What can you expect from this walk?

Highlights:

• 7 day group guided itinerary
• Victoria’s new long-distance walking track, bound for iconic status
• Wreck Beach, Milanesia Beach, Station Beach – remote, beautiful, rarely visited
• Twelve Apostles limestone sea stacks and wind-sculpted coastline of Loch Ard Gorge
• Koalas, kangaroos, echidnas, whales, birds of prey, sea birds
• Stay in historic lighthouse keepers cottages – a real treat!

Overview:
This group guided walking holiday focuses on the iconic Great Ocean Walk from Apollo Bay to the 12 Apostles.

The setting is the Great Otway National Park, one of Victoria’s newest parks and the largest coastal park in the state. The breathtaking coastal scenery, remote terrain, magnificent forests, abundant wildlife and colourful heathlands ensure this new walk is quickly becoming an icon both within Australia and internationally.

More on what you'll see
The walk was 91km when it first opened, but alterations and
extensions have gradually lengthened this to over 100km now. Get off the Great Ocean Road and experience the area on foot.

Our itinerary also includes spectacular limestone sea-stacks of the Twelve Apostles, and groves of Manna Gums inhabited by koalas just a few feet from the track. There are some of the highest sea-cliffs in Australia, and pretty Rainbow Falls cascades to the sea platforms below.

Wildlife abounds too. The animals you might spot range from kangaroos, wallabies, echidnas and koalas to sea eagles, wedge-tailed eagles, whales and dolphins.

The track offers variety of walking experiences including remote cliff top walking trails, forest tracks that meander along gentle gradients, pristine sandy beaches, private farmland and short sections on minor dirt roads.

Location
Starts and finishes in Melbourne

Grading
Most days range from 18-22km. Most of the route is on well formed tracks with a few short beach sections. Whilst there are few steep hills, the walking is undulating and tiring in places. This trip operates with two guides so we can offer easier and harder walk options along the way.

Accommodation
Comfortable motels and two nights in the lighthouse keepers’ cottages at Cape Otway. Note that there are shared bathrooms and no single rooms on those two nights.

What’s included
Two guides, all transport from Melbourne, 6 nights accommodation, 6 breakfasts, 5 lunches, 5 dinners, entry and tour at Cape Otway Lightstation, National Park fees, insulated lunch bag, maps, map case & info pack.

What’s not included
Alcohol, meals not listed in itinerary, drinks with meals (except tea/coffee and juice with breakfast).

The best time to go
This trip is suitable for any time of the year.

Regional food and wine
The area is noted for Great Ocean Road / Geelong wines, freshly caught seafood and fresh berries.

The Itinerary

Day 1: Departs Melbourne airport at 10.00am. Travel via Geelong and the Great Ocean Road to Apollo Bay. In the afternoon we’ll leave the tourists behind as we walk along the coast away from Apollo Bay. The track hugs the coast at first before heading inland through tall eucalypt forest and patches of rainforest to Elliot River.

Accommodation: Apollo Bay

Comfortable motel accommodation in Apollo Bay

Day 2: Today’s walk meanders through delightful mountain ash forest to Blanket Bay then contours through coastal forests and along the cliff tops to Parker Inlet – a picture-postcard setting and definitely one of our favourite places! An optional side-trip to Crayfish Bay is also a highlight.

The track continues through manna gum forests that are home to large numbers of koalas, eventually emerging at Cape Otway Lightstation. We will stay in the lighthouse keepers cottages for 2 nights and enjoy a tour of the lighthouse.

Accommodation: Cape Otway Lightstation

Rocky coastal walking near Blanket Bay

Day 3: On to Station Beach, then an optional short return hike to pretty Rainbow Falls where a spring cascades down to the rocky coastal platforms below. The track continues through the wind sculpted sand dunes and along the cliff tops to the Aire River estuary and wetlands. Stunning coastal scenery awaits you on the route to Castle Cove.

Accommodation: Cape Otway Lightstation

Auswalks guide get close and personal with a koala

Day 4: Today’s section has some of the most spectacular coastal views of the entire track. It’s also a great day for wildflowers with colourful heathlands and numerous grass trees. Another highlight is the long, white, sandy expanse of Johanna Beach.

At the end of the day we’ll travel on to Port Campbell where we’ll settle in for a three night stay.

Accommodation: Port Campbell

Walking on sandy Johanna Beach

Day 5: Milanesia Beach is one of those secret beaches not many people get to and what a special place it is! From here the track continues along the cliff tops and you can see all the way back to Cape Otway lighthouse. High sea cliffs, breathtaking views and coastal forests lead you to Moonlight Head.

Accommodation: Port Campbell

Expect to see kangaroos on the track

Day 6: The first highlight today is The Gables Lookout, perched on one of the highest sea cliffs in mainland Australia. Continue through a grove of casuarinas to Wreck Beach where the remains of two shipwrecks can be inspected. Onwards to the Gellibrand River and wetlands.

Next comes the first impressive views of the 12 Apostles, a group of limestone sea stacks that are constantly changing. Descend Gibsons Steps that have been cut into the limestone cliff by hand by an early settler and explore the boardwalks and viewing platforms around the Apostles.

Accommodation: Port Campbell

Approaching the Twelve Apostles

Day 7: The grand finale is the fascinating geological formations at Loch Ard Gorge where you’ll learn the amazing tale of survival of the Loch Ard shipwreck. Evocatively named places indicate the turmoil that hardy pioneers of the area endured, including the crews of over 150 ships that have been shipwrecked along this rugged coast.

Then we travel back to Melbourne, arriving around 3.30pm.

Loch Ard Gorge

For more information please contact our AdventureTravel Specialists Anne Bird or Jane Patrick. They can be reached at 604-736-7447 or click above for “prices and schedule”
to leave us an inquiry via the website.