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Suggested short camping tours of Victoria's Otway Ranges and the Great Ocean Road

Introduction

  • this is my suggestions for a short camping tour of the Otways and taking in mainly the Lorne to Port Campbell section
  • the coastal regions from Torquay to Lorne can easily be done as day trips from Melbourne, hence I have largely excluded these parts
  • there is a LOT to see and so only some of it will be possible on a 3 day 2 night camp tour
  • my strong suggestion is to drive from Melbourne to Anglesea and then along the Great Ocean Road to Port Campbell and then return to Melbourne via the much faster, less tiring inland route via Colac and Winchelsea
    • for a break, on the way home you could check out the old pastoral homestead in Winchelsea (Barwon Park Mansion) - the owner introduced rabbits into Australia and his wife funded the development of the Austin Hospital
  • you will want to modify these suggestions pending your interests, available time, and the weather
    • if it is raining, the forest walks are still enjoyable and there should be plenty of water in the waterfalls - if you have hike boots and rain gear - otherwise sight seeing and photographing the storm clouds over the coastal scenery works well too!
    • if there are gale force winds, avoid the beaches as you will get sand blasted and avoid the forests as trees tend to fall over and block the roads
  • there are no free camp grounds on the south (beach) side of the Otways or along the Great Ocean Road (GOR)
    • the only free ones are more than 20min drive from the beach
  • take care walking along beach paths or forest paths as snakes are quite plentiful and they won't like you if you step on them or near them
    • carry bandages if hiking just in case you get absorbed in the beauty of the region and forget to look where you are walking - most snakes will get out of your way before you get to them

Itinerary for a 2 nights camp trip exploring the coast

Day 1 and 1st night

  • travel to Lorne and do some sight seeing such as:
    • Erskine Falls
    • Cora Lynn Cascades forest walk is lovely
    • forest walks to a range of waterfalls from Allenvale Mill camp area:
      • Won Wondah Falls
      • Henderson Falls
      • The Canyon
      • Phantom Falls
    • you will also want to explore the rock pools and beaches from Lorne onwards if the weather is nice
  • there is quite a bit to see around Lorne so a 1st night camp near Lorne makes sense in which case your options are several:
    • commercial beachfront holiday park in Lorne itself
      • this can be quite busy and noisy but you have access to the beach, shops and restaurants as well as flush toilets and hot showers
    • Allenvale Mill campground
      • book via Parks Vic BUT be aware it is a 100-200m walk from the car park so you won't be close to your car - could be an issue if you have lots of gear to carry
    • Cumberland River Holiday Park
      • lovely commercial beachfront holiday park on a very nice river with a cliff backdrop at
      • camp along the river and it is a short walk across the GOR to the beach
      • option to hike along the river up to Cumberland Falls
      • this is the one to choose off-peak for its ambience but you do have to pay more but you get flush toilets and hot showers and a walk to the beach
    • Jamieson Creek camp ground Wye River
      • book via Parks Vic, elevated coastal camp ground great for overnighters if you don't want a commercial caravan park
      • this is the one I would choose to be away from the families and caravans but close to my car - but there are no showers and the toilets are drop toilets
    • commercial beachfront holiday park at Wye River
      • has a lovely beach and river inlet plus a pub for meals
      • again you do have to pay more but you get flush toilets and hot showers and a walk to the beach

Day 2 and 2nd night

  • sights to see from Wye River onwards:
    • the many coastal beaches and rock pools
    • Kennett River Nature walk
    • Cape Patton Lookout - stop the car at the top and get a quick pic
    • Apollo Bay for lunch
    • Maits Rest forest walk (short walk in a tall forest to stretch your legs)
    • option to drive down to Cape Otway Lighthouse at the southern tip
    • Cape Otway region tends to have the most koalas in the trees - keep an eye out for them
  • camp options around this area include:
    • Blanket Bay camp ground, Cape Otway
      • book via Parks Vic (don't book a GOW site - this is for hikers walking in doing the Great Ocean Walk)
      • sandy bumpy road in can be problematic for some 2WD cars with little clearance
      • it is quite remote but you get a site on a cliff near a small beach which is nice - just don't go in peak periods when it is over-crowded!
    • Bimbi Park commercial holiday park
      • for those wanting hot showers and toilets and still access to wildlife
    • Aire River West campground
      • book via Parks Vic
      • camp sites along the river with a 20min walk to a remote beach
    • Johanna beach camp ground
      • book via Parks Vic
      • fairly remote camp on a remote wild surf beach - there may be surfers there as well but currents can be strong
      • this camp allows you to drive to Melba Gully to do a dusk/night walk and see the glow worms - if that is something of interest

Day 3

  • this is going to be a busy day and then head back to Melbourne via Colac
  • things to see and do:
    • have breakfast at Lavers Hill or Princetown (not much food there!)
    • if it is low tide, walk down to remote Wreck Beach and see the old anchor embedded in the rock pools
    • stop at Gibsons Steps and walk down amongst the “Apostles”
    • stop at the car park at the 12 Apostles and walk across to the viewing area (this is likely to be busy especially in the afternoons when the tour buses from Melbourne arrive)
    • stop at Loch Ard Gorge
      • if it is open, walk down to the beach and have a picnic on the beach (BYO food and drinks)
      • walk across to the Razorback Lookout
      • walk across to the Mutton Bird Island lookout - best at dusk when the thousands of birds arrive
    • if you are still energetic and looking for another remote beach, you can go to Sherbrook River Beach with its high cliffs (access via Sherbrook West Track)
    • optionally check out Bakers Oven
  • Port Campbell for dinner perhaps
    • just past Port Campbell are a couple of other rock formations if you had time:
      • The Arch
      • The Grotto
    • and just past Petersborough if you were going to stay a 3rd night perhaps is the Bay Of Martyrs and Bay of Islands to walk along these nice beach areas
  • then its time to head home via Colac, passing through the 3rd largest volcanic plains in the world
    • the volcanoes and volcanic maars are particularly evident around Camperdown but you will bypass most of these in your haste to get home

