Known as 'The Wilderness Coast' this quiet section of
coastline
provides some excellent extended walks. There are a variety of trips
that
can be undertaken and the classic trip continues into the Nadgee
Reserve in New South Wales. The coast is a mixture of long sandy
beaches, rocky headlands, huge sand dunes and extensive coastal
heathlands. Most of the beaches are linked by tracks or old closed
roads. Being a coastal traverse there are a number of streams that need
crossing and some can be deep wades so expect to get wet. Fresh water
is not common and on most days
the only supply is at the campsite.
This walk can be readily broken into shorter sections. Examples are Lake Tyers to Corringle, 3 days. Cape Conran to Thurra River, 4 days. Thurra River to Wingan, 2 days, this is very popular and by using an inland track can be made into a three day circuit. Wingan to Mallacoota, 2 days. Mallacoota to Wonboyn 7 days. Wonbyn to Eden (most of this section follows the Light to Light Walk) 4 days. Several sections can also be combined togethter
The coast and its hinterland was a popular hunting
ground for
aborigines.wholived here for many thousands of years. After europeans
arrived, the area was one of the last regions of the state to be
developed
as it was only accessible by sea. There was some mining, logging and
farming but overall the area was left much as it was. Gradually roads
were built (and in some cases abandoned) and logging increased. As
there were no natural deep water ports, the coastline ws basically left
lone apart from the lighthouses which were necessary to try to protect
shipping. Even with numerous lighthouses, shipwrecks were still acommon
event and some remains can be seen. In 1954 the Nadgee Wilderness Area
in NSW was created and as environmental awareness increased so did
interest in preserving this relatively untouched section of
neighbouring Victorian coastline.
In 1977
Croajingalong National Park was declared completing protection of
almost the entire coastline.
The guide book is Walking The Wilderness Coast by
Peter Cook
and Chris Dowd, third edition published in 2004. Its very hard to find.
It describes all facets of the coast but for bushwalkers the main
interest is the brief description of the 18 traverse of the coast from
Lakes Entrance in Victoria to Eden in New South Wales. Maps a are a
combination of VICMAP and CMA topographic maps. To walk the entire
coast you need VICMAP 1:50,000 Hartrland, Bemm, Everard, Mallacoota and
CMA 1:25,000 Narrabarba, Nadgee, Kiah and Eden. Note that these maps
are not regularly updated and a number of tracks are missing from them.
Also note that when using a GPS with the Kiah and Eden maps, these maps
span into the next grid zone but the grid has not been redrawn so
readings from a GPS cannot be directly related to a location on the
maps. In practice it does nto matter as that section follows the Light
to Light Walk, a well marked and well defined track.
Permits are required for the section from Mallacoota to
Wonboyn.
This section crosses the state border but is managed as a single
wilderness area and permits need to be obtained one month in advance
from the national park office in Eden. A quota applies on the number
allowed at any one time into this area and at holiday periods it is
often booked out months in advance. No permits are required for the
rest of the coast.
