Cycling or walking through Point Nepean National Park, on the tip of the Mornington Peninsula, gives you a fabulous mix of beautiful scenery and Australian military history.
And what better way to clear your head on the first day of 2019 and Day 5 of our Twelve Days of Summer series.
There are two options for cycling – long and short.
For a short ride, within the park itself, you can park at the Quarantine Station at the entrance to the national park and either bring your own bikes, hire bikes or even join a bike tour.
For a long 50km ride, you can park in Rosebud and cycle along Point Nepean Road through Sorrento and Portsea to Fort Nepean and back. There’s a few hills along the way but it’s worth it for the view when you get into the national park.
If you prefer walking, there are quite a few walks through the park ranging from 1km to the full 10km round trip from the Quarantine Station to Fort Nepean at the end and back.
Once you get to the very tip of the peninsula, you’ll be able to wander around Fort Nepean, which was a critical defence post from the 1880s to 1945, and also look out across the heads to the other side of the bay.
The highest point in the park is Cheviot Hill, which overlooks Cheviot Beach where Australia’s Prime Minister Harold Holt mysteriously disappeared in 1967, never to be seen again.
If you’re planning to visit in January, make sure you check what events are happening in the area (like fun runs, open air cinema and polo) because the car park/roads may be closed or full when they’re on.
