John and Susan spent 4 days at "Concertos by the Lake" Lakes Entrance, and below is there wonderful travelogue as prepared by them. If you're planning a holiday in Lakes Entrance, check out their itinery.
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FOUR BEAUT DAYS AT THE LAKES
We spent four magical days at Concertos by the Lake, one of Victoria's premier accommodations. Lakes Entrance is our favourite holiday destination, Victoria's best kept secret. Being fairly active people, we did a lot of sight-seeing and bush walking. We would like to share with you our favourite tours. They will take you to places of unforgetable beauty and tranquility, places that make the Gippsland Lakes a unique part of Victoria. You may want to explore everything or just take your time, relax or go fishing. Whatever you do, we are sure that you won't forget this special holiday at Concertos. Enjoy.
- Susan & John
DAY 1 - "THIS AND THAT TOUR"
A good start to the Gippsland Lakes experience, is a sample of the wonderful lakes, river and forest landscapes this region has to offer, as well as the local arts and crafts. So enjoy a bit of this and that.
Lookout
Drive from Concertos by the Lake towards the Princes Highway, and turn left just before the Highway into Jemmys Point Reserve for the best view of lakes and the Entrance.
Kalimna Jetty
Kalimna Jetty is a popular picturesque fishing spot, where you can relax with a fishing rod or take a scenic lakeside walk.
From the lookout, drive down to Kalimna Jetty and walk along the lakeside back towards the Entrance (30 min return). If you are feeling energetic, you can do this walk in reverse from Concertos walk along the cliff top to the end of Seaview Parade, down the wooden steps, under the highway bridge and along the lakeside to Kalimna jetty (30 min one-way).
Nyerimilang Park & Homestead
Continue along the Princes Highway towards Swan Reach and turn left at Kalimna West Road to Nyerimilang Park. The homestead overlooks Reeve Channel and was built in 1892 as a private holiday retreat. Explore the walking tracks around these vast grounds and inspect the homestead, rose garden, old farm buildings and lake views. This is a good spot for byo morning tea.
Nungurner Arts and Crafts
Continuing along Kalimna West Road, turn left at Nungurner Road and left again at Nungurner Jetty Road. This will bring you to a group of craft galleries - Trish Allen Glass, Greenways Gallery and Gold and Silversmiths.
Nungurner Jetty
The jetty lies at the bottom of Nungurner Jetty Road (of course) and is a peaceful spot for fishing or a picnic.
Max Nicholson Studios
You will find the studio on Nungurner Road just before the Rosherville Road turnoff to Metung. Browse through Max's tranquil paintings of lake and birdlife scenes. The studio is open on weekends and public holidays, otherwise by appointment.
Metung
From Max's gallery, turn left down Rosherville Road to Metung, an elegant boating village located on a spit separating Lake King and Bancroft Bay. Take a walk along the banks of Lake King to Shaving Point at the end of the spit. Metung Hotel is an old historic pub where you can enjoy great food and a great view of Bancroft Bay. Alternatively, you can take a cruise boat to Metung from the Lakes Entrance cruise launch jetty.
Rosewood Pottery
From Metung, follow Metung Road to Swan Reach along the banks of the picturesque Tambo River. The Tambo cuts through rich green pastures and, being a tidal river, is always bank-full and a popular fishing location. At Swan Reach, visit Annelore Schneider's Rosewood pottery, which is housed in unusual beehive studios.
Bruthen
Keep following the Tambo River along Tambo Upper Road to Bruthen. You will pass interesting river landscapes where the river cuts through a gorge ("The Cliffs") and then opens up onto wide swamplands. At Bruthen, Le Café puts on a delicious Devonshire tea.
Fairy Dell
From Bruthen, follow the Omeo Highway to Wiseleigh and turn right onto Deep Creek Drive which will take you Fairy Dell. Only four wheel drive access is recommended along this road as the going gets rough and rocky. However, the journey is well worth it once you walk through the enchanted rain forest and giant tree ferns of Fairy Dell (1 hour return). This is a most magical and peaceful place.
Nicholson River Winery
Keep driving along the Omeo Highway to Sarsfield, where you turn left at Waddells Road. The winery is at the end of Liddells Road and overlooks the Nicholson River. Enjoy the view while you sip on an award winning glass of Chardonnay.
