Travel Blog #23: Wilsons Prom National Park
The state of Victoria, Australia, has the highest levels of visitation to its national parks than does any other state in Australia. One reason for this is the ease of access from Melbourne to some gorgeous parks such as Wilsons Prom.
I’ve ‘done’ the Prom four or five times, and I have to say that it’s a pearler. Situated about 200 km south-east of Melbourne, it is the sort of walk that you can easily do over a weekend. I remember arriving there one Friday night with a friend of mine when it was absolutely bucketing down with rain. We ended up putting up the tent inside a picnic shelter on that night, then luckily it cleared up for the next couple of days.
The great things about bushwalking (’tramping’ if you are a Kiwi, ‘hiking’ if you are a Yank) this national park is that the scenery is superb, the tracks are very well signposted and maintained, the campsites are never too crowded, and the pre-trip information is really good.
My wife and I had to cancel our last trip to the Prom. Actually, it was cancelled for us when a very severe bushfire went through the park in April 2005. We had booked one night to stay in the Lighthouse cabin, which is a great thing to do, but had to postpone the trip to another day. I’ve heard that all the tracks are now once again open and that much of the vegetation has grown back. I guess that the occasional fierce and razing fire, and the Australian bush are just a part of life.
Waterloo Bay, Sealers Cove, Mount Oberon. I have such good memories of these special places. I would recommend this park to any visitor to Victoria. However, before you head down there, make sure that you check out the park notes on the website to find out about fees and sometimes, availability of spots at campsites. The management of the park is pretty strict, but worth it as long as you pre-book.
Doc Martin.