Anglers Rest, Victoria

Anglers Rest Victoria
Omeo Highway bridge crossing of the Cobungra River at Anglers Rest
Anglers Rest
Coordinates	36°59′0″S 147°29′0″E / 36.98333°S 147.48333°E / -36.98333; 147.48333Coordinates: 36°59′0″S 147°29′0″E / 36.98333°S 147.48333°E / -36.98333; 147.48333
Population	Nominal (part of Omeo) (2006 census)
Postcode(s)	3898
Elevation	670.0 m (2,198 ft)
Location	430 km (267 mi) from Melbourne 28.5 km (18 mi) from Omeo 108 km (67 mi) from Bright
LGA(s)	Shire of East Gippsland
State electorate(s)	Gippsland East
Federal Division(s)	Gippsland
Mean max temp Mean min temp Annual rainfall 18.3 °C 65 °F 4.8 °C 41 °F 672.6 mm 26.5 in

Anglers Rest is a locality in Victoria, Australia. It is on the Omeo Highway, 28.5 kilometres (17.7 mi) north of Omeo in the Shire of East Gippsland, almost totally surrounded by the Alpine National Park. At the 2006 census, Anglers Rest had a nominal population, being counted as part of Omeo.

The name Anglers Rest is descriptive, indicating that the location is a good spot for anglers, being close to the confluence of several noted trout fishing rivers, the Cobungra River, the Bundara River, the Big River, and the Mitta Mitta River. The Bundara River flows into the Big River a few kilometres north of Anglers Rest, and where the Cobungra River joins the Big River just south of Anglers Rest they become the Mitta Mitta River. Besides fishing, the area is also popular for white water rafting, bushwalking, camping, horseriding, and mountain biking.

Perhaps the most notable feature of Anglers Rest is the historic Blue Duck Inn, standing alongside the Omeo Highway crossing of the Cobungra River. The local area is in fact commonly referred to simply as 'the blue duck', rather than Anglers Rest, in reference to the prominence of this hotel.

The original 1900 timber slab building operated as a butcher shop, servicing gold miners on what was at the time a walking track from Omeo to the gold fields around Mount Wills. In 1912 a successful miner called Billy O’Connell purchased the establishment and obtained a hotel licence on the understanding that the main road would pass the building. After the road was surveyed this did not eventuate, and the inn gained its name when O'Connell nailed a panning dish out the front and wrote 'Blue Duck' on it, blue duck being the term for a failed gold lease.