Trentham to Mt Alexander, Victoria

We have taken Buster on a short trip into the Victorian goldfields area, visiting places we have been before but also managing to see some new things.

We headed out of Melbourne with the navigation apps taking us along some roads we have never been on! Consequently we seem to avoid the worst of the heavy morning traffic and get to the other side of the city in less the 1 hour… 

we stopped in Gisborne for our traditional breakfast pie, but were a bit disappointed of the offerings available. Nevertheless we made a choice and then continued on to Lerderberg State Forest. The gravel roads were in great condition, certainly better than the track into Mitchell Falls WA. 

We drove in to have a look at the campground, but we were not inspired to stay, so we continued to O’Briens Crossing day visitors area. After a cuppa we went for a 30mins walk along the circuit track. 

The drive through the park was quite lovely as we made our way to the quaint village of Blackwood, in the Hepburn Springs area.

Trentham was our last stop for today (128km) where we found a spot at the Sports Ground to stay for free tonight. 

From here we walked back into town that had first been settled during the Gold Rush in 1838 and later developed for its timber resources. Along the way we passed its historical train station established in 1880 to help carry out the timber until 1978. 

We strolled along its charming main street, offering numerous eateries and shopping opportunities. The surrounding area is well known for potato growing due to the rich volcanic soil. 

We sat for a while at Quarry Lake, watching the birds on the water and trying to avoid the duck poo! 

Back at the oval we chatted to one of the 2 other campers, then enjoyed a quiet night.

The next morning we went for a walk into town again before driving off to have a look at Trentham Falls, at 32 m it is Victoria’s highest single-drop waterfall. This time the water was flowing, (previously visited in May 24). 

From here we took roads less travelled to Loddon Falls near Glenlyon. It was a short walk down to the gorge with its dramatic wall of huge hexagonal basalt columns. From here we had a view of the falls.

We stopped at the General store for some bread and ham before continuing north along Green Gully Road to Glenluce Springs. We stopped at the springs carpark for a cuppa and a sandwich. We tasted the spring water that was a bit fizzy and sweet due to its bicarbonate levels but didn’t opt to bottle it up..

We then kept going to Chewton, stopping along the way to have a look at the Engine House. We were impressed at the lovely brick structure still standing here proudly. 

Our next stop was at the Wattle Gully gold mine, amazed that it had been the longest operating gold mine stopping during the 1980’s. 

Chewton had a few historical buildings from the gold  era. 

Just out of town was the site of the Monster Meeting in 1851 to protest against the states colonial government. There are several walks that can be done from here. 

We followed the road up to Expedition Pass Reservoir, also located in the Castlemaine Diggings National Heritage Park. Built during the gold rush to provide water to the town, it is now a recreational lake for swimming, fishing or kayaking. 

From here we made our way to tonight’s stop at Leangahook campground in Mount Alexander Regional Park (visited 2018) having travelled 70km in total today. It’s a lovely campsite with flushing toilets and lots of walks on offer. 

The next morning we drove up the mountain, stopping at Dog Rocks.

Then admired the views from the communication towers @749m alt. 

On our way down we gathered a bit of firewood and then after using the dump point at Harcourt we drove into Bendigo.