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The Twelve Apostles

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Possibly the most internationally famous feature of the Victorian coast, the Twelve Apostles are a series of constantly changing limestone “stacks” that have managed to resist erosion from wind and waves over centuries.

Twelve Apostles - Princetown, Australia by TravelingOtter, on Flickr
"Twelve Apostles - Princetown, Australia" (CC BY-SA 2.0) by TravelingOtter
The Twelve Apostles, Victoria, Australia (7916164988)
By Travel from Brighton, UK (The Twelve Apostles, Victoria, Australia) [CC BY-SA 2.0 ], via Wikimedia Commons
Twelve-apostles
By Chintohere [Public domain], from Wikimedia Commons
The twelve apostles Victoria Australia 2010
By Richard Mikalsen [CC BY-SA 3.0 or GFDL], from Wikimedia Commons
The Twelve Apostles (Victoria)
By Bernard Gagnon [GFDL or CC BY-SA 4.0 ], from Wikimedia Commons

There are currently eight stacks remaining standing, some up to 50m high, with the ninth collasping in 2005.

With a coastline as dramatic as this, it is not too difficult to see how the Shipwreck Coast got both its name and reputation as being formidable in the days of sail.

Located as they are on this part of the coastline, containing high cliffs that are subjected to erosive and the often furious forces of Bass Strait, there is no doubt new “apostles” will come just as these ancient ones go.