Mahogany Beach Walk, Warrnambool to Port Fairy

Mahogany Beach Walk, Warrnambool to Port Fairy created by Victoria Walks

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Summary

The Mahogany Beach Walk from Warrnambool to Port Fairy's East Beach is a mind-blowingly beautiful 22km beach trek! A car shuffle is recommended to do this walk (as it is 46km return!)

Description

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The long beach walk from Warrnambool to Port Fairy passes the last known resting place of the elusive Mahogany Ship, thought to be a Portuguese caravel that was wrecked in the early 1500s.

It later vanished under drifting sands in the 1890s.

The area is home to echidnas and a range of birds including rare hooded plovers, mutton birds, crested terns, oyster catchers, Pacific gulls, grey gulls and cormorants.

In winter or spring, you might even glimpse a southern right whale.

For shorter walks, enter at one of several beach access points along the route.

You can start at either Port Fairy or Warrnambool.
We preferred to start at Warrnambool as it has softer sand that can feel more difficult to walk on (so best get it out of the way!)

There is virtually no shade, and can be cold and blowy in cooler months, so it's best to plan the best time of year for the walk (we waked on a 19 degree day in December, which was perfect).

Be prepared for the weather on this 23km walk and take water, food, suncream, hats and coats (the weather can change quickly).

The walk passes through the Belfast Coastal Reserve which is managed by Parks Victoria.

Getting there: Unless you plan to walk both ways in a a day (not advisable) you can either do a car shuffle, or catch the bus from Port Fairy Information Centre to Warrnambool Railway station and walk the 2.5km to the start of the walk. Note though that the walk to and from the railway station is not a particularly interesting walk, and some parts only have a footpath on one side of the road).

There are public toilets and drinking water at Killarney Beach, but please note this is about 15km into the walk from Warrnambool!

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Points of Interest

1. The Start

Start from Thunder Point although interestingly, there did not appear to be any signage at the start an it can be a little unclear which way to go, so just follow your nose.