ParksVic Parknotes: Werribee Gorge State Park
Walk type: Day pack
Duration: Half of day
Grade: Medium
Start/Finish: Ironbark Gorge Carpark, western side of Werribee Gorge State Park
Nearest town: Bacchus Marsh, 12km
Distance from Melbourne: 64km
It was very easy to find the entrance into Ironbark Gorge Carpark. When I arrived there, there were about a dozen vehicles and the carpark was almost full. By the time I got ready, it was about 1.30pm. There was a walking track signpost at the entrance, which shows the track to Falcons Lookout, and takes 45 minutes to get there.
Track signpost at the entrance into Werribee Gorge State Park
The Ironbark Gorge Track, which was gently down to the
western side of the Ironbark Gorge, was an easy 400m walk.
Ironbark Gorge Track on the western side of the Ironbark Gorge
Cliff and rock-outcrop above the gorge track
Crossing the gorge, the track continued
north for about 100m, then 570m NNE to reach a signposted junction, where I met
two “rock climbers” on their way back to the carpark. The helmets, which were attached to their packs, suggested me who they were. Following the signpost, the track
turned east, and then it was only about half of km easy up to the Falcons Lookout,
which is the best viewpoint in the park.
I hung around here for a while for the views and some photo shoots.
View north from the Falcons Lookout
The Falcons Lookout
Werribee Gorge and River from the Falcons Lookout
But, my compact AA-size batteries Nikon Coolpix did not do
any justice at all. I became very
disappointed while viewing the photos at home, and have thought of saving for a
replacement. Which one? I like extended bushwalks and a pocket
AA-size batteries camera is an ideal for these bushwalks, most of which would
give me free-worrying from the need for electricity to charge or recharge the
camera battery/ies. Another
disappoinemt is that there is almost no choice of the pocket AA-size batteries
camera. All of the current models are
built with lithium batteries.
Leaving the Falcons Lookout, I continued east along the Falcons ridge, and met up with a rock climber, who had just completed her final
climb. I cheered her up by saying that
she had made it.
Rock-climbing cliff near Melbourne
View east from Falcons Spur
Another viewpoint
After I had passed the rock climbers, I followed the Falcons Spur, heading southeast for about one km down to the river.
the Falcons Spur
Continued down..
Nearly there
The last short section of the spur was very steep and on loose
rocks. My trekking pole was put in good
use.
Did i have to..?
The river at last!
and delighted to see these orange markers
When I got down to the river, it was rather late and the low clouds looked threatening, so, I
decided to shorten the walk by keeping to the right track,
which provided the option to follow the Ironbark Gorge from east to west to reach the Ironbark Gorge Track.
The start of the east to west Ironbark Gorge scrambling
Bluff view
Dry and open forest
The
rock scrambling up in the gorge through some scrub was fun and it was about
1.5km length with a few bends. I then
noticed a foot pad, which led up to the signposted junction From here, it was about 35m walk back up to
the Ironbark Gorge Carpark.
Made it!
This trip was well-worth revisiting.
GPS hiking route overlaid on the "Topo Memory-Map"