‘High View’,
Apollo Bay, Sunday 4th June, 2012
Walkers: Alan Dow (leader), Bernard Jordan, Paul Byrnes, Sue Wesson, Linda Boyd, Sharon Bray, Beth Gilks, Bruce McGuiness, Daniel Thurairatnam, Alistair Elliot, Tim Cobb, Murray Kelser, Graeme Ward, Felicia Ross, Beverly Duffin, Kevin Duffin, James Broadly.

This walk was attended by members of GBC, Otway Ranges Walking Track Association and Camperdown Bushwalking Club.

After what I thought was a really nice autumn, the third day of winter brought things back to reality.  Most of Apollo Bay woke at 6 am to a large clap of thunder followed by nearly two hours of heavy rain. Not a good start when you’re trip leader and you have a long walk planned into the rainforest.   To cut a long & wet story short; one third cancelled and due to the rain, that had fallen and that was about to, I decided to change the walk to the ‘High View’.  The 18 hardy hikers were certainly challenged by the relentless rain on the three hour circuit.  Having survived the ordeal, we all earned our arvo tea from ‘Sandy Feet’.  We also had a stroll to view Carisbrooke Falls some 15 km out of Apollo Bay accessed from the Great Ocean Road.

May Walk Noonday Mill

Noonday Track, Forrest, Sunday 6th May, 2012

Walkers: Alan Dow, Doris Denney, Patricia Dressel, Nola Hardess, Bernard Jordan (leader), Bob Lambdell, Joan McMahon, Leanne Matheson, Peter Morgan, Les Roe, Sue Twigg.

Members of GBC, Otway Ranges Walking Track Association, and Camperdown Bushwalking Club joined this walk - Walking the Otways E11. Some participants are members of all 3 clubs!   We started from the junction of Kaanglang road and Noonday track and continued along K road to Number One Spur Track, where we walked west to take Noonday Track, which initially was a steep, and for us, muddy, slippery downhill. From the junction of Noonday and Monday creeks, the track went uphill (of course) until we met the cars.  We did not see the site of Noonday Mill, which closed some 100 years ago, but we enjoyed the walk through the forest.  The cover photo of the third edition of Walking the Otways features a section of the walk. For added value, most of us drove to the nearby carpark for Lake Elizabeth. We  appreciated the walk to the tranquil lake, before returning, and rewarding ourselves with coffee, etc. at the micro brewery/coffee house in Forrest. We enjoyed the misty day.

Bernard Jordan

Walk Report

Sunday April 1 dawned fine, overcast, perfect weather for waterfall
photography. 10 adventurous souls met their leader at the Mt Sabine/ Kennett
Rd intersection at about the appointed time of 10 am, for the somewhat
challenging walk to Wye Falls. The car shuffle was completed earlier so we
could walk out to the Wye Road via Mud Rd, rather than retrace our steps.
I had not been to the area for several years and was taken aback to find
that a bulldozer had been down both sides and removed all that was familiar
to me. I had to take a punt on where to start looking for the track to the
falls. We started out on an old logging track that seemed to be in the right
spot, but nothing looked familiar. After several hours of poking around I
gave up the search as even if we found it we were out of time to do the
walk.
The moral of the story is we need to be doing each section of the walk on a
more regular basis, and leaders need to scope the walk if it hasn't been
done for a long period.
I later found the start point a kilometre away, but too late to be useful.
The other moral of the story might be never lead a walk on April Fools Day!

Richard Gilbert

PS: Some of the group decided then to walk from where we started along the Kennett Rd and the Wye Kennett Jeep Track past some recent burn offs and along steep gravel roads to the Wye River Pub for a well earnt drink!

Apollo Bay Trails Feasibility Study Adopted

Eight members attended the Colac Otway Shire Council meeting on the 28th of March 2012 at the COPAC in Colac. The Apollo Bay Trails Feasibility Study was passed unanimously 7 - 0. After sixteen years of persistence we finally have taken our first step. Now we will continue to work with the Colac Otway Shire and Parks Victoria to gain funding for walks in the Apollo Bay hinterland.

Feasibility - Colac Otway Shire Council meeting 28th March 3pm

The Apollo Bay Walks Feasibility study report is being presented to the Colac Otway Council at their next meeting at 3pm on Wednesday the 28th of March at 3pm at COPAC. The period for public comment has closed, submissions have been summarised and concerns addressed. A revised document is being presented to Council for approval.

March 2012 Walk

Little Aire Falls after some rain.

Walkers were from GBC and the Otway Ranges Walking Track Association. The walk commenced at the carpark for Triplet and Little Aire Falls, which are some 15 km south of Ferguson, about 5 km west of Beech Forest. We admired the swollen Triplet Falls from 3 separate viewing platforms, and then walked a rather circuitous route leading to Little Aire Falls, where "Little" refers to the river, not the spectacular Falls. On the return, we made a major detour (2 and a half hours return) along overgrown Phillips Track to the Aire river. Brian McKenzie recalled riding a bike along the (then) good track many years ago. Our route was generally obvious along the track, benched on one side and dropping away on the other. Before descending to the noisy, attractive, full Aire River, the track turned sharply left (east). After some 200m we saw minor relics of the bridge and hut.

The forest contained very tall old growth, and smaller regrowth, mountain ash, plus beech trees and tree ferns. A very attractive walk in good company.

Bernard Jordan

Feasibility Study Update

At the last Colac Otway Shire council meeting on January 25th, 2012, the Apollo Bay Walks Feasibility Study was passed unanimously to be placed on public exhibition for six weeks. I attended the meeting and councillors made some wonderful remarks. We need to ensure that there are lots of supportive comments submitted to the council before March the 9th. Call Andrew Nixon, the feasibility project officer on 0417699611 to find out more or to receive a copy of the study on a CD.