Otway Ranges Day Trip
6/04/2024 - 6/04/2024 9am - 5:30pm
Great Otway National Park
Soil and Plant Society
Tickets on sale Friday March 1!
We're taking you to the Otway Ranges - suiting all levels from beginners to seasoned botanists.
We'll be looking at plants of the region, and covering some of the ecology which explains this absolutely amazing area.
Travel will be arranged (but if you have a car you'll get a free ticket and fuel reimbursement if you're able to carpool).
The day will begin at uni - we'll then drive along the Great Ocean Road to Lorne, and start our first walk along the coast, checking out coastal vegetation. The walk will take us inland and into the mountains, where we'll soon be surrounded by temperate rainforest as we make our way to a waterfall for a stop for lunch.
The second half of the day will take us on a different route back to the coast. From there we'll drive back to uni, arriving at 5:30pm.
0845am: Meet at Parkville campus
0900am: Depart from the Parkville campus via carpool and travel to the Otways (2hrs 15mins)
1115am: Intro to the area
1130am: First walk!
1230pm: Lunch break at waterfall
1300pm: Second walk!
1530pm: Break and snack before driving back
1730pm: Arrival time back to Parkville campus
The hikes will be around the town of Lorne on defined walking tracks. It is an easy to moderate walk.
A small stretch of the track (approx. 50 metres), it becomes rocky, and involves walking up and down rocks set as steps in the path - some of which can be steep. If this is your first outting on a trail and you are unsure, send us a message! We have photos of the hardest bit of the track we can send you.
The start of the morning walk will be through a coastal site with no tree cover (i.e. be sun smart), but the remainder of the day will be under forested tree cover.
What to Bring:
- Appropriate footwear (sneakers or hiking boots), hat, sunscreen, reusable water bottle.
- Packed lunch. We will provide snacks and a water container to refill your bottle. There will be no chance to buy your lunch from a bakery.
We will provide printed materials, including the history of the ecosystems we'll encounter on the walks, and local plant species for you to find throughout the day! No background knowledge is needed on plants, or the Otways.