Description of the attraction
Botany Bay National Park is located on the northern and southern headlands of Botany Bay, 16 kilometers southeast of Sydney's CBD. The northern promontory is called La Peruz, the southern one is Carnell.
The Carnell Peninsula is home to several important sites in Australian history. It was here in 1770 that Captain James Cook and the crew of his ship Endeavor first set foot on the Australian continent. On the peninsula are the Captain Cook Obelisk, as well as the Sir Joseph Banks Memorial, the Solander Monument and the Sutherland Monument - they were members of Cook's expedition. All memorial sites are connected by a hiking trail that starts at the information center and the nearby museum. There are also two observation decks - Carnell and Houston, which offer an amazing view of Botany Bay. And from Cape Solander, you can watch whales passing by during the migration season.
On the opposite Cape Carnell - La Peruse - there is a museum dedicated to the expedition of the French navigator Jean-Francois de Galop (La Perouse), who landed here in 1788. Not far from the museum stands the La Perouse Memorial, an obelisk built by the French in 1825. There is also the Endeavor Lighthouse, which overlooks Cook's landing site at Botany Bay. On weekends, a reptile show is held at the cape, and local aborigines demonstrate the skill of throwing a boomerang. The area around the La Peruse Peninsula is considered one of the best scuba diving in New South Wales with sea dragon, patek fish, miniature needlefish and big-bellied seahorse underwater.
An interesting attraction of the national park is the Cape Bailey lighthouse, built in 1950 and still operating. By the way, it works on solar energy.
Triathlon competitions are held annually in the park. Tourists are also attracted by the opportunity to go fishing, snorkelling, boating or sailing, or windsurfing.