Jenkins Orchard
Continue along Waddells Road until you meet the Princes Highway at Nicholson. Turn left to Johnsonville, then turn left into Bumberrah Road and you will soon reach Jenkins Orchard. Sample their juicy fruits in season and wander through the farm shed gallery.
Log Crossing
The day is almost over and the Log Crossing is an ideal spot for a late byo afternoon tea. From Johnsonville, continue along the Princes Highway and turn left into Log Crossing Road to find the Log Crossing picnic area. Here you can relax in a quiet forest clearing beneath the giant eucalypt trees or take a short bush walk across the suspension bridge.
Happy Hour
Turn back onto the Princes Highway and take a last stop at Kalimna Hotel. It's time for happy hour and Kalimna Hotel is just the place. Enjoy a well earned drink while you watch the sun set over the lake panorama.
DAY 2 - "THE ARMS OF LAKE TYERS TOUR"
Lake Tyers is the most picturesque of all the Gippsland lakes and is formed by three arms Toorloo Arm, Blackfellows Arm and Nowa Nowa Arm. This is a unique unspoilt world where the forest meets the water and the birdlife is everywhere.
Burnt Bridge & Cherry Tree Walk
Head north-east along the Princes Highway and turn off at Burnt Bridge Road. Burnt Bridge crosses Toorloo Arm, one of the three arms of Lake Tyers, and here you can admire the reflections of the forest mirrored in the tranquil waters of the lake. Take the Cherry Tree Walk nature trail along Toorloo Arm and watch out for the abundant bird life (40 min return).
Lonely Bay Walk
Continue along Burnt Bridge Road and turn right at Blackfellows Arm Track. Enjoy the forest drive until you reach the parking and picnic area for the Lonely Bay Walk. This walk features panoramic views of Lake Tyers as it follows the edge of Toorloo Arm and Blackfellows Arm. The "high level" walking track is recommended for ease and better views - the "low level" shoreline track is harder to follow and should only be taken at low tide. Turn back when you are ready and enjoy a byo morning tea at the picnic area.
Trestle Bridge
Return to the Princes Highway along Burnt Bridge Road and turn left into Colquhoun Road. The 280 metre long railway trestle bridge across Stony Creek is a magnificent sight. It forms part of the old Bairnsdale-Orbost line, now abandoned. From the lookout point, you have to marvel at the giant 19 metre high red gum tree trunks that were cut to support the longest trestle bridge in Victoria. However, it is unsafe to walk along the bridge.
Nowa Nowa
A short drive north along the Highway will bring you to the timber town of Nowa Nowa. Here you can browse through the extensive gemstone display located next to the saw mill.
Boggy Creek Walk
At Nowa Nowa, Boggy Creek transforms into the Nowa Nowa Arm of Lake Tyers. Turn off the Highway and park at the boat ramp. This is a pretty spot for fishing or a picnic lunch. Begin the walk along Nowa Nowa Arm back towards the Highway, continue under the Highway bridge and follow the walking track upstream along Boggy Creek. The creek transforms into a steep gorge with fascinating geological rock formations. A lookout at the end of the track opens up spectacular views of the gorge (1 hour return).
When you return to the boat ramp you can take the short Wetlands Walk along the lakeside dense with tall swamp grasses and wetland bird life or, if you have had enough walking, enjoy a picnic lunch by the lake.
Gary Yelen's Gallery
Before heading back to Lakes Entrance, take a short detour east along the Princes Highway till you reach the right turnoff at Nelsons Road to Yelen's Gallery. The Gallery overlooks Nowa Nowa Arm and features a rich range of wood carvings, abstract art and paintings of local flora and fauna. Gary will treat you to a coffee and a chat on the balcony over the lake.
DAY 3 - "CAVES AND CRUISE TOURS"
Whether you enjoy conducted tours or not, these two tours are a must. Don't leave the Lakes without doing the Caves and Cruise tours.
Wyanga Park Winery
Wyanga Park Winery offers the delightful combination of a winery and gourmet café. A great start to the day is a stop off at the winery for a delicious morning tea and wine tasting. It is located high above North Arm and one of its attractions is how you choose to get there. You can board the winery's passenger boat, "The Corque", and take a leisurely cruise up the lake to the winery, with a stop-over to view "The Entrance" where the lakes meet the ocean (the Corque also does lunch cruises). Or you can drive to the winery via Lakes-Colquhoun Road, turning left at Blades Road. If you are energetic and want to have a fun experience, you can paddle your own canoe from Concertos up North Arm (40 min one-way).
