0:00:19 > 0:00:21This is as far east as I can possibly go
0:00:21 > 0:00:23on mainland Australia.
0:00:23 > 0:00:26This is the coast of northern New South Wales,
0:00:26 > 0:00:30where the Pacific Ocean crashes onto a subtropical shore.
0:00:34 > 0:00:38From this point, the next landfall is South America,
0:00:38 > 0:00:4111,000km that way.
0:00:46 > 0:00:49We've come here to explore this eastern extreme
0:00:49 > 0:00:53on a coast sought after for its serenity,
0:00:53 > 0:00:56where a relaxed lifestyle hides a history of danger
0:00:56 > 0:00:58and adventure.
0:01:00 > 0:01:02Joining me on this journey,
0:01:02 > 0:01:06Dr Alice Garner goes to visit a most extraordinary jail.
0:01:06 > 0:01:08It was a hive of activity.
0:01:08 > 0:01:10There was a barbershop, a tailor,
0:01:10 > 0:01:11a cobbler.
0:01:13 > 0:01:15Professor Tim Flannery uncovers
0:01:15 > 0:01:19a little-known tale of heroism and exploration.
0:01:19 > 0:01:2112 men, small rafts,
0:01:21 > 0:01:23total isolation for six months...
0:01:23 > 0:01:26It takes a special kind of person to survive that.
0:01:27 > 0:01:29Professor Emma Johnston goes deep
0:01:29 > 0:01:32in the search for hidden killers of an endangered species.
0:01:33 > 0:01:36These critical habitats are vital to their survival.
0:01:37 > 0:01:39While I investigate a secret war
0:01:39 > 0:01:42the authorities were determined to cover-up.
0:01:42 > 0:01:45The government certainly didn't want it to be public knowledge
0:01:45 > 0:01:46in case the populace got panicked.
0:01:46 > 0:01:48This is Coast...
0:01:48 > 0:01:49Australia.
0:02:15 > 0:02:18Our journey along northern New South Wales
0:02:18 > 0:02:20stretches from Byron Bay
0:02:20 > 0:02:22through the port of Yamba,
0:02:22 > 0:02:23Coffs Harbour,
0:02:23 > 0:02:25and on to South West Rocks.
0:02:33 > 0:02:36In 1770, Lieutenant James Cook
0:02:36 > 0:02:39passed this cape on his journey up the east coast...
0:02:41 > 0:02:44..stopping just long enough to name its sweeping bay
0:02:44 > 0:02:48after fellow circumnavigator, Lord John Byron -
0:02:48 > 0:02:50grandfather of the famous poet.
0:02:53 > 0:02:55The region's most prominent landmark
0:02:55 > 0:02:58is undoubtedly the Cape Byron lighthouse,
0:02:58 > 0:03:03which has stood sentinel over this stretch of the Pacific since 1901.
0:03:05 > 0:03:09With a beam that can be seen 27 nautical miles out to sea,
0:03:09 > 0:03:13it's one of the most powerful lights in the southern hemisphere,
0:03:13 > 0:03:17but, as much as it wards off ships, it draws people in.
0:03:19 > 0:03:22Most lighthouses are the epitome of isolation,
0:03:22 > 0:03:24but this one, due to its location,
0:03:24 > 0:03:28has been reluctantly accessible to visitors from the very beginning -
0:03:28 > 0:03:33so much so, that in 1958, stressed by the constant flow of tourists,
0:03:33 > 0:03:37the keeper Harry Handicott applied for a transfer.
0:03:38 > 0:03:42Old Harry would have conniptions if he could see it today.
0:03:42 > 0:03:46Each year, at least half-a-million visitors swarm to the lighthouse,
0:03:46 > 0:03:50climbing up to the lamp gallery to take in the truly stupendous view.
0:03:52 > 0:03:55But it's more than just the iconic lighthouse and dazzling landscape
0:03:55 > 0:03:57that draws the crowds to Byron.
0:04:00 > 0:04:05The town radiates an earthy energy creating a modern day Mecca
0:04:05 > 0:04:08for those seeking an alternative lifestyle,
0:04:08 > 0:04:11and a magnet for cashed-up sea-changers
0:04:11 > 0:04:13in multimillion dollar mansions.
0:04:19 > 0:04:23But the beauty and the laid-back lifestyle of this place
0:04:23 > 0:04:25hides a dirty past.
0:04:31 > 0:04:33Leading surfboard designer Bob McTavish
0:04:33 > 0:04:35witnessed that past first hand.
0:04:36 > 0:04:41Coming here in the mid-'50s, Bob found himself on the crest of a wave
0:04:41 > 0:04:43in more ways than one,
0:04:43 > 0:04:45spearheading a surfing invasion,
0:04:45 > 0:04:48which changed Byron forever.
0:04:48 > 0:04:49For a non-surfer like me,
0:04:49 > 0:04:51why is Byron Bay so good?
0:04:51 > 0:04:52This break - The Pass -
0:04:52 > 0:04:56is probably the longest right-hand wave
0:04:56 > 0:04:59on the east coast that's easy to access.
0:04:59 > 0:05:00And it's so consistent.
0:05:00 > 0:05:03There's good surf here maybe 150, 180 days a year,
0:05:03 > 0:05:05which is pretty rare for any place in the world,
0:05:05 > 0:05:07to have surf that frequent.
0:05:08 > 0:05:12But the Byron Bay Bob and his surfie mates discovered half a century ago
0:05:12 > 0:05:14was no relaxed resort town,
0:05:14 > 0:05:18it was a staunchly blue-collar industrial hub.
0:05:19 > 0:05:23The locals were far more concerned with pay packets than point breaks.
0:05:23 > 0:05:27So when you were here in the early days it was this contrast -
0:05:27 > 0:05:29side-by-side you had a physical paradise...
0:05:29 > 0:05:31Yep.
0:05:31 > 0:05:32..and a lot of heavy industry,
0:05:32 > 0:05:34and people earning a living at the same time?
0:05:34 > 0:05:37Yeah, first it was the timber industry.
0:05:37 > 0:05:39All the beautiful Louis XIV furniture was made out of all the trees
0:05:39 > 0:05:41that grew around here,
0:05:41 > 0:05:43and was all shipped back to Europe.
0:05:43 > 0:05:48And by 1905 it was the biggest dairy processing place in the southern hemisphere -
0:05:48 > 0:05:50functioning right here in this town.
0:05:52 > 0:05:55And the rich pastures of the hinterland
0:05:55 > 0:05:57also produced a thriving beef industry.
0:05:58 > 0:06:01Between 1912 and 1983,
0:06:01 > 0:06:06an abattoir sprawled on a prime cut of surfside real estate.
0:06:06 > 0:06:09You just don't associate that kind of set-up with Byron Bay.
0:06:09 > 0:06:11- Or I don't. - It's a full-on industry.
0:06:11 > 0:06:13And out here there's a blood pipe,
0:06:13 > 0:06:15and every afternoon the blood and bits of offal and hair and stuff
0:06:15 > 0:06:17would all be flushed straight into the ocean,
0:06:17 > 0:06:20and the sharks were around there, like...
0:06:20 > 0:06:22"Arh-yarh-yarh... Where's the food?!"
0:06:22 > 0:06:25They've got all the chum but nothing to eat,
0:06:25 > 0:06:27so we used to avoid surfing there in the afternoons.
0:06:29 > 0:06:32But those early surfers had more to fear from local police
0:06:32 > 0:06:35who took a dim view of these long-haired newcomers,
0:06:35 > 0:06:39branding them a threat to Byron's hard-working way of life.
0:06:40 > 0:06:42See this classic headline -
0:06:42 > 0:06:44This Is One Place The Surfies Aren't Taking Over -
0:06:44 > 0:06:46and that's the local police sergeant.
0:06:46 > 0:06:48That's not the kind of face you want to see looming over you
0:06:48 > 0:06:50- if you're a long-haired surfie bum, is it?- It's not!
0:06:50 > 0:06:52It's not going to end well.
