We were camped at Anglesea on Victoria’s south west coast and the weather was unseasonally cool. I was so tempted to just roll over and go back to sleep but with only one day of the holiday left I dragged myself out of bed and headed to the beach with the camera.
The beach looked cold and uninviting although the distant cliffs were worth a shot, but certainly not worth getting my shoes drenched and jeans wet up to the knees. Cold and wet I stood on a sea weed clad rock and cursed myself for misjudging the waves and risking my camera gear.
As I squelched back along the beach I noticed hundreds of tiny blue thumbprints on the sand and up the rocky cliffs. I quickly raced back to the van for the macro lens, which I might add hasn’t seen the light of day for some time, peeled off my dripping shoes and socks and returned to the beach.
Any personal trainer would have been proud of my horizontal efforts to photograph what I have since learned are Velella or By-the-wind sailors. These ones were about the size of my fingernail and they are the same colour as a Blue Bottle or Portuguese Man O War. Technically they are not jellyfish and they sail the seas using their tiny inbuilt sail. I had heard of them but had never been lucky enough to see them, until now.
Now that is a dream come true.
itchingforhitching 
Fascinating!
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What a wonderful find. Sounds as though you had a lovely week.
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You could say that Christmas was well and truly celebrated! Any wonder that I couldn’t judge the waves.
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That was gorgeous!
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Thank you.
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They look so delicate, amazing that they survive the oceans and the rocky shores
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From what I’ve read it is thought that their sails are angled to keep them at sea in the normal winds so we’ll only sea them after a different wind direction has beached them.
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I’ve not heard of them…not sure if we have them in WA! Do they sting like a jellyfish?
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Apparently they are safe for humans but I wouldn’t want to test that theory.
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This looks suspiciously like our Anglesey, moored a short distance off North West Wales. The original inhabitants (I mean the original settler inhabitants) must have felt quite at home if they came from there.
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It’s a beautiful spot popular with surfers and there’s canoeing at the tidal river mouth. The golf course is known for its kangaroos.
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Not Anglesey Wales then!
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Ha ha not with kangaroos
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Congratulations
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It is amazing what you find when you get out and about.
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Indeed
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It’s these little unexpected experiences that put the WOW into a day. I have never heard of these little creatures before – fascinating! And you were right there at the right time!
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Sometimes excitement is right under your nose eh?
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These are beautiful! Definitely worth getting out of bed.
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Oh yes.
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