Buchan Caves Tour
Continuing north along Lakes-Colquhoun Road, turn right at Blackfellows Road and enjoy the forest drive to meet the Princes Highway. Turn left and follow the signs to Buchan Caves. The final descent down to the Buchan Valley is breathtaking. The caves are a spectacular underground world of exquisite limestone formations. You can either visit the larger Royal Cave or the more delicate Fairy Cave. Aim to make it for the 11.00 am tour, but check tour times beforehand (1 hour tour approximately). After the caves tour, explore the picturesque caves reserve, set amongst the magnificent tree plantation and native bush, and share your lunch with the resident kangaroos.
Lake Tyers Tour
From Buchan Caves, head back to Lakes Entrance, turn left off the Princes Highway onto Lake Tyers Beach Road and left onto Mill Point Road to Fishermans Landing. Here you will meet the Rubeena cruise boat, a small charming vessel that has taken passengers around the lakes for almost 100 years. Your tour guide Bob Whadcoat has a wealth of environmental knowledge and will give you an entertaining narrative of the local history, flora and fauna along the way. Take the 2.00 pm tour (returning 4.15 pm) and witness pristine wilderness and unspoilt beauty as you glide through the glass-mirror waters of Lake Tyers. Enquire also about other available Rubeena tours around Lake Tyers.
DAY 4 - "ENTRANCE AND CAPE TOUR"
When you get back home, make sure you can say that you saw "The Entrance" close up, and that you discovered Cape Conran, a relatively unknown gem that is quite unforgettable.
The Entrance
The Entrance is a man-made cut through the 90 Mile Beach that connects the Gippsland Lakes to Bass Strait. It is the only permanent opening that allows access to the sea for Victoria's largest fishing fleet. Since The Entrance was constructed, the Gippsland Lakes have transformed from a fresh water to a salt water ecological system. Cross the footbridge opposite Myers Street and walk along the magnificent 90 Mile Beach to the Entrance. Here you can view the Entrance close up and marvel at the engineering feat that was required many years ago to excavate the opening and deposit thousands of tons of rock. Return via the native bush nature trail through the sand dunes to complete the round trip (90 min return). Reward yourself with morning tea at the Life Saving Club kiosk.
Orbost
Follow the Princes Highway to Orbost and visit the Visitors Information Centre. Here you can gather useful information about far East Gippsland tours and discover something most unusual. You will walk out the back door of the Centre into a miniature rainforest right in the heart of town. Take a leisurely walk along the banks of the Snowy River and visit the authentic early settler's Slab Hut.
Marlo
From Orbost, take the Marlo Road which follows the banks of the Snowy River down to the sea. Stroll along the foreshore to the jetty and, before you leave Marlo, drive past the old historic movie house.
Cape Conran Coastal Park7
From Marlo, continue eastward along the Marlo - Cape Conran Road and park at East Cape Beach. Start your walk at Sailors Grave Beach, named in honour of ships wrecked long ago on nearby Beware Reef. Follow the beach westward, collecting some special sea shells along the way, and then follow the East Cape Boardwalk. The Boardwalk is an impressive sequence of steps and observation platforms built into the cliffside above the beach. Information plaques along the way explain that you are passing historic aboriginal camping sites and middens. At the end of the Boardwalk continue along the shoreline and observe the lunar landscape created by unusual rock formations projecting upwards at crazy angles. The Boardwalk joins the inland Nature Trail and a complete loop can be made back to East Cape Beach (1 hour return). The sea air has made you hungry and it's time for a picnic lunch.
McKenzie River Walk
The Cape Conran Road turns north and brings you back to the Princes Highway. Continue east along the Highway and turn right to the Bemm River Scenic Reserve. This walk explores a warm temperate rainforest and the different plant communities along the way. You will descend from the eucalypt forest down to a cool dark ferny enchanted forest. You will pass strange gnarled trees and cross two swing bridges over the McKenzie River (30 min return).
John & Susan
15 November 2002
EDITOR'S NOTE: The Hosts at "Concertos by the Lake" can provide you with maps for the following experiences.