Itinerary for a 2 nights camp trip exploring the Otway rainforests and northern waterfalls

Day 1 and 1st night

  • Melbourne to Stevensons Falls camp ground via Winchelsea and Forrest
    • this is about a 2hr drive
    • you can check out the free campground as Stevensons Falls camp ground Otways
      • short walk to Stevensons Falls itself
    • the very windy road from Tanbryn to Beech Forest passes through some lovely old rainforest
    • drive to Beauchamp Falls and check out the Beauchamp Falls camp ground
      • medium walk down to the Beauchamp falls
    • drive to Hopetoun Falls
      • short walk to the falls and check out the lovely Redwood forest
  • optional camp areas include:

Day 2 and 2nd night

  • additional things to do in the north-west part of the Otways
    • Weeaproinah - the wettest place in Victoria
    • Otway Fly Treetop Walk - commercial tourist option if this excites you
    • Triplet Falls

option A

  • remain in the Otways and camp there a 2nd night
  • you could drive past Hopetoun Falls for on the gravel road straight down to Cape Otway to camp at Blanket Bay camp ground, Cape Otway then drive back to Melbourne

Option B

  • head to Lavers Hill for lunch
  • then you have the options:
    • 1. go back to Melbourne via Apollo Bay and Lorne and camp as in the other itinerary
    • 2. go west and explore the 12 Apostles or other parts of the GOR as per the other itinerary
    • 3. go west, skip the sites on the GOR and drive through to Peterborough and stay there the night in a commercial holiday park then next day explore Bay of Martyrs, Bay of Islands, Childers Cove and Warrnambool before heading back home via the volcanic plains of Camperdown

Extended camping itinerary

day 1 and 1st night

  • Melb to Torquay and Anglesea
    • check out Bell's Beach, Point Addis (clothing optional)
    • lunch in Anglesea
  • Drive to Aireys Inlet and explore the area - light house, coastal scenery
    • dinner at the pub
  • options for camping:
    • Hammonds Road campgrounds near Aireys Inlet / Bambra
      • free camp or a parks Vic booking camp - ~10km north of Airey's Inlet on a good gravel road
      • both camps are quiet without any caravans, mainly for overnighters travelling the GOR
    • Allenvale Mill in Lorne
      • Parks Vic camp but you have to walk 100-200m from carpark

day 2 and 2nd night

  • explore Lorne region (go to the Information Centre to get updates on walks as some may be closed)
    • Lorne beach and river inlet
    • Lorne shops
    • Erskine Falls - short walk down steps to see the tallest waterfall in the region
    • Cora Lynn Cascades forest walk is lovely and will take a couple of hours from memory
    • forest walks to a range of waterfalls from Allenvale Mill camp area (these may take a couple of hours or more):
      • Won Wondah Falls
      • Henderson Falls
      • The Canyon
      • Phantom Falls
  • camp options:
    • commercial beachfront holiday park in Lorne itself
      • this can be quite busy and noisy but you have access to the beach, shops and restaurants as well as flush toilets and hot showers
    • Allenvale Mill campground
      • book via Parks Vic BUT be aware it is a 100-200m walk from the car park so you won't be close to your car
    • Cumberland River Holiday Park
      • lovely commercial beachfront holiday park on a very nice river with a cliff backdrop at
      • camp along the river and it is a short walk across the GOR to the beach
      • option to hike along the river up to Cumberland Falls
      • this is the one to choose off-peak for its ambience but you do have to pay more but you get flush toilets and hot showers and a walk to the beach
    • Jamieson Creek camp ground Wye River
      • book via Parks Vic, elevated coastal camp ground great for overnighters if you don't want a commercial caravan park
      • this is the one I would choose to be away from the families and caravans - but there are no showers and the toilets are drop toilets
    • commercial beachfront holiday park at Wye River
      • has a lovely beach and river inlet plus a pub for meals
      • again you do have to pay more but you get flush toilets and hot showers and a walk to the beach

day 3 and 3rd night and day 4 and 4th night

  • things to see:
    • possibly more Lorne walks if staying near Lorne on 2nd night
    • Cumberland River and waterfall
    • Wye River beaches and pub for lunch?
    • Kennett River

Option A:

Option B

  • continue on to Apollo Bay and camp there for the night in the commercial holiday parks - either Apollo Bay or Marengo
  • dinner in Apollo Bay
  • day 4 head to Cape Otway Lighthouse and search for koalas along the way then head west to Aire River camp grounds or Johanna beach camp ground to camp - both are Parks Vic bookings

day 5 and 5th night

  • explore the GOR, Twelve apostles as per Day 2 of the 2 night tour
  • either camp at:
    • Peterborough commercial holiday parks next to beach
      • explore Bay of Martyrs and Bay of Islands
    • Warrnambool commercial holiday parks next to beach
      • explore Childers Cove on the way then whale watching from Logan's Beach (if in season)

day 6

  • optionally head to historic Port Fairy (check out Tower Hill volcano on the way) then camp in Budj Bim volcano (Parks Vic booking, hot showers) for the 6th night
  • or just drive back to Melbourne via Camperdown and explore the volcanoes and volcanic maars
australia/vic/otways_camptour.txt · Last modified: 2024/10/04 22:08 by gary1
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