Featured: Behind the Scenes of a Slow Stay on Victoria’s Shipwreck Coast.
Reflections and photos of Port Cottage by guest and talented local photographer, Edwina Moutray
“The sounds of the ocean and light birdsong fill my ears as I slowly open my eyes. Before the house stirs, I quietly tip-toe into the kitchen to boil the whistling kettle and make myself that first cup of the day. I know that soon, my son will wake, busting to pull on his wetsuit and run down to the beach, boogey board in hand, for a day of fun in the surf.
My husband will wander down to the coffee shop around the corner and bring back frothing lattes and treats from the bakery. I will look forward to a day of reading my book in the backyard, perhaps taking a walk to the skate park, or along the cliffs and down to the waterfront to watch the kids jump bravely off the jetty and the fishermen haul in their catch.
Nan and Pop will arrive in the afternoon, just in time to challenge my son to a game of coights in the back yard. We’ll sip gin and tonic and enjoy our cheese board; pate from Great Ocean Ducks, cheese from Schulz Organic Dairy and as the day blurs into night, perhaps I’ll get a chance to soak in the claw foot bathtub before we sit around the record player, dusting the sleeves off the records and sing songs we’ve half forgotten, into the night. This is luxury. These are my holiday memories. This is Port Cottage.” - Edwina Moutray
It is not often that we get to see how guests experience their stay with us in Port Campbell, but every now again we have the privilege of hosting guests who also happen to be photographers. Seeing Port Cottage and Port Farm through their lens is always a special moment for our family because it makes us stop, even if only for a minute or two, and remember how these two special places came to life. Even during the times when they feel a world away from our day-to-day of farming.
When the lovely and talented Edwina Moutray (Australian Country Photographer of the year no less!) got in touch earlier this year to ask if I’d consider being interviewed to accompany photos (above) she took while staying at Port Cottage, I said yes even though being on the ‘other side of the lens’ is not somewhere I’ve ever felt comfortable.
Being the wonderful human she is, she also agreed to take family portraits of us at home on the farm - something that I’d been meaning to organise for longer than I’d dare admit. She took it all in her stride and with the autumn leaves falling around us on a cloudy day, we got everyone together and made it happen. We couldn’t be happier with all the little moments she has captured and I just know we’re going to cherish these photos for the rest of our days.
“I’ve learnt that staying true to what feels right, tends to lead to something far more lasting.” Georgie Selman
We’re deeply grateful to Edwina for capturing and thoughtfully sharing a little part of our story, and for seeing Port Cottage in the way we hoped it would be experienced by our lovely guests when we set about breathing new life into her worn bones. At the very heart of her series, The Bigger Picture is support for small rural businesses, something that is at the forefront of everything we do at Port Cottage and Port Farm.
If you would like to read the whole story behind Port Cottage and Port Farm, you will find the full article on her website here.
You can find Edwina at edwinamoutrayimages.com.au or on Instagram at E.M.Images.