0:06:52 > 0:06:54No, not going to end well!
0:06:54 > 0:06:57And what kind of grief did you get from the police?
0:06:57 > 0:06:59One time I lobbed here with my friend Terry,
0:06:59 > 0:07:01cop car came screeching down the dirt track.
0:07:01 > 0:07:06The guys jumped out, and they drove us down to the local barbershop
0:07:06 > 0:07:07and said, "Give 'em a crew cut!"
0:07:07 > 0:07:09So they buzz-cutted us both
0:07:09 > 0:07:11and put us in the lock-up for the night.
0:07:11 > 0:07:13Because we had long hair.
0:07:16 > 0:07:18A stinking abattoir,
0:07:18 > 0:07:20a huge dairy factory...
0:07:20 > 0:07:23It's hard to imagine such things in a paradise location like this one.
0:07:23 > 0:07:25You might imagine this sand had always been sacred,
0:07:25 > 0:07:27but apparently not.
0:07:30 > 0:07:33From 1933 to 1962,
0:07:33 > 0:07:36a large sand-mining operation was based right here.
0:07:38 > 0:07:42One man who can shed light on this part of Byron's less-than-perfect past
0:07:42 > 0:07:43is historian Robert Smith.
0:07:45 > 0:07:48So this beach wasn't always a surfer's paradise then?
0:07:48 > 0:07:49Oh, no, no, no.
0:07:49 > 0:07:51Where we're walking was actually sand-mined.
0:07:51 > 0:07:53There were big holes here -
0:07:53 > 0:07:55bulldozers, trucks coming in,
0:07:55 > 0:07:57sand was being shipped out.
0:07:57 > 0:07:59It was a big industrial site.
0:07:59 > 0:08:01And what was it that was making the sand valuable?
0:08:01 > 0:08:02Why were they mining it?
0:08:02 > 0:08:06Ah, well, that was the mineral sands, as they're called -
0:08:06 > 0:08:08particularly zircon, rutile.
0:08:10 > 0:08:14Those minerals were used in the lucrative aeronautics industry.
0:08:14 > 0:08:17Apart from leaving huge craters in the beach,
0:08:17 > 0:08:20the mining resulted in a far more serious problem.
0:08:20 > 0:08:25Leftover sand was dumped at sites all over Byron Bay.
0:08:25 > 0:08:27Only much later did they discover
0:08:27 > 0:08:30that it contained traces of uranium and thorium.
0:08:33 > 0:08:36Somebody decided to put a Geiger counter over their block
0:08:36 > 0:08:39and found that it was highly radioactive.
0:08:39 > 0:08:41And has that been dealt with?
0:08:41 > 0:08:44Yes, it was a massive clean-up operation in the '80s.
0:08:45 > 0:08:48As if digging up the beach and dumping radioactive waste
0:08:48 > 0:08:50wasn't bad enough,
0:08:50 > 0:08:53Byron Bay was also home to a short lived whaling industry
0:08:53 > 0:08:55that started in the 1950s.
0:08:56 > 0:08:58Between May and November,
0:08:58 > 0:09:02on average two humpbacks were killed and processed every day.
0:09:03 > 0:09:06It attracted massive crowds - crowds of thousands -
0:09:06 > 0:09:08coming in to see what a whale looked like
0:09:08 > 0:09:11being dragged from the sea and then cut up.
0:09:11 > 0:09:14Seems amazing, you know, in these times of whale-watching
0:09:14 > 0:09:16that, back in the '50s and early '60s,
0:09:16 > 0:09:19the whales were a tourist attraction
0:09:19 > 0:09:21for a completely different reason.
0:09:21 > 0:09:22That's true. It's true.
0:09:22 > 0:09:25Families could come and see the whales being cut up -
0:09:25 > 0:09:27that's how whale-watching operated in an earlier era!
0:09:29 > 0:09:32It's hard to reconcile modern Byron Bay
0:09:32 > 0:09:34with its sometimes ugly past.
0:09:34 > 0:09:39Yet, in one way, those hard times paved the way for today's splendour.
0:09:39 > 0:09:43One of the benefits of polluting, smelly industries
0:09:43 > 0:09:45persevering in Byron Bay for so long,
0:09:45 > 0:09:48was that it constrained development.
0:09:48 > 0:09:50So that coastal tourist development
0:09:50 > 0:09:54that seemed to overrun some other coastal centres
0:09:54 > 0:09:55didn't happen here.
0:09:55 > 0:09:57And, in a sense, it's preserved
0:09:57 > 0:10:00what many of us think is the best of the community.
0:10:00 > 0:10:03The industry, in its own way, protected the coast.
0:10:03 > 0:10:05Yeah, you could say that. Yes.
0:10:09 > 0:10:11It's quite a transformation.
0:10:12 > 0:10:17Byron Bay has outlived and outgrown its unclean past
0:10:17 > 0:10:20and it's done that by embracing the beauty
0:10:20 > 0:10:22and cherishing the bounty.
0:10:22 > 0:10:25It goes to show that the only constant on the coast
0:10:25 > 0:10:26is change.
0:10:34 > 0:10:36Australia's European history
0:10:36 > 0:10:37is defined by intrepid souls,
0:10:37 > 0:10:40who braved a long and arduous journey
0:10:40 > 0:10:41to arrive on this coast.
0:10:44 > 0:10:47Tim Flannery's passion for explorer history
0:10:47 > 0:10:48has led him to the town of Ballina
0:10:48 > 0:10:52where an Odyssean adventure arrived on these shores
0:10:52 > 0:10:5340 years ago.
0:10:53 > 0:10:56If you stand on a break wall like this long enough,
0:10:56 > 0:10:59you're bound to see all manner of strange things.
0:10:59 > 0:11:02But if you'd been here on 21 November, 1973,
0:11:02 > 0:11:06you would've seen something that was truly unique.
0:11:06 > 0:11:09- REPORTER:- 'The small fishing port of Ballina woke up to find itself
0:11:09 > 0:11:10'the centre of national attention.'
0:11:10 > 0:11:15People turned out in numbers to welcome the arrival of 12 men,
0:11:15 > 0:11:19who had just completed the longest recorded, nonstop raft journey
0:11:19 > 0:11:21in history.
0:11:22 > 0:11:24Over six months this crew
0:11:24 > 0:11:26from seven different countries
0:11:26 > 0:11:29had travelled 14,000km
0:11:29 > 0:11:32from Guayaquil in Ecuador to Australia...
0:11:34 > 0:11:36..in three traditional South American vessels,
0:11:36 > 0:11:39made only with balsa wood and sisal rope.
0:11:41 > 0:11:42'The object of the voyage
0:11:42 > 0:11:44'was to show that the Indians of South America
0:11:44 > 0:11:47'could have navigated across the Pacific in similar rafts
0:11:47 > 0:11:50'hundreds, and even thousands, of years ago.'
0:11:50 > 0:11:54In support of their adventure was Salvador Dali.
0:11:54 > 0:11:58He painted a sail which he gave to the crew as a gesture of solidarity
0:11:58 > 0:12:00with those brave sailors.
0:12:03 > 0:12:06All three rafts made it to Australian waters,
0:12:06 > 0:12:09but when one became waterlogged it was abandoned,
0:12:09 > 0:12:12and later washed up in Newcastle.
0:12:12 > 0:12:14- Good to meet you. - Nice seeing you.
0:12:14 > 0:12:17John Zentveld was amongst the welcome party
0:12:17 > 0:12:19when the remaining two rafts appeared.
0:12:19 > 0:12:22So, John, what were you doing on that day 40 years ago?
0:12:22 > 0:12:24Well, when we heard on the radio
0:12:24 > 0:12:26the rafts were coming in
0:12:26 > 0:12:28we decided, well, to take the boat,
0:12:28 > 0:12:32throw it in the water and let's go and have a look at 'em!
0:12:32 > 0:12:33The first raft came in,
0:12:33 > 0:12:35waving like mad.
