Colac (including Birregurra, Gellibrand
and Forrest)
Small rural service centre with good access
to the Great Ocean Road.
Colac is a commercial and civic service centre
of about 14 500 people located at the eastern
edge of the world's third-largest volcanic plain
which is scattered with craters and cones. The
fertile soil has rendered it a highly productive
agricultural, pastoral and dairying district
noted for its onions, potatoes, cattle, pigs,
poultry, sheep and milk products. Evidence of
the area's long-established prosperity is
evident in a number of fine colonial homesteads
which still exist in a district known as the
lakes area. To emphasise the point, Colac is, in
fact, situated on the southern shore of Lake
Colac which is one of more than 50 lakes in the
district.
Colac is also known as 'the Gateway to the
Otways' (a reference to the nearby Otway Ranges
and surrounding forest to the south of town). It
is 148 km west of Melbourne on the Princes
Highway, at an elevation of 134 metres.
Prior to European settlement the area was
occupied by the Kolijon or Coladjin Aborigines
and the town's name is thought either to derive
from this tribal name or from a Kolijon word.
The first European in the area was pastoralist
Hugh Murray who disembarked at Geelong in 1837
with his sheep and horses and other pastoralists
who headed west together. Thomas Austin stopped
at what is now Winchelsea while Murray continued
west, settling adjacent Barongarook Creek on the
southern shore of Lake Colac later in 1837. He
built his first homestead in what is now Chapel
St in 1840 and the town's main street is named
in his honour. It was also in 1837 that the
explorers Joseph Gellibrand and George Hesse, of
the Port Phillip Association, went missing in
the area. Their bodies were never located and
they were presumed killed by Aborigines.
Another important early figure was William
Robertson who purchased the rights to 5000 acres
at Colac in 1837 and, in 1843, he bought out
police magistrate Foster Fyans (see entry on
Geelong) who had taken up land in the area in
1838. Other settlers of note were Alexander
Dennis and John Calvert who established the
'Warncoort' and 'Irrewarra' runs respectively in
1840. These men established very substantial
pastoral enterprises, built impressive
homesteads (some still stand today), played
important roles in the early European settlement
of the area and made significant contributions
to the country's pastoral history. In 1880
Dennis successfully cross-bred Merino and
Lincoln sheep, thereby creating the Polwarth
breed which proved better suited to areas of
higher rainfall. Calvert, who married Hugh
Murray's sister, established the
Dreeite-Cotswold breed and set up Shetland pony
and shorthorn cattle studs. He later moved to
Geelong where he built 'Morongo' which has long
been a girls' school.
In 1839 the Tuckfields arrived at Birregurra
to establish the Methodist Buntingdale
Aboriginal Mission. It was visited in 1841 by
Protector of Aborigines, George Robinson, who
amused the inhabitants with a fireworks display.
The district's first race meeting was held in
1840 to the east of Lake Colac.
An early European visitor to the area was
novelist Rolf Boldrewood (nee Thomas Alexander
Browne) who, in Old Melbourne Memories (1884),
recalls visiting Lake Colac in 1843 and finding
it full of wild ducks, geese and cranes. 'It was
a scene of surpassing beauty and rural
loveliness...This Colac country was the finest,
the richest as to soil and pasture that I had up
to that time ever looked on'. His son bought a
local property in 1885, there entertaining his
father and guests such as Dame Nellie Melba.
The settlement at Colac, one of the earlier
townships in the Port Phillip district, emerged
around a coaching inn which was established in
1844 at the southern end of the lake (at what is
now the corner of Hesse and Murray Streets). The
site was surveyed in 1844 and small plots of
land were made available the following year when
a general store and blacksmith's were
established.
Noted early clerical figure, the Reverend
Dunmore Lang, passed through the district in
1845 and took up land to the west of Colac in
1847. He subdivided it and sold the allotments
in England (the purchasers arrived in 1849).
