Kiama, NSW Australia

Entering the Illawarra region, I headed to Kiama to check out its two blowholes. Unsurprisingly, the word Kiama is derived from the Aboriginal word ‘kiarama’, meaning ‘place where the sea makes a noise’, which refers to the blowholes.

Before European settlement, the land was occupied by the Wodi Wodi people. Evidence of midden shells, an accumulation of discarded shells, is found near Bass Point, indicating indigenous settlement from more than 17,000 years ago. Once the Europeans arrived in the 1800s, the area was initially used for wheat farming because of the nutrient-rich volcanic soil and abundance of rain. However, it was unsuccessful, and the community switched to dairy farming. The Kiama Pioneer Butter Factory was the first Australian factory to successfully send butter to Great Britain for consumption instead of to make soap. The factory was also the first to use cream separators to ensure consistent fat content and efficient dairy production. 

By the early 20th century, the town was booming, quarrying basalt for road paving and railway ballast and developing a harbour for steamships to transport blue metal stone to Sydney for construction. A highlight of this booming era can be seen through the row of wooden terraces along Collins Street. The weatherboard houses, featuring gabled iron roofs, small-paned windows and simple verandahs, were built in the late 1870s as quarry workers’ cottages. Among them were properties that served as an inn and the town’s post office. Following the Depression Era and World War 2, the quarries closed, and the houses fell into disrepair, being threatened with destruction. Fortunately, a local company saw their potential and saved the properties. They were restored and converted into shops, although a few are used as private homes, that continue to grace the street today. In the 1980s, they were protected by being added to the National Trust of Australia register. 

Leaving history behind, I walked past the Kiama Lighthouse and down to a lookout platform where the largest blowhole in the world was putting on a show, spewing water as high as 98ft (30m) up in the air from an 8ft (2.5m) opening. Next, I followed the coastal trail to yet another rock pool, where I took the opportunity to relax and take a refreshing dip.