0:12:35 > 0:12:37It was an exciting scene for us,
0:12:37 > 0:12:41but it was, of course, very, very exciting for them.
0:12:41 > 0:12:43There it is, 21 November, 1973.
0:12:43 > 0:12:45There's the two rafts
0:12:45 > 0:12:47and there are the boys - my goodness!
0:12:47 > 0:12:49They look like Robinson Crusoe, don't they?
0:12:49 > 0:12:51Well, they hadn't had a shave for a long, long time.
0:12:51 > 0:12:53I reckon. My goodness.
0:12:53 > 0:12:54THEY LAUGH
0:12:59 > 0:13:0212 men, small rafts,
0:13:02 > 0:13:05total isolation for six months.
0:13:05 > 0:13:08It takes a special kind of person to survive that.
0:13:10 > 0:13:14The navigator of the group was 28-year-old Chilean geologist
0:13:14 > 0:13:15Hugo Becerra.
0:13:15 > 0:13:17- Hey, Hugo! - Hi.
0:13:17 > 0:13:20That was a pretty crazy journey you made, by the sound of it.
0:13:20 > 0:13:22Whatever inspired you to do it.
0:13:22 > 0:13:25Well, I was young and looking for adventure.
0:13:25 > 0:13:30Adventure, indeed, but it also turned out to be a lucky escape.
0:13:30 > 0:13:34While they were at sea, the brutal regime of Pinochet
0:13:34 > 0:13:37had taken power in Hugo's homeland of Chile.
0:13:37 > 0:13:39So you were responsible for navigating.
0:13:39 > 0:13:40Were you qualified for that?
0:13:40 > 0:13:43No. I wasn't qualified for anything on the raft, really.
0:13:43 > 0:13:44THEY LAUGH
0:13:44 > 0:13:45Not even for sailing.
0:13:47 > 0:13:48Hugo quickly mastered the sextant
0:13:48 > 0:13:51and with his university mathematics,
0:13:51 > 0:13:53plotted their course each day.
0:13:54 > 0:13:57So you must have faced dangers out there, surely.
0:13:57 > 0:13:59Well, storms, yes.
0:14:07 > 0:14:10Ballina's Naval and Maritime Museum
0:14:10 > 0:14:12houses what remains of the historic rafts.
0:14:13 > 0:14:16Ah, wow!
0:14:16 > 0:14:18That's a lot bigger than I thought it was going to be.
0:14:18 > 0:14:21I can see the cabin through there. It looks very small.
0:14:21 > 0:14:24- I'd like to go and have a look. - I'll show you there.
0:14:24 > 0:14:26Living conditions were tight,
0:14:26 > 0:14:28with four men on each raft -
0:14:28 > 0:14:3114 meters long and 5.5 metres wide.
0:14:31 > 0:14:34Now you can't tell me there was any privacy on this boat.
0:14:34 > 0:14:37No, no privacy, at all, but it was very comfortable.
0:14:37 > 0:14:40Only a bamboo hut offered a hope of privacy,
0:14:40 > 0:14:43and some protection from the elements.
0:14:43 > 0:14:45Welcome aboard, Chief Navigator.
0:14:45 > 0:14:49I'm sorry I haven't got a whistle to pipe you...on deck with.
0:14:50 > 0:14:55This is the first time that Hugo has set foot on the raft in 30 years.
0:14:55 > 0:14:58Now, over here, this was the toilet.
0:14:58 > 0:15:00It looks reasonably comfortable.
0:15:00 > 0:15:02It was very comfortable.
0:15:02 > 0:15:04Did you ever have any water coming up from below?
0:15:04 > 0:15:05Yeah!
0:15:05 > 0:15:08I haven't heard about this expedition very much at all,
0:15:08 > 0:15:10and I've lived in Australia all my life.
0:15:10 > 0:15:13Do you think it's been forgotten?
0:15:13 > 0:15:14Well, I think so. Yeah.
0:15:25 > 0:15:28- It's like growing up, becoming a man.- Yeah.
0:15:28 > 0:15:30A few weeks after arriving,
0:15:30 > 0:15:34most of the crew had returned to their respective countries.
0:15:34 > 0:15:38But Prime Minister Whitlam granted Hugo and his Chilean crewmate
0:15:38 > 0:15:40sanctuary in Australia.
0:15:42 > 0:15:44As for the Dali sail -
0:15:44 > 0:15:49it was sold by the crew for about 50,000 in 1983,
0:15:49 > 0:15:52and used to repay their respective debts incurred in travel
0:15:52 > 0:15:54back to their home lands.
0:16:17 > 0:16:20The ocean along the northern coast of New South Wales
0:16:20 > 0:16:23attracts many wanting to reap its bounty.
0:16:26 > 0:16:29Passionate anglers will often jealously guard
0:16:29 > 0:16:31the secrets to fishing success.
0:16:31 > 0:16:35When some locals discovered a bountiful fishing spot
0:16:35 > 0:16:37just off the coast here a few years ago,
0:16:37 > 0:16:41they had no intentions of telling anyone about it.
0:16:41 > 0:16:44But they didn't realise they had found something much more precious
0:16:44 > 0:16:47than a rich marine harvest.
0:16:47 > 0:16:51In fact, they'd stumbled upon a silent monument
0:16:51 > 0:16:53to a secret history.
0:16:53 > 0:16:57A theatre of war that reached to the very edge of Australia.
0:16:59 > 0:17:03Sally and Forfar Petrie and their friend Neville Poynting
0:17:03 > 0:17:06have agreed to take me to the site of their serendipitous discovery.
0:17:06 > 0:17:08ENGINE STARTS
0:17:12 > 0:17:17A once-secret fishing spot about 10km off the coast of Ballina.
0:17:17 > 0:17:22Can you tell me about the day when you found the fishing spot?
0:17:22 > 0:17:25It was a perfect day, there was flat seas...
0:17:25 > 0:17:27And I had my sounder on
0:17:27 > 0:17:29and this mark came up.
0:17:29 > 0:17:32Just this huge... And it looked like a big ball of bait fish.
0:17:32 > 0:17:35We turned around, had three rods out,
0:17:35 > 0:17:37and bang! Fish on.
0:17:37 > 0:17:40Right. Did you know, as fishermen,
0:17:40 > 0:17:42you'd found something out of the ordinary?
0:17:42 > 0:17:44Oh, yes, yes...
0:17:44 > 0:17:46I knew I'd found El Dorado!
0:17:46 > 0:17:47THEY LAUGH
0:17:48 > 0:17:50That was in 2006.
0:17:50 > 0:17:52For five years they kept their secret,
0:17:52 > 0:17:56never questioning why this place produced such a rich harvest,
0:17:56 > 0:17:59until one day they noticed droplets of oil
0:17:59 > 0:18:01on the surface.
0:18:01 > 0:18:03At that stage I was talking a lot
0:18:03 > 0:18:07with the director of the Heritage Society and I sent him down
0:18:07 > 0:18:09a little sample of oil I collected in a plastic bag.
0:18:09 > 0:18:12They identified it as diesel oil.
0:18:12 > 0:18:16And there was no other explanation for oil like that being on the seabed
0:18:16 > 0:18:18except if it was inside a ship.
0:18:18 > 0:18:19Exactly. Exactly.
0:18:22 > 0:18:24A CSIRO survey ship was bought in,
0:18:24 > 0:18:28and 3-D mapping of the seabed revealed the truth.
0:18:28 > 0:18:32The Petries' fishing hot spot was, in fact, an enormous wreck,
0:18:32 > 0:18:36which had become an artificial reef - a magnet for marine life.
0:18:37 > 0:18:40The wreck was soon identified as a World War II merchant vessel
0:18:40 > 0:18:43called the MV Limerick.
0:18:43 > 0:18:47Some called the Limerick the Titanic of her day.
0:18:47 > 0:18:49When launched in 1925,
0:18:49 > 0:18:53she was the fastest merchant vessel in the world.
0:18:53 > 0:18:54But like the Titanic,
0:18:54 > 0:18:56the Limerick was doomed.