In 1848 the first post office was opened, a
Presbyterian chapel was erected, a court of
petty sessions was established and Buntingdale
mission closed (the buildings were destroyed by
fire in 1851). A police court, day school,
second hotel, public pound, wheelwright and
carpenter's shop and butcher's opened in 1849. A
national school was established at East Colac in
1850, along with a second general store, the
Colac Hotel and a brickmaking works. The
following year the population was recorded as
672. The first flour mill was constructed in
1852 and a bridge was built over Barongarook
Creek in 1855. The first Catholic Church was
erected in 1856 and a Methodist Church in
1857-58. A steam flour mill was built in 1857,
the year the population crept up to 791. That
same year, Thomas Austin of
Winchelsea, made the fatal mistake of
releasing rabbits on his estate. They would
reach plague proportions in just a few years,
prompting the construction of the stone walls
which distinguish the area.
In 1858 the first (unsuccessful) attempt was
made to stock Lake Colac with fish and the first
Colac Agricultural Show was held in 1859. In
1864 Colac was proclaimed a shire and the first
bank opened in town. 1865 saw an unsuccessful
attempt made to extract sugar from grass-tree
plants.
John Co-Coc-Coine, the last chief of the
local tribe and a man known as the 'King of the
Warriors', died in 1865. Colac's first
newspaper, the 'Observer', was published in
1866. The Duke of Edinburgh visited the area the
following year.
1870 saw the first pleasure boats on Lake
Colac and a rabbit canning factory was built in
1871. Millions of rabbits were canned here and
at Camperdown for export to the UK.
The railway arrived in 1877 and 1879 saw the
construction of a hospital and the first regatta
on Lake Colac. The following year the First
Rabbit Act was passed, making landowners
responsible for the destruction of rabbits on
their own property.
Some of the old pastoral runs were subdivided
late in the century for closer settlement and
this process was intensified by further
subdivisions after World War I for soldier
settlement schemes. The first community hospital
in Victoria was opened at Colac in 1934. The
settlement became a borough in 1938, a town in
1948 and a city in 1960.
In I Can Jump Puddles (1955) Alan Marshall
recalls being taken to Colac Hospital for the
treatment of his infantile paralysis.
For some reason the Colac district has, in
recent years, produced two men noted for their
feats of endurance - Cliff Young who, at 61
years of age, won the Sydney to Melbourne
marathon and Drew Kettle who has walked over
most of Australia raising money for charities.
The Colac Kana Festival is held annually in
March, the Agricultural Show in November and a
six-day marathon footrace in November.
Things to see:
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Tourist Information
Colac Visitor Information Centre is located at
the corner of Murray St (the highway) and Queen
St, tel: (03) 5231 3730. It is open daily from
9.00 a.m. to 5.00 p.m. They can furnish
pamphlets relating to a number of walks in the
city and district. One is an historic walking
tour, another follows Barongarook Creek to the
lake and Botanic Gardens while others relate to
Floating Islands Reserve (see below) and the Old
Beechy Line (see below). There is also a driving
tour around the city and another which takes in
the saline lakes of the district.
Barongarook Creek Walk
On the other side of the highway to the
information centre, and 100 metres to the east,
is Lions Park which has barbecues, picnic
tables, toilets and an information board. This
is the start of a walking track which follows
the eastern bank of the creek northwards,
beneath archways and English trees, through the
Colac Pergola Urban Forest Sanctuary, with its
ducks and other waterbirds, to the Botanical
Gardens and the Lake. The information centre has
a pamphlet relating to this walk.
Lake Colac and Foreshore
Lake Colac is the largest natural freshwater
lake in the state. It covers 1820 ha and has an
average depth of 2.5 metres. There are several
ramps, a jetty, barbecue facilities and boats
for hire, together with a plenitude of
waterbirds and many scenic spots on the
shoreline. Boating, rowing, yachting, swimming,
waterskiing, windsurfing and fishing for redfin
can all be enjoyed. Ross Point, off Balnagowan
Ave, is a popular fishing spot on the lake's
shore. There are boat ramps at the yacht club
(end of Hamilton St) and off Fyans St. Adjacent
the latter, on the foreshore where Barongarook
Creek meets Lake Colac, is a children's
playground. A caravan park with camping
facilities is located nearby. A bird sanctuary
lies at the end of Church St.
