Port Lincoln Shark Proof Pool: Ron takes a dip on the Eyre Peninsula in the West Coast region of South Australia

On warm summer days the Port Lincoln kids make a beeline for the jetty and its shark proof pool. Immediately after school it's bedlam but most mornings veteran swimmers like Diana Matena have the pool in Boston Bay all to themselves.

"I come twice a day in the summer but just once a day in the winter," said Diana. Diana is one of the group known as the 'icebreakers' because they brave the cold and swim everyday - even in winter. "There are only four of the icebreakers during winter but during the summer there could be anything up to twenty of us here at seven o'clock in the morning."

The jetty was built in 1857 for ketches to load grain and steamers to pick up passengers and goods. It has since been superseded by the massive bulk handling facilities across the bay. The 50 metre pool with it's shark proof fencing, was originally built by the South Australian Marine and Harbours Board in the mid 1960s.

Today fishermen like Mike Egerton can spot their prey from the jetty in the crystal clear waters of Boston Bay. And while Mike, a local who left the district as a lad in the late forties, can't recall seeing a shark in the bay some old photos give you reason to pause and reflect on the certainty that they are out there somewhere.

"Some locals can still recall a time when there was a weigh station at the end of the jetty for weighing the sharks caught by local fishermen and a diving board nearby - work that one out," laughed Mike.

"I never saw a live shark in the bay but I saw plenty being weighed on the jetty - some were 14 - 15 feet long. It was a time when it was still legal to fish for shark and people like the state Governor, Sir Willoughby Norrie used to fish for them."

Famous author, Zane Grey also used to hunt these amazing creatures at Dangerous Reef and the many of other islands off the coast of Eyre Peninsula.

And at the end of their fishing trips this was where they'd bring their prize. Today the local kids swim here without a care in the world thanks to the town's shark proof pool.

It's located at about the midway point on the local jetty on the shores of Boston Bay.

Port Lincoln Shark Proof Pool
Port Lincoln Jetty
Boston Bay
Port Lincoln
Entry is free

Published 15th October 2006