0:18:57 > 0:19:01The Limerick lies 100 metres below me here.
0:19:01 > 0:19:04She was sunk by a Japanese torpedo during World War II.
0:19:05 > 0:19:09It's a sobering reminder that this calm expanse of water
0:19:09 > 0:19:12was, at that time, a violent theatre of war.
0:19:14 > 0:19:18The Limerick was travelling in convoy from Sydney to Brisbane
0:19:18 > 0:19:21on a mission to pick up and deliver vital war supplies to England.
0:19:23 > 0:19:28Overnight between Anzac Day and the 26 April, 1943,
0:19:28 > 0:19:30a Japanese torpedo found its mark.
0:19:37 > 0:19:41This war in Australian waters killed 654 people,
0:19:41 > 0:19:45including 200 Australian merchant seamen.
0:19:45 > 0:19:48You might not have heard much about it,
0:19:48 > 0:19:49because it was kept quiet.
0:19:49 > 0:19:50Why?
0:19:50 > 0:19:54Because the Australian Government believed news of all these sinkings
0:19:54 > 0:19:55would cause mass panic,
0:19:55 > 0:19:57they ordered a media blackout.
0:20:00 > 0:20:03Remarkably, only two people on board the Limerick
0:20:03 > 0:20:05died in the attack.
0:20:05 > 0:20:0770 men were plucked from the ocean,
0:20:07 > 0:20:11including the ship's radio officer George Jones.
0:20:11 > 0:20:12For George's son Warwick,
0:20:12 > 0:20:17the sinking of the Limerick became a lifelong obsession.
0:20:17 > 0:20:20How did you feel when you learned that the wreck had been discovered?
0:20:20 > 0:20:22Gobsmacked, I suppose.
0:20:22 > 0:20:24It seemed unreal.
0:20:24 > 0:20:26I never expected the ship to be found.
0:20:27 > 0:20:29Warwick was always fascinated
0:20:29 > 0:20:32about the tale of his father's narrow escape.
0:20:32 > 0:20:34My dad had come off watch at midnight,
0:20:34 > 0:20:37had a cup of coffee, turned in to bed,
0:20:37 > 0:20:40and at four minutes past one there was a fearsome explosion
0:20:40 > 0:20:42which threw him out of his bunk.
0:20:42 > 0:20:46The ship was in chaos, darkness, no communications,
0:20:46 > 0:20:49and so they made the decision to abandon ship.
0:20:49 > 0:20:53This is his original handwritten diary, where he says,
0:20:53 > 0:20:56"So down the rope on the starboard side
0:20:56 > 0:20:59"where a large part of the ship's side was exposed,
0:20:59 > 0:21:00"and into the water.
0:21:00 > 0:21:02"All was dark and silent
0:21:02 > 0:21:06"and I then began to think my chance of survival was slim indeed."
0:21:07 > 0:21:09Just that little passage, ah...
0:21:09 > 0:21:13speaks to me of his desperation
0:21:13 > 0:21:17"and the strong possibility that the end of his life was nigh."
0:21:17 > 0:21:21How long was it from going into the water, before your dad was rescued?
0:21:21 > 0:21:24They were in the water for a bit over seven hours.
0:21:24 > 0:21:26At what point, after the sinking,
0:21:26 > 0:21:30was your dad and the other men told they couldn't talk about it?
0:21:30 > 0:21:32Probably at the intelligence briefings in Brisbane
0:21:32 > 0:21:34immediately after the event.
0:21:34 > 0:21:37The government certainly didn't want it to be public knowledge
0:21:37 > 0:21:39in case the populace got panicked -
0:21:39 > 0:21:42knowing the proximity of the Japanese
0:21:42 > 0:21:45and the damage they were doing off the east coast of Australia.
0:21:45 > 0:21:48The silence that was thrust upon them,
0:21:48 > 0:21:51did nothing to suppress the horrific memories.
0:21:51 > 0:21:53For the rest of his life,
0:21:53 > 0:21:57George suffered recurring bouts of post-traumatic stress disorder.
0:21:59 > 0:22:01What form did that take?
0:22:01 > 0:22:03He became functionally catatonic -
0:22:03 > 0:22:05unable to speak,
0:22:05 > 0:22:07a thousand-yard stare.
0:22:07 > 0:22:09It must've been a terrifying experience.
0:22:12 > 0:22:16Finding the Limerick's final resting place is a stark reminder
0:22:16 > 0:22:19that for most people along the northern New South Wales coast
0:22:19 > 0:22:21the war came and went,
0:22:21 > 0:22:24without them ever knowing of the conflict
0:22:24 > 0:22:26raging on their doorstep,
0:22:26 > 0:22:30one that left men like George Jones battling an internal foe.
0:22:30 > 0:22:33What I know about post-traumatic stress disorder
0:22:33 > 0:22:36is that it follows you around for most of the rest of your life.
0:22:36 > 0:22:40And so, from that point of view, I have, at this juncture,
0:22:40 > 0:22:43nothing but admiration for my father,
0:22:43 > 0:22:46that he didn't let it affect him, and that he conquered it.
0:22:57 > 0:23:00North of the city of Coffs Harbour,
0:23:00 > 0:23:02verdant hills lollop and roll
0:23:02 > 0:23:04to the water's edge.
0:23:04 > 0:23:06Once known as the Banana Coast,
0:23:06 > 0:23:10recent decades have seen farming shift towards blueberries,
0:23:10 > 0:23:11which grow well in the sandy soil
0:23:11 > 0:23:13and frost-free coastal clime.
0:23:17 > 0:23:20Brendan Moar is visiting the peaceful hamlet of Woolgoolga
0:23:20 > 0:23:24to discover the roots of its distinctive cultural flavour.
0:23:24 > 0:23:25Walking along a stretch
0:23:25 > 0:23:27of the northern New South Wales coast like this,
0:23:27 > 0:23:29the first thing I think is
0:23:29 > 0:23:30"How can I live here?"
0:23:30 > 0:23:33A little block of land with that beach as your doorstep -
0:23:33 > 0:23:36you can see why that is part of the great Australian dream.
0:23:39 > 0:23:41A dream enjoyed here in Woolgoolga
0:23:41 > 0:23:44by Australia's largest regional Sikh community.
0:23:46 > 0:23:47TRADITIONAL MUSIC
0:23:47 > 0:23:51I figured the weekend Bollywood On The Beach markets
0:23:51 > 0:23:55might be the place to find out more about this flourishing group.
0:23:55 > 0:23:57Bollywood On The Beach is just like India -
0:23:57 > 0:23:59a lot of people and some curry.
0:23:59 > 0:24:01Very nice!
0:24:01 > 0:24:03When he's not selling curry,
0:24:03 > 0:24:07John Arkan is a local councillor and blueberry farmer.
0:24:07 > 0:24:09- John. - Welcome, sir.
0:24:09 > 0:24:10- Brendan.- Brendan, welcome.
0:24:10 > 0:24:13I haven't met you before. You are coming from India?
0:24:13 > 0:24:14No, no, I'm not from India,
0:24:14 > 0:24:16but I suspect that you may well be!
0:24:16 > 0:24:19Yeah, that's right, I come from India. That's it.
0:24:19 > 0:24:20So your parents came here...
0:24:20 > 0:24:24My grandparents came in 1895.
0:24:24 > 0:24:25We're farmers from the north of India,
0:24:25 > 0:24:27so we came to the Clarence Valley
0:24:27 > 0:24:29where we did sugar cane farming.
0:24:29 > 0:24:32And as the story goes, one gentleman came here to Woolgoolga
0:24:32 > 0:24:33looking for extra work,
0:24:33 > 0:24:35and they discovered the banana farms here.
0:24:35 > 0:24:39And word got out, and people started turning up here after, and during, the war...
0:24:39 > 0:24:42- Other people from...- Other Sikhs. - From Punjab?- From Punjab.