Botanic Gardens
Colac Botanic Gardens are situated on the
southern shore of Lake Colac. The land was set
aside for that purpose in 1865 but plans were
not prepared until 1910 by Robert Guilfoyle, the
director of the Melbourne Botanic Gardens.
Covering 15 ha they contain over 1000
specimens (more species than any other
provincial garden in Victoria), including trees
registered by the National Trust. There are also
shady picnic areas with barbecue facilities and
a children's playground, a loop drive for
motorists, as well as a network of walking paths
for pedestrians.
The main entrance, with its ornate iron
gates, is at the end of Gellibrand St. They are
open from 7.00 a.m. to 6.00 p.m. in winter,
extended to 8.00 p.m. during daylight savings.
Historic Town Walk
Start your walk at the tourist information
centre. Walk east a short distance along to 8
Murray St East. This building, now a private
residence, was built in 1874 and licensed in
1875 as the Prince of Wales Hotel.
Return to the information centre. The
sandstone building situated diagonally opposite,
at 1 Murray St, with its Classical facade and
timber shop front joinery, has been through
numerous manifestations. The town's first
building, the Crook and Plaid Inn, was built on
this site in 1844. It was, in fact, the raison
d'etre of Colac, being the nucleus around which
the town coalesced. This was later demolished
and a timber general store built in 1868. Small
elements of this structure remain although the
facade dates from the 1880s. It is currently a
restaurant.
On the south-western corner is the Colac post
office, built in 1876 with 1888 extensions.
Adjacent is the shire hall (1879). Further west,
at 26 Murray St, is a two-storey stuccoed brick
structure with an iron palisade fence which was
built in 1885 as the National Bank.
Historical Centre
Turn left into Gellibrand St. At the corner of
Gellibrand and Rae Sts is the Colac Otway
Performing Arts and Cultural Centre. This
complex has two cinemas and is home to the
town's Historical Centre.
Historical Walk Continued
Return along Gellibrand St and turn left, back
into Murray St. At no.126 are Norwich Chambers
(1883) and at no.144 are J.G. Johnstone's
offices (1902).
Turn right into Corangamite St and head north
towards the lake. At the corner of Corangamite
St and Queens Ave is the Sister of Mercy convent
(1889).
Turn right into Queens Ave then right into
Gellibrand St. On this corner is the modern
design of St Mary's Catholic Church (1979-80)
with its stained-glass roof, the work of a local
craftsman. The original St Mary's was erected in
1883.
Proceed south on Gellibrand St to no.16 which
was built in 1883 as the residence of a local
doctor.
Turn left into Pollack St. On the Hesse St
corner is St John's Anglican Church, built in
1891 to replace the 1870 original.
Turn right, heading south on Hesse St. At the
Manifold St corner is the outstanding Gothic
design of St Andrew's Uniting Church, built in
1877 as the town's third and last Presbyterian
church (the first dating from 1848). It was
constructed of basalt which is said to have been
transported from New Zealand as ballast on
sailing ships bound for the goldfields.
Highlights are the tower and spire, the large
roundel window in the west wall and the quality
of the interior furnishings, the ironwork
ornamentation and the masonry. Turn left into
Manifold St. At no.47 is a residence dating from
1870.
Return along Manifold St and turn left, back
into Hesse St. To the left is the masonic hall.
Turn right into Dennis St, passing the Baptist
Church, and turn left off the street into
Memorial Square.
Memorial Square
Conceived at the turn of the century, the square
was later dedicated as a memorial to those who
fought in World War I. It is bounded by Dennis,
Murray, Gellibrand and Hesse Sts. An annual foot
race is held here in November on the Cliff Young
Track, named after the man who, at 61 years of
age, won the 1983 Sydney to Melbourne marathon.
There are barbecues, toilets, a good children's
playground and a rotunda.
Red Rock Scenic Reserve and Lake
Corangamite
Red Rock, 230 metres above sea-level, was once a
volcano and hence the landscape at this site is
scattered with vents, some of which are now
crater lakes. The basalt plains around the
volcano, known as Stony Rises, were formed by
lava flows. Ash deposits formed around the
craters and lava jets shot hundreds of metres
into the air creating the hills of Red Rock (the
colouration is due to the presence of iron).
There are two excellent lookouts.
To get there head west of Colac along the
Princes Highway for 5 km and turn right at the
caravan park, passing through Cororooke and
Coragulac. 17 km from Colac is Alvie. Take the
signposted left past the picnic area which has
toilets, a gas barbecue, water, a playground, a
shelter with a fireplace, picnic tables and
benches. Adjacent is the Old Shire Pit - a
scoria quarry which reveals layers of ash and
lava flow.
Beyond the picnic area there is an
intersection. The branch road on the left will
take you to Eastern Lookout. The most obvious
focus in the foreground is Coragulac House, a
26-room mansion with conical towers built in
1873 by George Robertson, the son of early
landowner William Robertson who was born at
Alvie in Scotland (hence the name of the local
settlement). To the south-east are Lake Colac
and Colac while Beeac lies to the north-east.
The branch road on the right leads to Western
Lookout. In the foreground, to the south, are
Lake Werowrap, Lake Gnalingurk and Lake
Purdigulac. These lakes were originally volcanic
craters which blew lava hundreds of metres into
the air.
To the west is Lake Corangamite, Victoria's
largest inland lake. With a surface area of 234
square kilometres and a circumference of about
150 km, Lake Corangamite stretches for 32 km in
a north-south direction although, even then, it
is thought to be a remnant of a much larger body
of water. The lake's name is said to be
Aboriginal for 'bitter' - a reference to its
extreme salinity (three times saltier than
seawater). This condition, which discourages the
presence of fish, arises because the volume of
the streams which feed the lake is insufficient
to cause an overflow and so there is no ongoing
interchange or flow of waters. It being a rather
shallow basin, the water merely evaporates,
causing an accumulation of salinity.
Lake Corangamite contains Vaughan Island
which is one of the state's few pelican-breeding
colonies and home to ibis and swans. On the far
side of the lake are the volcanic cones of Mt
Porndon, Mt Sugarloaf and Mt Elephant (their
positions are marked on a dial at the lookout).
To the north of the lookout is a foreground of
farmland where potatoes, onions and dairying
occur on the rich volcanic soils and a
background formed by the Alvie and Warrion
Hills.
If you wish to drive past Lake Corangamite,
return to Alvie, turn left and keep veering
left. This route (visible from the Western
Lookout) will take you past the eastern shore
then back to the Alvie Road at Coragulac. Turn
right to return to the highway.
Floating Island Flora and Fauna Reserve
Floating Island Flora and Fauna Reserve (5 ha)
is located in Lake Pirron Yallock which contains
a number of small islands that support scrub,
reeds, tussock grasses and eucalyptus saplings.
However, their notoriety rests mostly in their
capacity to change position quite rapidly (some
estimates posit shifts of up to 20 metres in a
few minutes).
One theory about the development of the
lagoon goes like this: it was originally a peat
swamp which developed in a depression thought to
have been created by an ancient lava flow. It
flooded each winter and dried up in the summer.
In the centre was an island of peat on which
potatoes were grown. In 1938 the peat caught
fire and smouldered for several months, lowering
the level of the swamp and the island. Then, in
1952, especially heavy rains caused the swamp to
fill to a particularly high level. The peat
broke away from the basalt floor, complete with
its vegetation, and began to float. The seasonal
swamp was then turned into a permanent lagoon as
the result of nearby roadworks and the clump of
peat broke into a series of islets. Wind is
thought to be the cause of their motion although
another theory suggest that currents are caused
by the influx of ground water which, being a
different temperature, creates a differential
that causes some impetus to occur.
There are 16 species of waterbirds and koalas
can be seen in the bushland. Another feature is
the dry stone walls which were erected in the
1880s to clear the fields of stone and act as a
barrier to rabbit infestation. A nature walk map
is available from the information centre.
To get there head west of Colac on the
Princes Highway. After about 10 km you will see
Lake Corangamite to your right. About 17 km from
Colac, opposite the Koala Motel, on the northern
side of the highway, is a carpark which is the
start of the walking track to the lagoon (a
pamphlet relating to this walk is available at
the Colac Information Centre).
Irrewarra
Pastoralist John Calvert had this single-storey
rubble basalt homestead, with its plastered
facade and recessed verandah, erected in the
late 1840s. Another wing was added later. The
stables also date from the late 1840s. It is
possible to undertake a guided tour of the
stables and homestead which has been restored in
period fashion. There are kangaroos and other
animals on the grounds. Irrewarra is only open
to groups (ie, coaches) and only by appointment,
tel: (03) 5233 6335. Follow the Princes Highway
east of Colac for 4 km and turn left into Beeac
Rd. About 8 or 9 km from Colac take the
signposted right into Ryans Road where you will
find the property.
Also in the Irrewarra area, at 152 Drapers
Rd, is the Empress Vineyard where a winery is in
preparation and a restaurant is now open for
business, tel: (03) 5232 1711.
Meredith Park
Slightly further north along Beeac Road (10 km
north of Colac) is a turnoff on the left into
Meredith Park which is located on the northern
bank of Lake Colac. There are fishing areas,
toilets, fireplaces and a boat ramp.
Lake Beeac
19 km north of Colac along the Beeac Road is the
settlement of Beeac. Turn left here to access
the pleasant picnic area at the lake which is so
hypersaline that it has a whitish hue.
Tarndwarncoort
The Warncoort station was established in 1841 by
Alexander Dennis who began work on
Tarndwarncoort homestead in 1848. Around 1880
the family successfully cross-bred merino and
Lincoln sheep, thereby creating the Polwarth
breed which proved better suited to areas of
higher rainfall. A sheep farm is still operating
on the property, producing high-grade wool and
there is a good wool craft store on the property
which sells yarn, spinning wheels, wool dyes,
sheepskin rugs and other wool-related items.
They also have a holiday cottage.
To get there head east of Colac along the
Princes Highway for 12 km then turn right along
the road to Birregurra. After 2 km turn right
into Warncoort Cemetery Road where you will see
the signpost. The store is open by prior
appointment, tel: (03) 5233 6241.
Birregurra
Birregurra, 18 km east on the Barwon River, is a
small rural hamlet with has some quaint shops
with sloping timber verandahs and a history
dating back as far as Colac. Davenport Bromfield
camped on the future townsite in 1837 though he
moved on the following year. In 1839 a Mr and
Mrs Tuckfield set up the Buntingdale (Methodist)
Aboriginal Mission at Birregurra. It closed in
1848 and the buildings were destroyed by fire
three years later. A cairn on nearby farming
land marks the spot of the mission. Some
remaining bricks were used in the construction
of a Methodist church in 1863.
The settlement boomed in the 1850s with the
emergence of the timber industry. At that time
there were several wine shanties and small pubs.
A fine remnant of the town's early days is
Christ Church, built of sandstone and basalt in
1870-71. The bell was recovered from the mission
buildings. The railway arrived at Birregurra in
1891.
A local home, known as Ripple Vale, was built
for Charles Sladen who acted as a stop-gap
premier of the state during a political crisis
in 1868.
Red Rock Winery
Head south of Colac on the Gellibrand Road (aka
the Colac-Lavers Hill Rd) for 12 km then take
the right turn (signposted for the winery)into
Hoveys Road. 500 m along, to the right, is Red
Rock Winery which is open for cellar door sales
on weekends, public and school holidays from
10.00 a.m. to 4.00 p.m., tel: (03) 5233 8466.
Burton's Lookout
Just beyond the turnoff to the winery is
Burton's Lookout, located at the foot of the
Otways. It offers views of the hinterland,
taking in Lake Colac and the Gellibrand River
Valley. There is a picnic area and walking
track.
The Old Beechy Line
4 km south of Burtons Lookout (16 km from
Colac), on the Gellibrand Road, is a left turn
into the Old Beechy Line. The Beechy was a
narrow-gauge railway line used to convey timber,
potatoes and passengers from Beech Forest and
Lavers Hill north to Colac from 1900 to 1960.
The turnoff leads to a picnic area with
fireplaces and toilets near the site of the old
Birnam station. This is the starting point of a
very pleasant and short fern walk along the
creek or an 8-km hike along the old railway line
(details on these walks are available from the
information centre).
Loves Creek Reserve
2 km beyond the turnoff to the Old Beechy Line
(18 km south of Colac) is Loves Creek Reserve
where there are fireplaces, fresh water, toilets
and picnic tables. The creek is stocked with
trout.
Gellibrand and Carlisle State Park
7 km south of Loves Creek Reserve (25 km south
of Colac) is Gellibrand, a small centre
established in the 1880s as a timber town
although it was almost completely destroyed by
fire in 1886. The town was rebuilt and
eventually surveyed in 1902.
Turn off here, heading west through Carlisle
State Park (5600 ha) which consists of
undeveloped woodland, forest and heathlands
which are home to the rare ground parrot. There
is a diversity of fauna and wildflowers bloom in
spring. A two-day walk through the park has been
established, tel: (03) 5233 5567.
Gellibrand Pottery
The Old Beech Forest Road heads south-east out
of Gellibrand. 4 km along this road (only the
first kilometre is sealed) is Gellibrand Pottery
which is open weekends and public and school
holidays from 9.00 a.m. to 5.00 p.m., tel: (03)
5235 8246.
Otways Drive
To the south of town are the enormous tracts of
forest associated with the Otway Ranges. This
land was opened for selection in 1869 and,
although land was cleared and farms established,
much forest remained. It was reserved as state
forest in 1899. Sawmills were constructed and
timber removed with pine and other softwood
plantations established on abandoned farms in
the 1930s and 1940s.
The following is a 113-km circular drive
through that terrain. Head south along Queen St.
Once over the railway crossing take the
immediate left into Wallace St. Wallace St
becomes the Colac-Forrest Rd. After travelling
through 32 km of grazing territory you will find
yourself in the timber town of Forrest where
there is a pub and an office of the Department
of Natural Resources and Environment, tel: (03)
5236 6204. Either can give you directions to
Lake Elizabeth which was created in 1953 (the
year of Queen Elizabeth's coronation) as the
result of a massive landslide. It is home to a
number of platypuses and there are camping and
picnicking facilities.
Just beyond the settlement turn left into the
West Barwon Dam Reserve where there is a carpark,
picnic tables and toilets. This dam is the major
water supply for Geelong.
Return to the main road and continue south
for 7 km to Barramunga. At the school camp turn
right to Stevensons Falls and picnic area.
Return again to the main road and continue
south for another 9 km and turn left to visit Mt
Sabine Fire Tower Reserve, offering outstanding
views of the Otways and the coast.
Return again to the main road and continue
south for 2 km then turn right onto Turtons
Track (the first 7 km are without tarmac but
quite manageable in a 2WD) which is a beautiful
route through thick rainforest vegetation. 16 km
along Turtons Track is Beech Forest. 4 km beyond
Beech Forest there is an intersection. One
branch leads to Lavers Hill. A right turn will
take you back to Colac, via Gellibrand, Loves
Creek Reserve, the Old Beechy Line and Burton's
Lookout.
