Cape Bridgewater

Cape Bridgewater is a coastal locality and headland in Glenelg Shire, Victoria, about 21 km west of Portland on Discovery Bay. It is notable for its long sandy beach, high limestone cliffs, and natural features within Discovery Bay Coastal Park, including a large Australian and New Zealand fur seal colony, the Petrified Forest and coastal blowholes. The area is part of Gunditjmara Country and is a key nature-based destination on Victoria's far south-west coast.

Visitors can expect a wide sandy surf beach at Bridgewater Bay backed by dunes and limestone cliffs, with lookouts over Discovery Bay. The area includes coastal walking tracks leading to the seal colony viewing platform, the Petrified Forest limestone formations, and blowholes. The landscape is exposed and windswept with native coastal vegetation. Visitors can explore beach, cliff-top trails, and viewing areas for wildlife and coastal scenery.

Cape Bridgewater lies on Gunditjmara Country. European sighting and naming occurred in the early 19th century, with whaling and sealing activity in the 1830s and subsequent pastoral settlement around Portland Bay. The coastline later became part of Discovery Bay Coastal Park, conserving its geological and ecological features including limestone cliffs and dune systems.

The area is part of the traditional lands of the Gunditjmara people, with cultural connections to the coastline and surrounding Country. Today it is valued as a nature-based recreation and wildlife viewing area within Discovery Bay Coastal Park.