Inverloch to Tidal River

Our day started gently with chats with passing dog walkers as we dried our tent in the morning sunshine whilst making breakfast. I love our camp breakfasts: to set us up for the day we pimp-up our porridge.

It was a day cycling lonely back roads, passing through only one town, Tarwin Lower. We started to see evidence of wombats in the afternoon: their large hobbity burrows, their little piles of square poo, and sadly, many of their carcasses, roadkill casualties. Will we get to see a real live one?!

Climbing, we enjoyed sweeping views when we leant our bikes against a gate and ate our tupperware pasta lunch. As we continued the southern panorama included the panoramic hilly outline of Wilsons Promontory.

Beautiful ancient eucalypt bordered the road as we passed quietly through Cape Liptrap Coastal Park, before the long sweep of descent down to Sandy Point. A sleepy haven, we pitched our tent at the tiny campground and wandered up over the high dunes. The beach was stunning. A wide pearly dreamscape of sea and sand marbled together and bound only by the indigo outline of the national park peninsula on the horizon.

The following day, the quiet backroads continued, through green fields and eucalypt stands as we navigated around the top loop of Shallow Inlet. Yanakie - consisting of a public toilet, fuel pump and local store - was our only stop to stock up on supplies for our national park stay.

Into the Park and everything suddenly felt hushed and wild. The brush became thick on either side of the single road for the 18 mile / 29 km cycle to the campsite. We spotted our first emu, nonchalantly picking its way through the bush. Cycling up and over the steep Darby Saddle - a few miles before the campground - gave us endless green views across the Park on one side, and the sea on the other! We arrived just in time as the weather turned wet and blustery winds picked up. As we settled in our hut the heavens opened and the we could hear the rain pummel on the tin roof.Read more