Our Community Connections to the Bay

'Kayak fishing is a space for me to recharge all my batteries and come back a happier person', says Paul. Only recently moved to Melbourne, Paul was astonished by how good the fishing is so near to a major city. The existence value of the wildlife he sees and fish he catches is important. 'I love seeing something new that I haven't seen before', adds Paul, 'even if I catch nothing, there is usually something in the day that intrigues me.

We don’t often think about how much impact our local environment might have on business. But scratch the surface and you discover our economy is much stronger because of it. Dani, who runs Le Knicks Cycling Outfitters in Black Rock has worked all over Melbourne and tells us there is something different about bayside. ‘I really believe the bay does contribute to how happy people are in this suburb’, says Dani. How we ‘feel’ is the key to unlocking nature-based solutions, to restore and enhance our economic resilience. This translates into better health and environment. It’s all connected.

Steve feels relaxed by exercising on the bay. ‘It’s an amazing place to just step into a natural environment’, he says ‘you’ve obviously stepped out of suburbia and into a natural place’. Physical exercise emulates stress, which is thought to make us more able to respond to acute stress – which is the good stress, that makes us healthy. We seek natural places to do this, because it connects our minds in ways that are inherent to our human nature. ‘You can have a heart rate up high but you’re completely in tune with what you’re doing on the water’, Steve says. As Steve notes, we share this experience with other people in our community. Everyone enjoys the Bay, from open water swimmers, sea kayakers, and even recreational swimmers going in for a quick cool down after walking the dog.

Whenever Carla has any spare time, she likes to search the Bayside area for fossils. That connection to and time in nature is directly linked to her personal wellbeing, she explains. It’s Carla’s way to wind down from a stressful job. Carla says ‘if I haven’t gone fossil hunting for a while, I feel like something is missing’. ‘When I find a fossil, it’s pure joy’ she says. ‘It brings me something else that nothing else in my life does’.

Lars is a  landscape gardener and his work takes him along the coast, often within sight of the Bay. Whenever possible, he snorkels at Ricketts Point marine sanctuary. He also brings his dogs for a walk to the dog-friendly beach and catches up with friends at the local café. Lars has developed a keen interest in amateur underwater photography, seeking out certain fish, as well as the underwater landscape of sponges and seaweeds, preferring it it when there is good visibility underwater.