Wannon Overnight Hike

Point to point, 12.1 km one way (distances here are one way, not a return loop), from Yarram Gap Road Trailhead to Griffin Trailhead via Wannon Hike-in Campground. It is a Grade 4, hard walk, and most people spend about 7 hours of total walking time split across two days with a night at the campground in between.

Day 1: Yarram Gap Road Trailhead to Wannon Hike-in Campground, 6.5 km. The track runs parallel to the road through Callitris forest, climbs to a ridgeline, then rolls up and down through six knolls and saddles with wetlands out to the east. It drops down a spur into taller forest, opens into grassland and arrives at camp, a reclaimed farmland gully ringed by ridges.

Day 2: Wannon Hike-in Campground to Griffin Trailhead, 5.6 km. You cross the Wannon River, pass through swampy river flats and heathy understorey, meet Grampians Tourist Road, then climb gently through sandy heathy forest for the final 2.6 km to Griffin Trailhead.

Expect uneven ground, steep track sections and a steep descent off the ridge, plus slippery rocks when wet. The repeated knolls and saddles on day 1 are the real work: no single big climb, just constant short ups and downs with a full overnight pack. Day 2 is easier walking, though the swampy flats can be soft underfoot.

• Wannon Hike-in Campground must be booked in advance, and it is the only place to camp on this route.
• Facilities are basic: tent platforms or granite-sand pads, an unpowered communal meal area, toilets and water collection points.
• Tank water is untreated, so treat it before drinking.
• Fuel stoves only. Open campfires are not permitted.
• Mobile reception at camp is poor or absent, so sort out plans and contacts beforehand.
• Dogs are not allowed. Assistance dog access follows separate requirements.

The two trailheads are far apart, so you need a start-to-finish vehicle shuffle unless a licensed operator handles your transport. Build that time into the day you start, not the day you finish.

Durable warnings for this section include heat exhaustion, no mobile phone reception, falling limbs and trees, steep and slippery sections, uneven ground and snakes. Heat is the main limiting factor on the exposed ridgeline, so start early and carry plenty of water. Watch your footing on the descents, and stay alert to falling limbs and trees where the track runs through forest.

This is rugged southern Grampians country: open grassland, wetlands to the east, heathy understorey, eucalyptus woodland and wildflowers in season. The ridges surrounding the camp offer sunset views, which is the best photographic moment of the trip. There are no big named lookouts along the way, so treat it as a quiet, immersive overnight rather than a summit walk.

This route is the Wannon overnight section only, from Yarram Gap Road Trailhead to Griffin Trailhead with a single night at Wannon. If you want more time on the trail, the three-day Yarram to Wannon itinerary of the Grampians Peaks Trail adds the preceding stage into Yarram Hike-in Campground and another night on the track, covering similar country at a slower pace. For a much shorter outing with no shuffle and no booking, a standalone day walk elsewhere in the park will suit better than trimming this route.