Our previous visit to Halls Gap was in September 2019. Now we fast forward to February 2021. Last time I mentioned that Halls Gap (and the Grampians in its entirety) is an amazing place. One of the things I love about it, is it's an amazing and beautiful place to visit any time of year. Our 2019 trip it was cold, it was rainy and it was spectacular. This time it was warm, sometime hot, always sunny and it was breathtaking. Unfortunately this trip was cut short; we had five days planned but due to some unforeseen circumstances we ended up with two days. There was still lots to see and do in two days, but we wish it could have been longer.

So grab a beer, let's settle in.

Halls Gap Zoo

Halls Gap Zoo may not have the same range of exotic animals as a larger zoo such as Melbourne Zoo or the Werribee Open Range (these are some Melbourne Specific references BTW) but it more than makes up for it with the up-close and personal experiences.

As you enter the zoo, you have an opportunity to purchase food for the animals. Once you have your food, be prepared to be mobbed by hungry deer. They're friendly, they're beautiful and they're shameless. My advice is to make sure you save some of your food from the deer so you have an opportunity to hand feed the wallabies.

There's a wide range of animals at the zoo and I kind of love that it's not overrun with exotic imported animals. That's not why I go to the Grampians. I'm more than happy with Australian and local wildlife and the zoo delivers that in spades. If you're carting kids with you, be prepared to spend roughly half a day.

Getting off Road

A few months before our trip to Halls Gap I purchased a second hand 4x4. A 1999 Toyota LandCruiser (affectionately called "The Cruiser" by the kids) to be exact. A few things to note about The Cruiser:

• It's an old battle-axe
• It's my project car for the foreseeable future
• It will (eventually) be our primary method to get out and camping with the kids in the future.

Even as a project vehicle, I haven't done much with the Cruiser yet. At this stage just two basic safety accessories: a reverse parking camera and CB radios. Still, knowing there are many easy tracks around the Grampians, I couldn't resist the temptation of getting out and about with the kids and exploring places that perhaps few people ever go to see.

As a precaution, I plotted a route that would take us past Kikijarr Heights campsite, exported the route as a GPX and sent it to the other families we visited the Grampians with. This way, if something went wrong and we failed to show that evening, there was someone who knew where we were.

If you're going off-road make sure someone knows where you're going. It doesn't matter how capable you or your vehicle is, this is a simple safety precaution.

46km of slow, meandering driving means being behind the wheel for several hours. If you don't enjoy time in the car, tackling ruts or scrambling up shaley inclines then getting off-road may not be right for you. If any of this sounds appealing however I can't recommend it highly enough.

The pay off for your time and attention is amazing views and the feeling that you're the only person in the world. There really isn't any other feeling quite like it. I just wish we had more time to spend there.

Wrap up

I hope to add a third part to this series at some point in time. Unsurprisingly, two out of a planned five days just isn't enough. As I sit at home write this I already miss the Grampians. I'm watching the development of the Grampians Peak Trail as a potential future goal although as a proposed 13 day trek, I'm not yet sure how to balance that with the responsibilities that come with kids. If I work it out, perhaps that can be another post.