Hopetoun Falls are a beautiful single drop falls near Beech Forest in Great Otway National Park. If you are staying in Apollo Bay or driving along the Great Ocean Road, stopping at Hopetoun Falls and nearby Beauchamp Falls and The Redwoods is worth having on your itinerary.
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Hopetoun Falls at a Glance
🚶 1km medium difficulty return walk. There are 200 steps to walk down and back up
🚽 There are no facilities at Hopetoun Falls
🚙 Parking can be tricky if it busy
🐶 Dogs are not allowed on the Hopetoun Falls walk
💧 No swimming at Hopetoun Falls
Getting to Hopetoun Falls
Apollo Bay is the best coastal town for accessing Hopetoun Falls and neighbouring Beauchamp Falls and The Redwoods.
From Apollo Bay, turn left onto the C119 – the Forrest- Apollo Bay Road near Skenes Creek. Your next turn is onto the sealed Turton’s Track which will be signed as the road to Beech Forrest.
Turton’s Track is very narrow and windy at the start, so for safety’s sake and the comfort of your passengers take it easy and enjoy the forest scenery. The road eventually straightens out, and your next turn is a left onto the sealed Binns Road. After about 500m you come to a signed fork in the road where you stay right, following the signs for about 5minutes to Hopetoun Falls.
Parking at Hopetoun Falls
There are two challenges at Hopetoun Falls, the first is parking. Unlike the generous car parks at nearby Beauchamp Falls and Triplet Falls, parking at Hopetoun Falls is a bit of a squeeze.
The small parking area at the end of the road takes about 10 cars, beyond that you need park on the side of the road you came in on. That is where we ended up but because the road is quite narrow, only a few cars fit here too.
If you come early or late in the day or when the weather is a bit gloomy, you should be fine. But if it is a busy time parking is a bit of a juggle.
On the bright side, it is only a short walk to the falls, so cars come and go regularly so if you sit tight for five minutes you will be able to find somewhere to stop. Of course, some people seemed to just park anywhere, which can make getting out of the small car park very difficult.
Is the Hopetoun Falls Walk Hard?
It is a 1km return walk to Hopetoun Falls. The path is easy to find from the car park.
While the distance is manageable, the 200 steps you climb each way is the second challenge you’ll face at Hopetoun Falls. There was certainly a bit of heavy breathing going on as we made our way down beneath the tree ferns. We felt especially bad for the couple of parents who were piggy backing their kids back up!
So, if you have a problem with steps, you might want to skip Hopetoun Falls, and drive around the corner to the stunning Redwoods Park.
What to Expect on the Walk
From the car park it is a 1km return walk to the falls. You only need to go about 25m along the track to the first lookout which is there on your left.
A small viewing balcony sticks out from the wooden fence. I must admit, we walked straight past it on our way down, but we pulled in here to catch our breath on the way back up. While the view is disappearing behind some trees, you can still make out the very top of the falls.
From there you follow a narrow tack, down the steps under a canopy of tree fern fronds. It is a lovely forest avenue that leads down to the viewing platform where you can see Hopetoun Falls.
From a fenced viewing platform, you get a panoramic view of the 30m tall Hopetoun Falls spilling into the Aire River. There is no closer access to the falls, you just get to take in the view from the platform of the falls and the Otway’s only heritage listed river.
Who will like Hopetoun Falls Walk?
Despite the 200 steps, this is a relatively short walk to some beautiful falls so if you are ticking off Otway’s waterfalls, this is a fairly easy and spectacular one to add to your list.
It can be busy here, so if it’s a quiet forest experience you are after, come early or late in the day.
We saw several families here. The older children – 5 years plus – made light work of the steps and with it being a short walk it’s quite a good stop if you are travelling with kids. They will also love The Redwoods that are right around the corner from here.
If you enjoyed this story you might also like:
Waterfalls near Apollo Bay | Little Aire Falls Walk | The Redwoods
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