Cockatoo Island is the largest island in Sydney Harbour, with a long history. It was used to house convicts in the early 1800s, before becoming the primary shipbuilding location in Australia. The island was extensively terraformed to provide drydocks and slipways. The last ship built there was the AOR HMAS Success in the late 1980s, and the shipyard closed in 1992. Old tradies at the current naval base (Garden Island) still refer to Cockatoo Island as 'the island' - and there are still quite a few workers at the base who started out on the island.It has since been opened up for public recreation. Many of the original dockyard buildings are still there, and there is still quite a bit of dockyard equipment scattered around the place, with interpretive signage describing the history. Some of convict buildings have also been preserved. Parts of the island are still in use - they have achieved some success in trying to get some boat maintenance businesses operating on the island, parts of the island are used for various events, there is a 'glamping' ground where people can go out and stay in tents, and a number of the former houses for senior dockyard officers are now rented out as holiday rentals. There are a couple of long tunnels through the island that were built during WW2 as air-raid shelters, and also to facilitate movement around the island. I also noticed one of the Turbine halls has been secured and there is work going on in there on a variety of artifacts, including a large motor boat from the carrier HMAS Sydney.There is a small museum in one of the buildings on the island which has a collection of photographs and displays telling the story of the island, and the people who lived and worked there.Aerial shot of the island taken in 1927. The ship building at the back right-hand corner of the island is the seaplane carrier HMAS Albatross. In the background is Spectacle Island - for many years the repository of the RAN's historical artefacts - but in the last couple of months it has been announced that Spectacle Island will be disposed of.Another aerial shot - this time in wartime. If it comes out, the key at the bottom right identifies all the ships in the photo.One of the island slipways today - this is the same one that Albatross was being built on in the previous photograph.One of the drydocks on the island. The object in the water is the caisson.One of the turbine halls, with the lathes that have just been left there.One of the tunnels which goes right through the island from one side to the other.Getting to the island is easy - it is on one of the regular ferry commuting routes in Sydney, and it takes about 30 minutes to get there from the main downtown ferry terminal (Circular Quay). There is no charge to access the island. There is a visitor centre on the island which sells books and souvenirs, and also a couple of eateries - but they tend to only be open during summer - the place is pretty deserted during winter.
