Werribee Gorge Circuit Walk

In the end I visited on my own as Caris wasn't sure a day hike so close to the Three Capes would be a good idea and Candy and Hal had other commitments on the only morning it made sense to go out. With some lovely gloomy weather hanging around Daylesford during our stay, I woke up to more of the same and figured I would be capturing some moody scenes at Werribee Gorge. Borrowing the Holden ute that Candy and Hal had kindly lent me I drove out of town and towards the Western Freeway. Once I was south of the Wombat State Forest the weather cleared and it was mostly sunny for the rest of the day. Google directed me there perfectly and I decided to start at the Quarry Rd site because it was the first one I found and it seemed like a good idea. Having read a few blog posts and guide books before my visit, I decided that tackling the "least interesting" bits first would make for a better hike overall. Although this would be better achieved by starting further down at the Meikles Point Car Park, I feel the way I took balances out the climb you would have to undertake starting lower down at Meikles.

Immediately getting into the climb, you walk up the hill from the car park and are popped out onto Myers Rd. I was hoping that road walking didn't play a big part of the day and thankfully there are a set of markers on a post not too far along pointing you back onto a trail. Having not hiked since finishing a seven day stretch on the Bibbulmun Track just under a month ago, the first hill had the blood pumping and was a good way to get the legs working again. There are a few information boards along the trail telling you about the flora and fauna or the local history and I had a chuckle at the first one as it pointed out that echidnas can be found in the area. Long time TLoP readers will understand why I had a chuckle as the echidna has been my white whale over the past few years, having never spotted one in the wild.