0:24:44 > 0:24:45As citizens of British India,
0:24:45 > 0:24:47of the Commonwealth,
0:24:47 > 0:24:50and later having fought alongside the Anzacs at Gallipoli,
0:24:50 > 0:24:51Sikhs could benefit
0:24:51 > 0:24:55from the Australian government's immigration encouragement policies,
0:24:55 > 0:25:00making travel to and from Australia much easier.
0:25:00 > 0:25:03From the 1920s, and during World War II,
0:25:03 > 0:25:06the numbers of Sikh father-and-son workers increased,
0:25:06 > 0:25:09particularly around the New South Wales northern rivers.
0:25:11 > 0:25:15But the greatest influx came after the partition of India in 1947,
0:25:15 > 0:25:20when the state of Punjab was divided into Islamic Pakistan in the west
0:25:20 > 0:25:22and secular India in the east.
0:25:23 > 0:25:26The tumult at home drove many to the Coffs Coast for good.
0:25:28 > 0:25:32So then in about 1968, the first Sikh temple in Australia was built here.
0:25:32 > 0:25:35And then that's just like every other human need -
0:25:35 > 0:25:38once we have a place to worship and a place to work,
0:25:38 > 0:25:39everybody started turning up.
0:25:41 > 0:25:44Nearly a quarter of the 5,000 people
0:25:44 > 0:25:46who live in the region are Sikhs,
0:25:46 > 0:25:51and they own 90% of the local banana and blueberry farms.
0:25:51 > 0:25:53- So you are Sikh? - I am.
0:25:53 > 0:25:55For me it means to be a person
0:25:55 > 0:25:57that fully embraces everything and every place
0:25:57 > 0:25:59that they're involved in.
0:25:59 > 0:26:01So, when I'm selling curry, wherever I go,
0:26:01 > 0:26:03I deliberately speak with everybody.
0:26:03 > 0:26:05Because for me, I'm embracing God.
0:26:05 > 0:26:07I'm embracing whatever they are.
0:26:07 > 0:26:09It doesn't matter - we're all human beings.
0:26:11 > 0:26:14It's my turn to do a little embracing.
0:26:14 > 0:26:17MUSIC PLAYS
0:26:17 > 0:26:20It's a mark of tradition for John's wife Surinder
0:26:20 > 0:26:21to lead the dance circle.
0:26:21 > 0:26:23Back to where we were!
0:26:23 > 0:26:26Brendan, you've got a really good rhythm, man!
0:26:26 > 0:26:29And I'm not going to hold my breath waiting for a call from Bollywood.
0:26:29 > 0:26:30Look at that!
0:26:33 > 0:26:35One thing makes me curious.
0:26:35 > 0:26:37Coming as it does from a landlocked state,
0:26:37 > 0:26:40how has this vibrant cultural tradition
0:26:40 > 0:26:42blended with Aussie beach culture?
0:26:43 > 0:26:46We're a part of the coast. The kids come down, the uncles and aunties...
0:26:46 > 0:26:48This is the gathering area.
0:26:48 > 0:26:51So, the coast is actually becoming what the big tree used to be
0:26:51 > 0:26:52in the villages in India.
0:26:52 > 0:26:56A place to gather, to discuss what we are doing during the day,
0:26:56 > 0:26:59to have that interaction between the elderly and the young,
0:26:59 > 0:27:01and to work out where the village is going.
0:27:01 > 0:27:04That's what's happening on the coast in Woolgoolga.
0:27:09 > 0:27:12The Sikhs left India looking for a new life and a new beginning,
0:27:12 > 0:27:14and many decades later
0:27:14 > 0:27:16they have stayed completely true to who they are,
0:27:16 > 0:27:21at the same time totally embracing this Australian coastal life.
0:27:30 > 0:27:32Just 30km south of Woolgoolga,
0:27:32 > 0:27:35Xanthe Mallett is in for the ride of her life,
0:27:35 > 0:27:39as she checks out the high-octane world of offshore powerboating.
0:27:41 > 0:27:44Early morning, beautiful and tranquil Coffs Harbour.
0:27:44 > 0:27:46People come here to relax
0:27:46 > 0:27:48and enjoy the ambience.
0:27:48 > 0:27:50Let's shake that up a little bit, shall we?
0:27:51 > 0:27:53- Good morning.- Good morning.
0:27:53 > 0:27:55Meet Conn Saloumidis...
0:27:57 > 0:28:00..card-carrying member of the big boys' toys club.
0:28:00 > 0:28:01His plaything?
0:28:01 > 0:28:04A supercat 600 offshore superboat
0:28:04 > 0:28:06which he built three years ago.
0:28:08 > 0:28:13Buy one new, and it'll cost you north of half a million dollars.
0:28:13 > 0:28:15There are only 20 superboats in Australia
0:28:15 > 0:28:18and this is the only one in New South Wales.
0:28:18 > 0:28:21- This is where all the magic happens. - Absolutely!
0:28:21 > 0:28:22This is 300 horsepower.
0:28:22 > 0:28:24- So, you've got two of those.- Yep.
0:28:24 > 0:28:28Now, that sounds pretty big to me. What is that equivalent to in a car?
0:28:28 > 0:28:31Er, V8 supercars, I think, are about 550 horsepower.
0:28:33 > 0:28:37This carbon fibre and Kevlar beast is a far cry
0:28:37 > 0:28:40from the timber powerboats of yore.
0:28:40 > 0:28:42In the 1950s, the sport was dominated by
0:28:42 > 0:28:46American racing car enthusiasts and yacht designers,
0:28:46 > 0:28:50but Australia had its own pioneering speedster, Ken Warby,
0:28:50 > 0:28:54who set the world water speed record in 1978.
0:28:54 > 0:28:58His backyard-built, jet-engined Spirit Of Australia
0:28:58 > 0:29:00clocked 511kph -
0:29:00 > 0:29:03a record that still stands.
0:29:04 > 0:29:06Over the next decade,
0:29:06 > 0:29:10powerboat racing gained even more rev-head recognition.
0:29:11 > 0:29:14It came to prominence in the '80s with America's war on drugs.
0:29:14 > 0:29:18They were bringing a lot of drugs in from South America via boats,
0:29:18 > 0:29:20and the boats just got faster and faster.
0:29:20 > 0:29:22That power comes at a price.
0:29:22 > 0:29:24HUGE ENGINE REVS
0:29:24 > 0:29:28Conn's boat burns 1,500 worth of fuel in a single race,
0:29:28 > 0:29:31but, if it's high-octane thrills you're after -
0:29:31 > 0:29:33hey, it's money well spent!
0:29:33 > 0:29:37To get a sense of speed, we are going flat out at 60Ks an hour.
0:29:39 > 0:29:40But look at this!
0:29:43 > 0:29:45Now I've seen that, I've just got to have a go.
0:29:45 > 0:29:47Come on aboard.
0:29:47 > 0:29:48All right. My turn.
0:29:48 > 0:29:50Ohhh...! OK, thank you.
0:30:03 > 0:30:05What are the safety features you've got in here?
0:30:05 > 0:30:07- Because it's a pretty dangerous sport.- Absolutely.
0:30:07 > 0:30:09Well, your five-point harness.
0:30:09 > 0:30:12There's breathing apparatus just there beside you.
0:30:12 > 0:30:14Ah, also, the snorkel,
0:30:14 > 0:30:17in case it goes over and you're underwater,
0:30:17 > 0:30:19you can actually still breathe.
0:30:19 > 0:30:21Put that in until they rescue you.
0:30:42 > 0:30:44Travelling 100km south of Coffs Harbour
0:30:44 > 0:30:48along endless stretches of majestic beaches brings us
0:30:48 > 0:30:50to the South West Rocks area -
0:30:50 > 0:30:55a haven for one of Australia's most ancient and special marine species.
0:30:57 > 0:31:01Professor Emma Johnston has come to investigate
0:31:01 > 0:31:03what's threatening these creatures.
