Walks accessible via PT

[MichaelP]

I'm currently living in Melbourne without a car, hence relying on public transport (PT).

Wanting to go out and do a 2-3 night walk this coming weekend (or the one after). Any suggestions of walks?

Note: "Accessible via PT" could mean within walking distance (5-10km) of a bus/train station, or riding distance (30-50km).

[trickos]

You could potentially string a whole heap of stuff in and around Lorne. Take the Erskine Falls track from the V/Line coach stop (info Centre) and continue to Blanket Leaf and back into town via Sheoak etc or onto Cumberland River.
You could easily get 2 nights out of all that. Spatial Vision have a "walks around Lorne" map which is good.
As far as PT goes, get to Southern Cross Station and buy a return ticket to Lorne. travel by train to Geelong, change onto V/Line coach to Lorne. Vice versa on way home.

This V/line bus goes as far as Apollo Bay - also another option. Maybe the first few days of the Great Ocean Walk to Blanket Bay and back???

[Hallu]

Otherwise if you have a driving license, renting a car isn't too expensive : you can get a car from 40$/day, even if you book the car on Monday for the following week-end, and it's so more practical, that's what I do personally.

Otherwise an option would be the Dandenong ranges, you can go there by bus from Melbourne. I think there's one going to Kinglake too, not sure about overnight walks though. I thought about Mornington Peninsula, but the train doesn't go very far. You could also join a bushwalking club, they organize carpools and stuff.

[ornitorinca]

I was going to suggest the Dandenong Ranges too, though it might not be much good for an overnight walk. I'm pretty sure you can't camp anywhere in the ranges but you could do it in style in one of the many B&Bs etc. You can take a train to Belgrave or Ferntree Gully (Belgrave line, Zone 1+2) or bus 688 to Olinda from Croydon station (Lilydale line, Zone 1+2).

There is also a 683 bus to Warburton which could get you close(-ish!) to the Yarra State Forest. This would be a bit of an epic bus journey however you could do overnight walks in the Yarra State Forest, there are some camping spots. Info here.

Hope that helps

[dplanet]

There is the goldfields track also known as GDT in the west with access to buses and trains via Ballarat, Castlemaine, and Bendingo.

[BillV]

If you plan well you can access the Mcmillans track via the bus from Bainsdale to Omeo and the Mail shuttle that heads from Mansfield to woodspoint......

[MichaelP]

Thanks for the suggestions everyone! Ended up getting a car for this weekend, heading to Lerderderg Gorge probably.

Will keep these in mind for future weekends to fight the bordem of living out of Tasmania. Looks like there's quite a bit of walking you can do from Warburton and Healesville too.

[Hallu]

Regarding car rentals, be careful : if you take a car on Saturday at let's say 9 am, and return it on Monday at 9 am, they all charge you for 3 days, except Avis (as far as I know), which charges you only for 2 days (as they should, since it's a 48 hours period). That's a helpful trick, because all the car rentals close too early on Sundays, at 5 pm or earlier.

[tsangpo]

Don't know if it's your cup of tea but as you're studying perhaps join one of the uni clubs, there is usually enough cars around to get people out there and trips are fairly regular; also a great and cheap introduction to sports like climbing, kayaking and backcountry skiing if you want to try something new.

[JamesMc]

There's a bus to Tidal River

JamesMc

[dplanet]

French Island NP in Mornington Peninsula, SouthEast of Melbourne. Take a train to Stony Point then ferry (no vehicles).