australia:vic:corkoaks
Table of Contents
Cork Oaks camp ground, Mt Beckworth, Clunes
see also:
Introduction
- at the north end of Mt Beckworth in a scenic park which still has cork oak trees growing
- bollarded camp sites are at ~400m elevation and flat ground is hard to find;
- good phone service;
- 2WD accessible with care
- perhaps best in late Autumn if you wish to see ghost mushrooms but nights can be cold and foggy
- can be very hot in summer with no running rivers nearby
Getting there
- north of Ballarat and just to the west of the lovely historic gold mining town of Clunes
- just over 1.5hrs, 130km from NW suburbs via Miners Rest (slightly longer via Creswick and Clunes and ~2hrs via Castlemaine);
Winter camping
- nice winter sun and good night skies but can be very cold at night on clear nights in autumn and winter in particular
- on days of high pressure systems in July, expect sunny days with little wind and temperatures max 12-14degC falling to 0-2degC overnight and thick fog can occur at these times
- nights tend to be 1degC warmer but days 0-1degC warmer than Mt Franklin reserve campground, near Daylesford according to BOM but inside the crater it could be colder
- nights tend to be 0-2degC warmer but days 1degC colder than Green Hill Lakes Camping Reserve, Ararat and nights tend to be 1degC warmer and days 2-4degC warmer than Halls Gap (cold air falls down into the valley)
- tends to be 1-2degC colder than Melville Caves campground, Kooyoora State Park and 1degC colder than Maldon Mt Tarrengower Butt's Reserve camp ground
- tends to be 3-4 degC colder than Melbourne day and night
Attractions
- my pics of ghost mushrooms at night in the area in autumn, especially May;
- various honey eater birds at morning / dusk;
- wallabies, possums, lizards, etc
- bush walks and nice views:
- Mt Beckworth hits 629m and there is a 1.5-2hr return Feldspar walk for nice views and you could probably camp up there in a hiking tent leave no trace manner
- short drives to explore the regional volcanic features, historic deep lead gold mining area, a few ghost towns, ruins and relics, and some wineries
- Clunes
- the original Mad Max movie was partly filmed here
- Creswick
- La Gerche nature walk amongst a large oak forest and colorful autumn fly agaric mushrooms
- Creswick woolen mills
- Talbot 23min, 22km to north
- Majorca ghost town, 30min, 30km to north east
- Amherst and historic Chinese baths, 26min to north
- Maryborough city - check out its fantastic train station
- Smeaton 31km, 31min to south east - nice loop drive to see old gold mines
- Avoca 47km, 42min to NW - nice pie shop
- Dunolly 59km, 51min to north via Talbot and Maryborough
- ~47min 50km to the popular spa, gourmet food, LGBTI-friendly, tourist town of Daylesford and Hepburn Springs
Nearby facilities
- Clunes township
- petrol, cafes, etc
- 12km (18min by car)
- Creswick township is larger
- 27km, (30min by car)
- Ballarat city
- ~37min south via Miners Rest
- Bunnings, supermarkets, major hospital and 24hr emergency department
- Sovereign Hill tourist attraction
- lake, botanical garden
- Maryborough city
- 37km (34 min by car) to the north via Talbot
Nearby free or low cost camp grounds
- within the Mt Beckworth Reserve:
- nearby Dam Reserve picnic / camp area - flatter, more shady, bollarded camp sites and has fire pit and picnic table but no toilets; dam likely to be empty;
- nearby Manna Gums picnic area
- flatter, bollarded camp sites and has fire pit and picnic table but no toilets; several walks
- Slaty Creek gold prospecting campgrounds, Creswick
- 33km, 38min to SE via Creswick
- Paddys Range campground, Maryborough
- 38min, 36km to the north
- Avoca RV camp along the river - ? not for tents
- 42min to NW
- Lake Burumbeet foreshore reserve (south end of the lake)
- 42min to Sth
-
- 51min to east via Clunes and Yandoit (1hr via Smeaton and Daylesford)
- nice camp ground inside a volcanic crater, but will be very cold in winter, and avoid on weekends or school hols at other times as can be very busy
- Laanecoorie riverside camp on the Loddon River
- 54min 68km to NE via Carisbrook
- Avoca waterfalls picnic area
- ~1hr to NW via Talbot, Avoca
- Warburton Bridge, Glenluce
- ~1hr to NW via Newstead; popular with caravans, on the upper reaches of the Loddon River
-
- just under 1hr to NE
- Newbridge Recreation Reserve camp ground on the Loddon River
- 1hr to north, $25/n; hot showers, river, pub
- Waanyarra gold prospecting area
- 1hr to north
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- over 1hr drive to SW via Beaufort
-
- ~71min 91km drive to SW via Beaufort
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- 75min to NW via Avoca
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- 80min to north via Talbot, Maryborough, Dunolly
- Lerderderg campground
- 95min 100km via Ballan (102min via Daylesford and Trentham)
-
- 2hrs to west via Beaufort, Ararat, Halls Gap
australia/vic/corkoaks.txt · Last modified: 2026/07/07 00:06 by gary1