0:31:03 > 0:31:07Sharks have a fearsome reputation as man-eaters,
0:31:07 > 0:31:10but of the 400 or so species in the world,
0:31:10 > 0:31:12only three are responsible
0:31:12 > 0:31:14for most attacks on humans -
0:31:14 > 0:31:17tigers, bulls and great whites.
0:31:17 > 0:31:20Yet all of the sharks, even the most harmless ones,
0:31:20 > 0:31:23suffer the consequences of our fear.
0:31:23 > 0:31:25I am here to investigate one such species.
0:31:27 > 0:31:30With its menacing mouthful of teeth,
0:31:30 > 0:31:33the grey nurse shark appears every inch a killer.
0:31:35 > 0:31:36But looks can be deceiving.
0:31:36 > 0:31:39These sharks are not man-eaters.
0:31:39 > 0:31:41Sadly, people have attacked them.
0:31:42 > 0:31:43In the '60s and '70s,
0:31:43 > 0:31:47working on the theory that "the only good shark is a dead shark",
0:31:47 > 0:31:50hunters slaughtered the great nurse,
0:31:50 > 0:31:52at times killing up to 30 a day.
0:31:53 > 0:31:56That, coupled with their slow reproductive rate,
0:31:56 > 0:31:59has left the grey nurse in danger of being wiped out
0:31:59 > 0:32:01from the east coast of Australia.
0:32:03 > 0:32:06Dr Nick Otway, a marine ecologist,
0:32:06 > 0:32:09has been studying grey nurse sharks for 15 years.
0:32:09 > 0:32:11- How are you going? - Not bad, how are you?
0:32:11 > 0:32:13The species is protected from hunting,
0:32:13 > 0:32:17but the impact of humans is still a threat.
0:32:17 > 0:32:19Their teeth are actually designed for just eating fish.
0:32:19 > 0:32:21They're feeding on a whole range of fish
0:32:21 > 0:32:24that commercial and recreational fishers will also target,
0:32:24 > 0:32:26and are out there trying to catch.
0:32:26 > 0:32:28Can we have a look at those teeth?
0:32:28 > 0:32:29Yes. Absolutely.
0:32:29 > 0:32:32- We've got the jaw. - Beautiful.
0:32:32 > 0:32:35So they're there to grab hold of the fish,
0:32:35 > 0:32:37and then, it swallows the fish whole.
0:32:37 > 0:32:38In that sort of situation,
0:32:38 > 0:32:41if you have got a fish on a hook,
0:32:41 > 0:32:45then it's actually taking the hook into its gut,
0:32:45 > 0:32:47and that has consequences for the animal.
0:32:50 > 0:32:53Nick is leading a long-term research project
0:32:53 > 0:32:56to assist the recovery of the grey nurse sharks
0:32:56 > 0:32:58along the east coast of Australia.
0:33:01 > 0:33:06This 2.5m grey nurse was caught in a shark net off Sydney.
0:33:06 > 0:33:08Nick suspects the corpse will hold clues
0:33:08 > 0:33:11to other threats facing the population.
0:33:11 > 0:33:14So I'm going to help him conduct a postmortem examination.
0:33:15 > 0:33:17First, the shark is weighed.
0:33:17 > 0:33:20So, what weight would we expect?
0:33:20 > 0:33:21We'd expect about 100kg.
0:33:21 > 0:33:24Well, we've only got about 75 here. 74?
0:33:24 > 0:33:26What does that indicate?
0:33:26 > 0:33:28We'd suspect that there's some sort of hook damage,
0:33:28 > 0:33:30or the animal is diseased.
0:33:30 > 0:33:34Examining its exterior reveals a telltale sign.
0:33:34 > 0:33:37You can see here...
0:33:37 > 0:33:40That could very well be a past hook wound that is healing.
0:33:40 > 0:33:43Time to inspect the internals.
0:33:43 > 0:33:45Because this animal has lost weight...
0:33:45 > 0:33:48They can lose weight from their body mass - their muscle mass -
0:33:48 > 0:33:50but they can often lose weight from their liver.
0:33:50 > 0:33:53And when they lose weight from their liver, the liver really goes dark.
0:33:53 > 0:33:55Almost a dark blue to black.
0:33:55 > 0:33:57And if you look at it here - this animal's lost weight,
0:33:57 > 0:33:59and look at the colour of the liver.
0:33:59 > 0:34:01- That's one low liver.- Oh...!
0:34:01 > 0:34:03- So that's indicative of a sick... - Of an unhealthy animal.
0:34:03 > 0:34:05- Yes.- OK.
0:34:05 > 0:34:08What can cause disease in the liver of a shark?
0:34:08 > 0:34:10A range of things, especially hooks.
0:34:10 > 0:34:13There's good evidence from work that's been done in the United States
0:34:13 > 0:34:16that the retention of hooks causes all sorts of diseases,
0:34:16 > 0:34:18including cancer, in sharks.
0:34:19 > 0:34:22The offending hook is long gone,
0:34:22 > 0:34:25but the infection it caused damaged the shark's liver.
0:34:25 > 0:34:29This would've killed it 25 years earlier than a healthy grey nurse,
0:34:29 > 0:34:32who have a life expectancy of 35 years.
0:34:34 > 0:34:37Studying dead sharks can tell you only so much.
0:34:37 > 0:34:40It's time to suit up and observe these gentle creatures
0:34:40 > 0:34:42in their own element.
0:34:42 > 0:34:45Grey nurse sharks roam over really large areas
0:34:45 > 0:34:47of the New South Wales coast,
0:34:47 > 0:34:50but they're known to gather to feed, mate and pup
0:34:50 > 0:34:52in only a small number of locations.
0:34:52 > 0:34:55These critical habitats are vital to their survival
0:34:55 > 0:34:57and we're going to visit one today.
0:34:59 > 0:35:02We're heading just off the coast of South West Rocks
0:35:02 > 0:35:04to shoot some sharks...
0:35:04 > 0:35:05with a camera.
0:35:05 > 0:35:07Two cameras, in fact.
0:35:07 > 0:35:10It's new technology called stereo photogrammetry.
0:35:10 > 0:35:12Two cameras...
0:35:12 > 0:35:14They're angled in at four degrees,
0:35:14 > 0:35:16and what you get is overlapping images,
0:35:16 > 0:35:19and that enables you to actually get the lengths,
0:35:19 > 0:35:22and any measurements that you want to get, from the shark.
0:35:22 > 0:35:24And you'll get very, very accurate measurements.
0:35:28 > 0:35:31This is grey nurse central -
0:35:31 > 0:35:34smack-bang in the middle of their migration zone.
0:35:34 > 0:35:37In the protective shelter of these deep gutters
0:35:37 > 0:35:41the sharks congregate to feed and mate.
0:35:41 > 0:35:44It's soon obvious why they're sometimes called
0:35:44 > 0:35:46Labradors of the sea.
0:35:46 > 0:35:48This is truly remarkable.
0:35:48 > 0:35:50Five grey nurse sharks
0:35:50 > 0:35:52much, much larger than me,
0:35:52 > 0:35:55swimming only a metre away.
0:35:56 > 0:36:00This new technology will provide Nick's team with vital data
0:36:00 > 0:36:02not just on size,
0:36:02 > 0:36:05but on age, weight and sex...
0:36:06 > 0:36:09..building up an in-depth profile of this population -
0:36:09 > 0:36:12all without having to touch a single shark.
0:36:13 > 0:36:18In 1984, the grey nurse became the first shark species in the world
0:36:18 > 0:36:20to be awarded official protection.
0:36:22 > 0:36:25But with females only reproducing every second year,
0:36:25 > 0:36:29it is estimated there are only 1,500 sharks left here
0:36:29 > 0:36:31on the entire east coast of Australia.
0:36:37 > 0:36:39How many would you need in a population
0:36:39 > 0:36:42before you would be comfortable that the population was viable?
0:36:42 > 0:36:45Well, worldwide studies on a whole range of animals,
0:36:45 > 0:36:47including sharks, have essentially said that
0:36:47 > 0:36:49for a population to be viable,
0:36:49 > 0:36:50and to stay viable into the future,
0:36:50 > 0:36:52you need about 5,000 animals.
