Twelve Apostles of Victoria: The magnificent sea stacks of Australia

What all comes to your mind when you imagine yourself sitting on a beach? Waves, sand, pine and coconut trees, pebbles and some alone time, away from the humdrum of life. Isn’t that, right? But have you ever come upon huge rock towers standing alone or in groups not that far away from the beach? These are what you call stacks. Standing near the coastline, these unique coastal landforms, formed by wave erosions, are nothing but large, steep and vertical columns of rock that stand erect on the sea, separated from the main shoreline. The breath-taking view of sea stacks must have spellbound you if you have had the chance to visit one or at least glance through a few them online.  

Do you know that there are many magnificent rock formations all over the world? But today, we will take you on a trip to the most popular ones: 12 Apostles of Victoria in Australia. We bet you’ll love this journey!  

The stack story: How were they formed? 
Standing on the coastline of Port Campbell National Park in the state of Victoria, these yellow and orange-hued sea stacks, as you see them today, are made out of limestones. Some 20 million years ago, they emerged out of the Southern Ocean, alongside Australia's famous Great Ocean Road.  However, it wasn’t until 1846, that they were featured on the map of Australia.  

Now, let’s take a close look at how these sea stacks were formed. Years of research reveal that the Twelve Apostles were formed by erosion of limestone cliffs, thanks to the harsh weather conditions of the Southern Ocean. Storms and salt water kept on thrashing them, continuously, creating caves within. These caves, in turn, took the shape of arches. This whole process eventually led to the collapse of the entire structure, leaving behind only rock stacks. Nature never fails to amaze us, right? 

Fact File 
As the 12 Apostles of Victoria stand tall and watch life go by, we take you through some interesting facts about these stacks. 

• According to geologists, 12 stacks were never seen. They may have existed but have submerged over time. Currently, you can see only eight Apostles. Two were destroyed in 2005 itself.  
• The average height of each stack is between 145-150 feet.  

• What we know today as Twelve Apostles, were known as Sow and Piglets way back in 1846. Later, these limestone stacks were renamed as Twelve Apostles. They got their unique name from the Holy Bible’s New Testament where Twelve Apostles refer to the twelve primary disciples of Christ. 
• Twelve Apostles are by far the closest standing stacks in the world.