Good morning to our Walkabout walkers and friends,
We hope that you are all coping well with the social distancing phase of our new lives and that you are keeping yourselves occupied and staying positive.We have been busy planning ahead for the day when we are free from our restrictive lifestyles. Some of you may remember our early days when the majority of our walking holidays were Victorian based and we operated our tours in many different corners of the State.
Discover Victoria's High country
From 1991 until 1997, we actually lived at Dinner Plain in the Victorian High Country from where we would take our groups walking into the vast Alpine National Park which was literally on our doorstep. We also ran our restaurant, Maraposa House, in Dinner Plain. Most of our tours would operate from November through to April. On average, temperatures were 10 degrees cooler than in Melbourne so in summer the high teens were the norm - ideal for some very pleasant mountain walking in the most beautiful alpine region in Australia.
This morning we found some old photosfrom our time at Dinner Plain – one thing that really struck us was how beautiful and stunning our alpine wildflowers can be in the Victorian high country. During the latter years of our time at Dinner Plain, our Office Manager, Trish Ozardalso ran Snow Shoeing tours during the winter months.
Moving on we are being realistic and understand that many of our loyal guests initially will not want to travel overseas when finally, the Covid-19 restrictions are relaxed. What’s more we think that “Australians being Australian” will want to support local businesses and our own Aussie economy first. We would be thrilled if we could play our part in this by bringing our guests into rural regions of Victoria which have suffered badly because of the travel restrictions.
We are proposing to bring back some of our original Victorian Walking Holidays beginning with our 5-Day Discover Victoria’s High Countrystaying at Dinner Plain.
The tour will be ex Melbourne and we shall stay for 4 nights in the gorgeous Alpine Village of Dinner Plain and during the day take leisurely strolls to discover the beauty of the Alpine National Park. It could also be offered as a 10-Day combined tourtogether with our existing Wilson’s Promontory Tour.
We have attached a few pics from our early days at Dinner Plain when we operated our walking holidays from there; ran our restaurant and brought up two young children - we were certainly glutens for punishment!
Discover the wildflowers, snow gums and the colourful history of the cattleman's huts on a leisurely day walk. Enjoy our delicious gourmet picnics. Absorb the beauty of the Alpine National Park as you sit amongst the snow gums and enjoy a healthy gourmet picnic. After a day out walking return to the luxury and comfort of Australia's newest alpine resort, Dinner Plain." Tourism Alliance Victoria (1987)
Discover Victoria's High Country 5-day Walking tour in Dinner Plain, Tambo Valley, Mitchell River, Omeo, Bright, Paw Paw and Bogong High Plains...
Our November and December Grampians and Great Ocean Coastal Walks and Wilson’s Promontory tours still have some availability, so Spring is an ideal time to experience these two wonderful areas too. We have also added 2 additional departure dates in October 2021 and March 2021.
My 11th tour with WGA in 12 years! People ask me which one I have enjoyed the most. I still can't decide. I have genuinely loved every one of them and the Grampians and Great Ocean Road was no exception. Such a great balance of strenuous and gentle exercise, beautiful and varied scenery, wonderful wildlife, exceptional travelling companions and fabulous cuisine! What more could you want! I can't wait for the next one! Thanks again Graeme." Meg from Sydney | Grampians & Great Ocean coastal Trail
Grampians & Great Ocean coastal Trail 8-day Walking tour in the Grampians National Park, Otway National Park, Great Ocean Road and 12 Apostles
A wonderful few days exploring Wilsons Prom. It's not my first visit but on returning a second time it is still spectacular made more so by Graeme's well-planned itineraries. The fabulous views were breath taking and the weather was perfect for our walks. Our accommodation was extremely comfortable, predinner drinks and canapes overlooking the beach followed by a delicious dinner every night. Thank you Graeme for a memorable 5 days." Itka from Melbourne | Explore Wilson's Promontory
Explore Wilson's Promontory 5-day Gourmet Walking tour in Wilson Promontory National Park and Waratah Bay in Victoria, Australia
On a different subject Nastassja, who is staying at the farm, tried her hand this morning at bread baking (her first time) and it was a huge success - so much so that she will have to bake again tomorrow because we have nearly eaten it all! This Gluten Free Multiseed Bread recipehas been written by Ania. She is the cook, stylist and photographer behind Lazy Cat Kitchen. Bon appetit!
Take care, chat again soon and we hope that an Australian Walking Holiday might be an option for you later in the year. We would be thrilled if you could join us,