0:36:52 > 0:36:54So we've got well below that.
0:36:57 > 0:37:01It's really humbling to have swum with such gentle creatures.
0:37:01 > 0:37:03They are just very calm.
0:37:03 > 0:37:06They look like they've been here for hundreds of thousands of years,
0:37:06 > 0:37:10and they have, actually, been here for hundreds of thousands of years.
0:37:10 > 0:37:11This is THEIR home.
0:37:11 > 0:37:13And, hopefully, with some research,
0:37:13 > 0:37:15with some better management,
0:37:15 > 0:37:18this will be their home for many years into the future.
0:37:29 > 0:37:32Near the seaside town of South West Rocks, the glistening jade
0:37:32 > 0:37:36expanse of Trial Bay invites the most languid of pursuits.
0:37:40 > 0:37:44Overlooking the peaceful bay sits a relic fortress, a jail,
0:37:44 > 0:37:46with a curious wartime history.
0:37:48 > 0:37:53Dr Alice Garner is following the clues to the heyday of these ruins.
0:37:53 > 0:37:55Over 90 years ago,
0:37:55 > 0:37:58two young girls were exploring these cliffs up here,
0:37:58 > 0:38:01when they came across the most unlikely treasure.
0:38:03 > 0:38:06This portrait of a mystery man.
0:38:08 > 0:38:11The man's identity and his link to Trial Bay Gaol
0:38:11 > 0:38:14would remain an enigma for 80 years...
0:38:15 > 0:38:16- Hello.- Hello.
0:38:16 > 0:38:19..until German-born historian Nadine Helmi
0:38:19 > 0:38:22finally put the pieces of this puzzle together.
0:38:22 > 0:38:25Tell me, who is the man in the painting?
0:38:25 > 0:38:29Well, I found out that it was Paul Dubotzki,
0:38:29 > 0:38:33a young, very talented photographer from Bavaria.
0:38:34 > 0:38:36Nadine realised that Paul Dubotzki,
0:38:36 > 0:38:37the man in the photo,
0:38:37 > 0:38:40was also the man in the painting.
0:38:40 > 0:38:42And he was interned here at Trial Bay Gaol
0:38:42 > 0:38:43during World War I.
0:38:46 > 0:38:49Trial Bay Gaol was built in the late 1800s.
0:38:49 > 0:38:52Prisoners began to construct a breakwater,
0:38:52 > 0:38:54but that project was abandoned
0:38:54 > 0:38:58and the jail closed until the First World War.
0:39:01 > 0:39:05In 1915, our man in the painting, Paul Dubotzki,
0:39:05 > 0:39:07was a professional photographer
0:39:07 > 0:39:09who had recently arrived in Adelaide.
0:39:09 > 0:39:12At that time about 100,000 people
0:39:12 > 0:39:15of German or Austrian heritage lived in Australia.
0:39:16 > 0:39:19Paul was one of nearly 7,000
0:39:19 > 0:39:21who were deemed enemy aliens -
0:39:21 > 0:39:22a threat to national security -
0:39:22 > 0:39:24and sent to internment camps
0:39:24 > 0:39:26around the country.
0:39:26 > 0:39:29But the men sent here, to Trial Bay,
0:39:29 > 0:39:31were a very particular bunch.
0:39:33 > 0:39:37There were about 500 wealthy, well-educated members
0:39:37 > 0:39:40of the German upper class.
0:39:40 > 0:39:43Why were they separated out from the other internment camps?
0:39:43 > 0:39:45It was class thinking.
0:39:45 > 0:39:48They wouldn't want to mix the upper class, you know,
0:39:48 > 0:39:51with the bottom part of the internees.
0:39:51 > 0:39:55Was Trial Bay run differently from the other internment camps?
0:39:55 > 0:39:58It was run mostly by the internees,
0:39:58 > 0:40:00and there were similarities,
0:40:00 > 0:40:03but they were really privileged,
0:40:03 > 0:40:05because they could go outside the jail
0:40:05 > 0:40:07enjoying a bit of freedom during the day.
0:40:09 > 0:40:11You can see the chamber orchestra,
0:40:11 > 0:40:14everybody meticulously dressed.
0:40:15 > 0:40:18And here...they all are in their Sunday's best
0:40:18 > 0:40:21hanging out at the Strandcafe,
0:40:21 > 0:40:23which means beach cafe.
0:40:23 > 0:40:26So they're recreating the comforts of home?
0:40:26 > 0:40:27Absolutely.
0:40:27 > 0:40:31You know, so you go out and enjoy coffee and a piece of cake.
0:40:31 > 0:40:33As you do in Germany.
0:40:34 > 0:40:37It's clear that this was no ordinary jail.
0:40:37 > 0:40:39It was a hive of activity.
0:40:39 > 0:40:41There was a barber shop,
0:40:41 > 0:40:43there was a tailor, a cobbler,
0:40:43 > 0:40:46and not to forget, of course,
0:40:46 > 0:40:48Mr Dubotzki, Paul, had his photo shop.
0:40:50 > 0:40:52Ever ready with his camera,
0:40:52 > 0:40:56Dubotzki snapped more than 1,000 photos during his internment.
0:40:57 > 0:41:00Those pictures reveal that Trial Bay didn't really
0:41:00 > 0:41:02live up to its name.
0:41:02 > 0:41:06The Germanic inmates built a sophisticated and refined community.
0:41:08 > 0:41:10Here stood the theatre -
0:41:10 > 0:41:13the Deutsches Theater Trial Bay.
0:41:13 > 0:41:16And it was quite a substantial, purpose-built theatre.
0:41:16 > 0:41:19It could seat about 200 internees
0:41:19 > 0:41:23and churned out, you know, once a week or fortnight,
0:41:23 > 0:41:24a new show.
0:41:24 > 0:41:28It was done with passion by volunteers who had the urge
0:41:28 > 0:41:31to do something creative, artistic.
0:41:31 > 0:41:34And they served a very important purpose,
0:41:34 > 0:41:38because, for the internees, it really was very therapeutic
0:41:38 > 0:41:42to come and see this life on stage.
0:41:42 > 0:41:45This life that they were missing.
0:41:45 > 0:41:49The lack of women didn't deter these amateur thespians.
0:41:49 > 0:41:53Instead, they observed a long-held theatrical tradition.
0:41:53 > 0:41:55After a little bit of hesitation,
0:41:55 > 0:41:57there were a couple of internees who said,
0:41:57 > 0:42:00"OK, we go on stage and we'll impersonate women."
0:42:00 > 0:42:01And so they did.
0:42:01 > 0:42:04Look at this incredibly glamorous shot.
0:42:04 > 0:42:06So, you get an idea,
0:42:06 > 0:42:09what kind of women they could see on stage,
0:42:09 > 0:42:13and maybe dream to spend some time with!
0:42:17 > 0:42:19What's clear from Dubotzki's photos
0:42:19 > 0:42:23is that the internees at Trial Bay had a fair degree of freedom.
0:42:23 > 0:42:25I mean, they were even allowed
0:42:25 > 0:42:28to build little beach huts all around here
0:42:28 > 0:42:30and sell them to each other.
0:42:31 > 0:42:35The internees spent three years in their seaside paradise,
0:42:35 > 0:42:38but it all came to an abrupt end in May 1918,
0:42:38 > 0:42:42when the government suddenly shut down the facility.
0:42:43 > 0:42:47The prisoners were given just 48 hours' notice.
0:42:47 > 0:42:50In fury, these men, who had led such cultured lives,
0:42:50 > 0:42:52trashed and burnt their barracks,
0:42:52 > 0:42:56turning everything they'd created to ash.
0:42:57 > 0:42:59In the rush to leave,
0:42:59 > 0:43:02Paul Dubotzki must have hidden his portrait in the dugout
0:43:02 > 0:43:04before being deported to Germany
0:43:04 > 0:43:06along with most of his fellow internees.
