Cypress Landing is a small coastal hamlet nestled in a sheltered cove known as Cypress Bay. A few wooden houses, often painted in light colors, surround the bay and are reminiscent of the simple architecture of seaside residences. Today, Cypress Landing is primarily a vacation spot, popular with residents of Lochburn City as well as visitors from neighboring counties such as Steepwood and Aelford.
The hamlet takes its name from the cypress trees that line the shores and once served as a natural landmark for sailors. From the early 19th century, the bay was a small natural harbor for fishermen and boats transporting wood and produce from the surrounding countryside. Local residents would come to “land” here, hence the term Landing. For several decades, Cypress Landing was a lively place, essential to local life:
At a time when roads were still rudimentary, Cypress Bay provided a vital embarkation point. Fishermen brought their catches here, while farmers from neighbouring lands loaded wood, grain and produce onto boats. The boats shuttled back and forth to the booming Port Oxheller, giving Cypress Landing a strategic role despite its small size.
During the second half of the 19th century, Cypress Landing experienced its peak of activity. Families settled there permanently to fish along the coast and maintain modest wooden wharves. The bay became a bustling place, especially during the summer season, when fishing boats and small barges criss-crossed in a daily ballet. But with the industrialisation of Port Oxheller and the construction of modern infrastructure, Cypress Landing began to lose its economic importance.
The development of roads suitable for vehicles and, above all, the railway line built by Manuel Mendoza's company (MM – Pure Cane Sugar), which ran along the bay without ever stopping there, gradually diverted activity to larger, better-equipped centres. The wooden wharves fell into disrepair and several families left the hamlet. Cypress Landing, once essential to local livelihoods, was relegated to the status of a mere curiosity on the Lochburn coast.
From the 1950s onwards, Cypress Landing was rediscovered by the inhabitants of Lochburn City, just a few dozen kilometres away. Attracted by the tranquillity of the bay, the proximity of the sea and the beauty of the cypress trees, they began to build colourful wooden houses there for their weekends and holidays. This new purpose changed the image of the hamlet: from a forgotten old landing port, it became a popular summer retreat, appreciated for its intimate, almost timeless atmosphere.
Nowadays, Cypress Landing is mainly inhabited seasonally. The houses, often passed down from generation to generation, bear witness to the families' attachment to this corner of the coast. The economic infrastructure has completely disappeared, but the charm of the wooden pontoons, the remains of the old landing stages, and the regular passage of MM convoys in the background keep alive the memory of a place where local history and nostalgia intertwine.
Cypress Bay, sheltered and lined with cypress trees, was long used as a natural harbour for fishing boats. Today, its calm waters are mainly home to a few pleasure boaters and fishermen. Surrounding the bay are wooden houses built in the 1950s, when the site became a holiday resort. In the background runs the private railway line of the Manuel Mendoza (MM – Pure Cane Sugar) company, connecting the south of Oxheller Island to Port Oxheller. The rumbling of the trains contrasts with the tranquillity of the hamlet. The coastal road, connecting Port Oxheller to Valbeach, runs along the bay in a straight line, offering travellers a direct view of Cypress Landing.
The locals like to recall that in winter, the mist sometimes reveals the old mooring posts, remnants of the vanished quays. In the 1960s, the hamlet also became a romantic retreat for families and young couples from Lochburn City. However, tragedy struck the area in 1993 when Joe Bennett lost his life in an accident on the nearby road. The nearby bridge, renamed Joe Bennett Bridge, has since served as a memorial to him.
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To go further:
Manuel Mendoza — Pure Cane Sugar
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Notable places:
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