Grampians

Mt Zero, The Grampians, Vic. Photo credit: Chris McClure/Tourism Victoria

Grampians

Marching all the way to the state border with South Australia, the Grampians sit at the western end of Victoria’s Great Dividing Range. Explore this striking and popular tourist destination full of walks, waterfalls, lakes, forests and aboriginal history.

Things to do in the Grampians

Halls Gap, Fyans Valley
Everyone visiting the Grampians for the first time makes a beeline for Halls Gap. About 3 hours’ drive from Melbourne, it’s a tourist centre at the heart of the park. The town is near to the sights (including unique rock formations, scenic lookouts and waterfalls) and is the obvious place to find accommodation in the Grampians.

You’ll find rock climbing, abseiling, cycling, and canoeing all nearby, with good fishing in Bellfield, Lonsdale, Fyans and Wartook Lakes. Keep a look out for kangaroos, wallabies, emus and possums too.

The Brambuk Cultural Centre: Find out about the park’s aboriginal culture and artefacts, which include ancient oven mounds, tool making instruments, rock art sites and the traditional beliefs handed down from one generation to the next.

Halls Gap Zoo: 7km from town and with 130 species of native & exotic mammals, reptiles and birds. These include meerkats, giraffes, red pandas, lemurs, macaws, wallabies and kangaroos.

MacKenzie Falls
Almost uniquely in the region, the falls are a year round constant. MacKenzie is one of the largest falls in the Grampians and, as a result, it’s one of the most popular things to do in the Grampians. About 10km from Halls Gap.

Heatherlie Quarry
The unfinished sandstone building here is one of the oldest in the region. Intended as a parliament house, it failed in that ambition but has become an historic landmark and increasingly popular attraction.

There are lots of tracks, trails and scenic routes nearby, and the viewing platforms offer some impressive views if you’re prepared to scale the peaks. There’s a narrated tour if you’d like to know more about the history of the area.

Black Range State Park
This area of bushland is so rugged it was never cleared by farmers. As a result, it’s an untouched wilderness punctuated by sites belonging to the Jardwadjali people. You’ll spot their artwork on many of the walks, one of which starts at the Black Range Picnic Area and leads up the range itself.

If you’d prefer activities at a lower altitude, Rocklands Reservoir joins the south-east side of the park and is a good place to camp, boat or fish.

Ararat
To the east of Black Range State Park, Ararat is a good base for exploring the area. Named after Mount Ararat, 10km to the south-west, the town started life as a gold rush boomtown. It was founded when a party of Chinese miners stumbled upon gold while heading towards established gold fields, and became the only Australian town founded by Chinese.

Its buildings were paid for with mining money, which explains why they’re so impressively elaborate. The town hall and Shire Hall, both built in the late 1800s, are the best surviving examples.

Gum San Chinese Heritage Museum: A fascinating comparison with the other gold rush related museums in the area, as this focuses on the lives of the Chinese immigrants of the era.

J Ward: Explore a prison built in 1859 to hold the criminals of the goldfields. When the gold started to run out it was converted into housing for the criminally insane.

Stawell
North of Ararat and sometimes called the gateway to the Grampians, Stawell owes its existence to the gold rush. Mining originally ceased here in 1920 but started again in the 1980s and they’re still pulling gold out of the ground.
The town is famous for its popular annual festival, the Stawell Gift, a 120m footrace that’s been run every Easter Monday since 1878. The Stawell Gift Hall of Fame Museum contains the full history of the event.

Pleasant Creek Courthouse Museum: Don’t be confused by the name; Stawell used to be known as Pleasant Creek. The museum collection dates from that period, with photos, documents, costumes and other artefacts that shed light on the town’s gold mining heritage.

For a bird’s eye view of the town and its period town hall, churches and railway station, head to Big Hill. You’ll find the Pioneers Memorial at the summit.

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The mountains of the Grampians

Mt Stapylton
Ademanding 4.6km return trek. On your way to the summit you’ll climb Flat Rock, a steep slope which is part of the Amphitheatre, a line of cliffs that spread out to form, erm, a natural amphitheatre. Climbers say the Taipan Walls are the best crags in Australia. We’ll take their word for it.

Walk starts at Mt Zero picnic area.

Mt Zero
A 2.8km round trip this begins deceptively easily and gets steeper towards the top. Excellent views of the Wimmera Plains.

Hollow Mountain
This 2.2km round trip starts at the Hollow Mountain car park. The highlight is the wind-carved cave from which you can see the Mount Stapylton Range and the Wimmera Plains.

Some difficult sections (there’s a section with lots of fallen boulders) and the final ascent is quite steep.