0:43:08 > 0:43:12He later set up a photography shop in Bavaria,
0:43:12 > 0:43:13married, and had a family.
0:43:14 > 0:43:17Many internees stayed in touch,
0:43:17 > 0:43:21with frequent reunions in Hamburg until 1973.
0:43:25 > 0:43:29Trial Bay Gaol lies silent and empty now,
0:43:29 > 0:43:32but the spirit and ingenuity of the internees' community
0:43:32 > 0:43:36live on in Dubotzki's unforgettable photos.
0:43:47 > 0:43:51Sitting pretty in the middle of the most pristine stretch of coastline
0:43:51 > 0:43:53in northern New South Wales
0:43:53 > 0:43:55is the popular holiday town of Yamba,
0:43:55 > 0:43:57famous for its favourable climate.
0:43:59 > 0:44:02Temperate winters and warm summer days ensure that here,
0:44:02 > 0:44:05the slow lane isn't hard to find.
0:44:06 > 0:44:08Today I'm going looking for something
0:44:08 > 0:44:10that moves surprisingly quickly
0:44:10 > 0:44:12but is much harder to find.
0:44:12 > 0:44:13In fact, to my untrained eye,
0:44:13 > 0:44:15it should be all but invisible.
0:44:19 > 0:44:22Moninya Roughan is a mathematician
0:44:22 > 0:44:24specialising in coastal oceanography.
0:44:25 > 0:44:28Today we are heading a few kilometres offshore
0:44:28 > 0:44:30to the continental shelf
0:44:30 > 0:44:33in search of an underwater superhighway.
0:44:34 > 0:44:36Where exactly are we now?
0:44:36 > 0:44:39So we've come here to the edge of the East Australian Current.
0:44:39 > 0:44:42It's one of Australia's major ocean boundary currents.
0:44:42 > 0:44:45So the warm water in the equator, basically,
0:44:45 > 0:44:48pushes southward down to the cold of the poles,
0:44:48 > 0:44:51bringing warm water down the coast all the time.
0:44:52 > 0:44:54The East Australian Current
0:44:54 > 0:44:56is up to 100km wide
0:44:56 > 0:44:58and more than 300 metres deep -
0:44:58 > 0:45:02a massive movement of water which moderates our climate,
0:45:02 > 0:45:06bringing warm, humid weather to coastal New South Wales.
0:45:07 > 0:45:10I think it's a strange feeling to know that we are on the edge
0:45:10 > 0:45:13of something so massive that it actually affects the planet.
0:45:13 > 0:45:16You get a sense of what it must look like from outer space, or something.
0:45:16 > 0:45:18This vast body of water on the move.
0:45:20 > 0:45:23Moninya and her team from the University of New South Wales
0:45:23 > 0:45:25are using cutting-edge technology
0:45:25 > 0:45:28to decode the secrets of this crucial current.
0:45:28 > 0:45:30This is an ocean glider,
0:45:30 > 0:45:33and we use it to measure the properties of the East Australian Current.
0:45:33 > 0:45:35- Does that just go off on its own? - Absolutely.
0:45:35 > 0:45:37It's totally autonomous.
0:45:37 > 0:45:39We send it out, and we don't see it for three or four weeks.
0:45:39 > 0:45:42Once you let it go, how do you get it back?
0:45:42 > 0:45:44It's got a little satellite tracker on it,
0:45:44 > 0:45:47and we can program it to dive, but also to come up to the surface.
0:45:47 > 0:45:49So when it comes up to the surface,
0:45:49 > 0:45:52it relays its position via satellite back to our computer.
0:45:52 > 0:45:54Right, so it tells you where it is?
0:45:54 > 0:45:55Yeah, it's really cool.
0:45:55 > 0:45:57And is it vulnerable in the water?
0:45:57 > 0:46:03Um, yeah, it can run into obstacles like islands, or rocks, or boats,
0:46:03 > 0:46:06but, er, you know, it also looks a little tasty
0:46:06 > 0:46:09for marine predators, as well.
0:46:09 > 0:46:10These are marks from shark teeth?
0:46:10 > 0:46:12Yeah, absolutely.
0:46:12 > 0:46:14- And a mouth...about that wide. - Yeah.
0:46:17 > 0:46:20The glider is swept south in the powerful ocean current,
0:46:20 > 0:46:24diving deep and surfacing at regular intervals...
0:46:26 > 0:46:31..all the time collecting data which is relayed to the lab via satellite.
0:46:33 > 0:46:35What information do you get from it?
0:46:35 > 0:46:38So it's measuring the temperature and the salinity,
0:46:38 > 0:46:40and the pressure, as it goes up and down,
0:46:40 > 0:46:42but also the light - the amount of sunlight -
0:46:42 > 0:46:43that's penetrating into the water.
0:46:43 > 0:46:46So, now that we've deployed it we can go back inshore
0:46:46 > 0:46:47and I can show you some of the data.
0:46:50 > 0:46:53The glider will spend three to four weeks
0:46:53 > 0:46:55on its underwater mission,
0:46:55 > 0:46:57weaving in- and offshore covering
0:46:57 > 0:47:01over 400km on its way south to Port Macquarie.
0:47:03 > 0:47:05How quickly do you start to get feedback from
0:47:05 > 0:47:07the glider that went in today?
0:47:07 > 0:47:08Well, it's been about an hour,
0:47:08 > 0:47:10so we should be able to get some data now.
0:47:10 > 0:47:12- So it's real time? - Yeah.
0:47:12 > 0:47:15- There it is. - Right, what does that mean?
0:47:15 > 0:47:17So here we have the temperature, at the surface.
0:47:17 > 0:47:21So it's a combination of temperature and salinity, and pressure, as well.
0:47:21 > 0:47:24It's a strange feeling to know that it's out there doing that just now.
0:47:24 > 0:47:27It is a bit like a space mission, isn't it?
0:47:27 > 0:47:30It's like sending something out into the unknown.
0:47:30 > 0:47:33It's... It's incredible. The ocean IS the last frontier.
0:47:33 > 0:47:3770% of our Earth is ocean and we know so little about it.
0:47:37 > 0:47:40How is the ocean here changing?
0:47:40 > 0:47:42We have evidence to show that the oceans ARE warming.
0:47:42 > 0:47:46We have a monitoring site off the coast of Tasmania, erm...
0:47:46 > 0:47:48with 70 years of data.
0:47:48 > 0:47:5170 years' temperature records off the coast of Tasmania.
0:47:51 > 0:47:55We can see that the surface temperatures have warmed 1.8 degrees.
0:47:55 > 0:47:58So this information we're collecting is really important
0:47:58 > 0:48:01for contributing to these databases and really understanding
0:48:01 > 0:48:03what the conditions are now,
0:48:03 > 0:48:06so that we know in the future how warm the oceans are getting.
0:48:11 > 0:48:12In a few weeks' time,
0:48:12 > 0:48:15Moninya and her team will be in another boat
0:48:15 > 0:48:17hundreds of kilometres from here
0:48:17 > 0:48:20to collect the glider and to begin crunching the numbers
0:48:20 > 0:48:23that will help them to predict, and even influence,
0:48:23 > 0:48:25this part of the coastline.
0:48:25 > 0:48:28That's assuming a shark doesn't swallow it first!
0:48:31 > 0:48:36Next time, we visit Australia's south-west.
0:48:36 > 0:48:39Brendan Moar discovers an intrepid botanical collector.
0:48:39 > 0:48:42Lords and ladies were going wild
0:48:42 > 0:48:44wanting the stuff that she'd sent.
0:48:44 > 0:48:48Xanthe Mallett joins a police exercise to recover lost bodies.
0:48:48 > 0:48:50A lot of silt's been kicked up
0:48:50 > 0:48:52which complicates the bodies' retrieval.
0:48:52 > 0:48:54And for me, the true story
0:48:54 > 0:48:57of a bizarre drama on the high seas.
0:48:57 > 0:48:59You fire on us, you're firing on America.
0:48:59 > 0:49:02Do you want to start a war?