Tuesday, February 19, 2008

360 Panoramas from Rottnest Island

360 panorama from Rottnest Islandpanorama (c) Peter Watts - all rights reserved

Rottnest Island is a short distance from Perth and Freemantle off the coast of Western Australia. It is a popular tourist destination, known for it's sandy beaches, being car free and the small quokkas, marsupials the size of a large rabbit that inhabit the island. The coastline is rugged, carved of the interaction of limestone with the sea. There are now 360° panoramas from Rottnest linked to a Google map.

360° Panorama from Cape Vlamingh
360 panorama from Cape Vlamingh on Rottnest Islandpanorama (c) Peter Watts - all rights reserved

The most famous parts of the island are Cape Vlamingh, named after a Dutch explorer who mistook the quokkas for rats and so bequeathed the name to the island ('rotte' = Dutch for 'rat'). From here it is possible to see whales, dolphins, ospreys and other sea life. Some of the beaches, like Geordie Beach, are lined with holiday accomodation on the shore and pleasure boats in the water. Others are protected from both boats and fishing, and are little secluded places of rest. Among these are Mabel Cove and Little Parakeet Bay.

360° Panorama from Mabel Cove
360 panorama from Mabel Cove on Rottnest Islandpanorama (c) Peter Watts - all rights reserved

Being an island surrounded by lagoons, Rottnest has seen it's fair share of shipwrecks over time, and has 2 lighthouses to ward shipping away. On a good day it is possible to see Perth from the Bathurst Lighthouse on the eastern end of the island.

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