“Day 3 Johanna beach to Devils Kitchen 28km. A gustily northerly blew in overnight which kept things mild overnight. After sharing camp with a lovely young couple I managed to get away by 7.30am.
The track headed inland and Up and Up into the strong wind, giving some great views of the farmland to the coast. Eventually the track leveled out and continued west, then finally south and down to Milenesia beach through the forest along a steep muddy and rutted 4wd track. Which was a challenge for my cricket shoes. The spectacular and remote beach had a cool little shack next to the river that flowed onto the beach. It reminded me of something that you would see in a movie.
After leaving the beach the track continuously went up and down steeply, winding its way around the rugged outcrops. I saw a mob of roos chilling in the sun, and another big boulder that had dislodged and rolled over the track, as well as views all the way back to the Cape Otway lighthouse.
I finally reached Ryan’s Den quite exhausted and debated stopping there for the day, but after a rest I recovered and pushed on. Not far from Ryan’s Den I heard a guy shouting which concerned me that it could be an injured hiker. It turned out it was a farmer looking for his dog. It ran off chasing a rabbit, and he was worried that it might have gone over the massive cliff on the edge of his paddock. I kept and eye out as I continued but saw no sign.
The going was a little easier from there but the last 40 minutes I was walking in the dark. I was relieved to finally reach Devils Kitchen camp, ate dinner set up the tent and went to sleep.”
“Day 4 and final day of the 100km Great Ocean Walk. Devils Kitchen to the Twelve Apostles – 16km. With a shorter day today I allowed myself a little sleep in till 7.30. I enjoyed the best view in the camp from the toilet balcony for breakfast. The morning’s walk was through some thick coastal scrub, dominated by tea trees with a few teasing cliff top glimpses of the familiar rock formations of the twelve apostles which was the destination.
After 7 km the track descended down a massive sand dune that I was pleased to be walking down and not up, to the Gellibrand River. The Recreation Reserve at Princetown is where the website suggests to safely park the car, for a small fee. ($5 per day)
It was a lovely walk back past the Gibson steps from the visitor centre. I was happy to be quickly away from the crowds. Shortly after I came across a lookout with a kestrel perched on the handrail. It let me get quite close. It also appeared to be the official end of the track with a nice sign. It felt like the bird was my greeting party.
I walked the rest of the sandy track looking back regularly at the apostles. The track descended again to the car and that was the end of the 100km . I drove to the Gibson steps and enjoyed my late lunch on the beach before I started the long drive home.
Reflections:
The cricket shoes worked out fine, (luckily) mostly because of the soft walking surface, however my knees were quite sore which I felt was due to knee cap tracking from the slightly lower heel than my normal hiking shoes, and possibly the long days.
Taking 4 days instead of the usual 6-8 was a bit of a stretch but it allowed me to avoid any rain and enjoy some amazing weather. If I did it again I would add another day and stop at Ryan’s Den for the night. Some of the hiking camps had great little adjoining drive in camps that would be good to visit and camp at.
Overall it was a spectacular track which had some good challenges and I could imagine it being quite challenging in windy, wet and cold conditions. I would find the steep hills challenging in warm conditions as I tend to get very hot walking up hills. The track was well formed and well signed and the camps were excellent. My only gripe was the odd concrete and timber offset “steps” that they put in which were quite slippery on the steep descents.”
Victoria has some spectacular coastline doesn’t it? To the East of Melbourne it is possible to walk all the way from Phillip Island to Eden in NSW and (If you want) back along the Alps walk to Melbourne. There are not organised, delineated routes as in western Victoria but the intelligent traveler will find his/her way. See for eg
The Great Gippsland Circuit.
See Also:
