Derrinallum - Mount Elephant
Mount Elephant is a perfect breached scoria cone that erupted maybe 180,000 years ago. It is part of a suite of volcanoes on the basalt plains of south west Victoria from 30,000 to several million years old.
Visible from 60 kilometres in every direction, Mount Elephant dominates the landscape.
Mount Elephant is the largest scoria cone in Victoria, rising 240m above the plain with a crater 90m deep and measuring 1.3km across the base.
The Mount purchased in 2000 by the local communities in partnership with Trust for Nature, to be preserved and enjoyed by all.
There is a growing number of kangaroos and wallabies which can be found in the bush around the base. Hawks and eagles patrol overhead searching for unwary rabbits, while many smaller birds flit among the denser vegetation.
A modern Visitor Centre with unique design and spectacular views provides nature displays, light refreshments and toilets. It is manned by local volunteers who have the answer to any questions.
The walk from the car park to the crater rim is a two kilometre return walk to the peak (John and Millie Borbidge track) and around the crater rim is an extra three kilometres (steep in sections). The path is steep and uneven, not suitable for prams or wheelchairs or those with limited mobility.
Mount Elephant Map
Opening Hours:
The Visitor Centre is open from 1pm to 4pm every Sunday. Mount Elephant can be accessed on foot from the front gate at other times. The walk from the front gate to the Visitor Centre is approximately 1.1 km one way.
The site is closed on Total Fire Ban days and days of Extreme or Catastrophic fire danger. Group visits can be arranged by appointment.
Access for Dogs:
Dogs on leads are welcome.
Review:
The entrance gate for cars is locked except during Sunday afternoons. However there is a side gate for pedestrians which is open all the time. It means an extra 1.1km walk each way to reach the Visitor Centre where the Mount Elephant walks start from.
We would strongly suggest doing the crater rim walk which is way more exciting than the walk around the base. There is also the option of going deep into the crater in the internal crater walk.
Bring along a map in some form because the routes can be a little confusing because every track is generically named 'Walking Track'. The tracks skirt around the highest point of the cone because it is part of a revegetation zone.
After 350m from the Visitor Centre there is a gate which leads onwards around the base. Just before the gate is a branch to the left (Borbidge track) which rises uphill to the crater rim. At the rim there is another gate. Immediately after that gate a grass track leads off to the left where there is an information panel displaying a painting of Mount Elephant in 1856 by Eugene Von Guerard. Retrace your steps back to the main trail.
A short distance on there is another information sign titled "small crater". From here you can go on down into the depths of the crater which has some paths winding through the rocky landscape.
Alternatively you can take paths to the left (which seemed the easier route to us) or right which take you up and around the crater rim which has awesome views of the surrounding landscape and the inside of the crater.
The path around the rim is quite rocky but that didn't seem to bother the sheep which we had for company.
Part way around the rim you reach the trig point which has a map of geological features in the surrounding district. On a clear day you should be able to see the Grampians National Park (Gariwerd). From the trig point there is quite a steep grassy track down from the rim.
Photos:
Location
Mount Elephant, Hamilton Highway, Derrinallum 3325 View Map
✆ (03) 5596 2014 / 0409 535 914
Email Enquiry
Web Links
→ www.mountelephant.com.au
→ Mt Elephant (Victorian Volcanoes)
→ Mount Elephant Community on Facebook
