Vereker Outlook and Millers Landing, Wilsons Promontory - April 2015

With ANZAC day falling on a Saturday this year I decided to do a walk with some kind of a link to the diggers. Along with logging, sealing and grazing, The Prom was also home to a couple of commando training camps for a couple of years from 1941 onwards, one camp was situated at Darby River and another at Tidal River. From all reports The Prom provided a suitably rugged and isolated place to put the soldiers to the test and prepare them for the horrors ahead. With Wilsons Promontory also holding a special place in my heart as the place that introduced me to over night walking, I figured that it would be nice to visit on such a special day.

The walk starts on Five Mile Road.

The weather for the dawn service this year was very ordinary but by the time I set off for the drive down to The Prom things were looking a bit better. The two hour drive was made in mostly dry but overcast conditions, arriving at the car park on Five Mile Road I was greeted by very low cloud on the surrounding hills but Vereker Lookout was clear, out to the west it looked a little dodgy but what do you do? I grabbed my gortex and threw everything I could into dry bags and set off up the wide fire road.

After a few minutes the track starts to gently climb through a forest of burn't Banksia's.

The route to Vereker Outlook follows the wide sandy Five Mile Road for a couple of minutes before turning to the south and starting to gently climb. Once leaving the fire road the walking track starts to slowly ascend towards the ridge that Vereker Outlook is on, the walking is through a lot of Banksia and Grass Trees on the lower slopes, a little higher I got into more Strinybarks. The track passed through a sea of yellow flowering shrubs which contrasted nicely against the green Grass Trees and the flat grey skies. Climbing easily I was soon walking through numerous giant granite boulders, which allowed me to scramble around a bit looking for the best view.

Once near the crest of the ridge your into the Stringbarks and the granite boulders. Hey there was even a patch of blue sky!

Looking west out to Bass Strait, I reckon I might get a bit damp today.

One of many attempts to capture the patterns in the sand on Corner Inlet.

The views over Corner Inlet becoming more expansive the higher I climbed, but the weather looking more dodgy by the minute. Arriving at the sign posted Vereker Lookout I wandered around getting a couple of photo's before the rain hit. The best spot to check out the views is actually the small knoll just before the Vereker Outlook signpost, the granite rocks giving a grandstand view in every direction. From my lofty perch I could see the showers sweeping in from Bass Strait across the isthmus, the higher mountains to the south shrouded in cloud. I actually have some track notes about a route from here to Windy Saddle that used to be walked occasionally in ye olde days across those mountains to the south, however the current parks policy is basically no off track walking in The Prom, but you never know I might just 'go feral' one day. Speaking of rough walking my vantage point also let me look down over Chinaman's Swamp and out to Chinaman's Longbeach and Mt Singapore, again the scene of much walking and navigational hardships over the years, I might actually write up some of those adventures when I find the time.

Corner Inlet.

Leaving Vereker Outlook I started back down the track towards the unmarked turnoff to Millers Landing, only stopping to crawl around in the dirt trying to get a decent photo of the Pink Heath (I think?). Brushing off the dirt it was time to pull on the wet weather gear as the precipitation was now getting more persistent. Luckily the track down to Millers Landing has a very easy down hill gradient so I didn't sweat up a storm in my jacket. Millers Landing is on the southern shore of Corner Inlet and is the home to the world's southern most stand of mangroves, as well as a healthy population of sandflies which mercifully the rain was more or less keeping at bay. With the tide low I was able to wander out onto the mud flats and check out the patterns in the sandy mud as well as try and get a photo of the soldier crabs scurrying over mud around my sinking feet.

Chinaman's Longbeach and Mt Singapore in the distance, the scene of much hiking hardship over the years.

I think this is Pink Heath, I took about twenty photos while I was crawling around on my belly in the dirt, to get one good one.

By now though it was time to head back to the sanctuary of the ute, leaving the shore I climbed another well graded track back towards the Five Mile car park. With the DSLR now safely in the dry bag I mucked around a little with my water proof camera, the photos are generally pretty ordinary with the water proof camera but, as its generally raining when I use it, the colours in the bush are normally fairly vivid and the sometimes low mist or cloud give a different atmosphere. Throwing my boots in the back of the ute (they now smell like mangrove mud, lovely!) I headed home, only making my traditional stop at 'The Flying Cow' at Fish Creek for a coffee.

Have I ever mentioned that I love Grass Trees.

The easy track down to Millers Landing passed through more Banksia's

The leaf of the Saw Tooth Banksia, I wonder how they got that name?

The Dirt.
According to my somewhat romantic GPS I walked 9.01 kilometres and climbed 344 metres on this ramble. I'd rate this as an easy walk, it took me around 3 hours which included plenty of stops.
It's written up in Melanie Ball's book, Top Walks in Victoria, and the notes in the book along with the map are all you need to complete the walk. Alternatively, if you're a tight arse Parks Vic have a lot of free stuff online which would be adequate for the walk.

A Soldier Crab on the mud flats at Millers Landing.

Looking across towards Yanakie from Millers Landing.

The southern most stand of Mangroves in the world at Millers Landing.

Looking back towards the mountains running down The Prom, in ye olde days there was a route along them all the way to Windy Saddle.