Little Waterloo Bay, Wilsons Promontory National Park - June 1995

Waterloo Bay is stunning stretch of sand, even in the middle of winter.

I've been in the Feral Way Back Machine again and after much grunting, squealing and smoke (and that was just from me as I perused the latest Mountain Design Catalogue) I emerged clasping these old photos. Yes it's time for another retro post. As usual I haven't got a lot to waffle on about on this stroll, we did this walk as a warm up for another bush walk that we had planned, now what the other walk was I've got no idea, but a stroll down to Little Waterloo Bay was a pretty sweet way to make sure all our gear was in good working condition.

Day 1     Telegraph Saddle to Little Waterloo Bay         10.2 kilometres

We left Melbourne fairly late in the day today so it was already after mid day when we pulled our packs on and headed away from Telegraph Saddle down the Lighthouse Track. Our walk down to Little Waterloo Bay was accompanied by the occasional shower passing through, but we stayed pretty dry for the most part. It doesn't really matter whether it's winter or summer, arriving onto the white sand of Waterloo Bay never looses wow factor I reckon, this stretch of sand is one of my favourite beaches in Australia, it's a shame that the water is so cold that swimming, even in there middle of summer, is generally a get in quick and get out even quicker affair. Arriving at camp we soon had the tent up and, after checking out Little Waterloo Bay and enjoying a nice dinner it was time to crawl in, thankfully all the gear, including the tent, was working well as we had a long and sometimes wet winters night ahead of us.

The duck board section that alongside Freshwater Creek was a magic spot.

Sam demonstrating her cat like agility as she leaps over Freshwater Creek.

There was a little wildlife around, even in winter.

Day 2    Little Waterloo Bay to Telegraph Saddle      10.2 kilometres      20.4 kilometres total

Next morning we crawled out of the tent, well rested after around 14 hours on our backs in the tent. Breakfast this morning was bacon and eggs, yes fresh eggs! I'd experimented with a plastic egg carrier and thankfully (for the insides of my pack) it had worked pretty well and all the eggs had made it down to Little Waterloo Bay in one piece. After packing up the tent we retraced yesterdays route back up to Telegraph Saddle, back when we did this walk the prom had yet to be decimated by fire and flood so we had the particularly enjoyable section from Waterloo Bay to the Telegraph Track to enjoy again, now days this bit of track is a pale shadow of what it used to be like, Sam use to call this section the enchanted forest. Once back on the Telegraph Track we put our heads down and arrived back at the troopie well before lunch time, while it may have been a short little break it's always great to get down to the prom and enjoy the fresh air.

Bacon and eggs for breakfast at Little Waterloo Bay, Feral indeed!

Early morning on Little Waterloo Beach.

We were heading up to the low saddle.

The Dirt.

We walked 20.4 over the two days on this easy overnight walk. Waterloo Bay has to be one of the prettiest beaches in Australia I think, it's a pity that the water temperature is generally always in single figures. The walk-in camps at Wilsons Promontory are (were?) very quiet over the cooler months of the year, on my many winter visits over the years I've spent many nights alone in empty or almost empty camps which makes a nice change from the warmer months. There is plenty of free stuff online if you want some extra information about this walk, a good place to start looking would be the Parks Vic site.

Relevant Posts.

Roaring Meg to Refuge Cove, Wilsons Promontory National Park, 2017.

Five Mile Beach, Wilsons Promontory National Park, 1990.

Southern Circuit, Wilsons Promontory National Park, 1989.

Oberon Bay, Wilsons Promontory National Park, 2013.

Tidal River to Bishop Peak, Wilsons Promontory National Park, 2014.