912) brought lots of fun. Other popular spots were the Palais de Danse (1913) and the Palais Theatre (1919, 1927).
Changing Rules for Beach Fun
For a long time, St Kilda Council rules didn't allow swimming in the open sea or on Sundays. But in 1912, a group called the Open Sea Bathers' League challenged these rules. Open-sea bathing became legal in 1917, but men and women had separate areas. Swimming on Sundays was finally allowed in 1922.
As open-sea bathing became more popular, the sea baths lost visitors. To meet the new demand, St Kilda Council built three open-sea changing pavilions. One of these, at 40 Jacka Boulevard, still stands today as a restaurant. These pavilions became more popular than the sea baths.
Rules about what people could wear and how they could behave at the beach also changed over time. "Mixed bathing," where men and women could swim together, became legal in 1927. During World War II (1939–45), sunbathing without clothes even appeared on St Kilda beaches. In 1945, artist Sidney Nolan painted the beach and the Sea Baths, showing sunbathers in his works like The Bathers and St Kilda.
