Parking
Park at Zumsteins Picnic Area off Mount Victory Road beside the Mackenzie River. Accessible toilets, picnic shelters, picnic tables and electric barbecues are at the site.
Overview
About Zumsteins Historic Walk
Why go
- Historic cottages and interpretive signs
- Accessible boardwalk and river edge
Heads up
- Very short walk with limited hiking challenge
- The full loop includes some uneven sections
Map & elevation
The route
Loading the Grampians map
Full mapElevation235–249 m
Plan your hike
Before you go
Parking
Safety
5 active Grampians alerts
- ClosureMackenzie Falls precinct closed during constructionMentions this trailThe Mackenzie Falls (Migunang wirab) Precinct has no vehicle or visitor access during major construction works expected to finish by the end of 2026.Official details
- ClosureBushfire-damaged walks and picnic area remain closedThe Fortress, Red Gum, Billimina, Chimney Pots and Brownings Loop walks, plus Mafeking Picnic Area, remain closed because of track or site damage from the 2024/25 summer bushfires.Official details
The highest, rockiest slopes around here are a summer buffet for grizzly bears.
Grampians Tour Guide
Your drive to Zumsteins Historic Walk, narrated.
Parkwolf is a GPS audio tour guide for Grampians National Park. As you drive, it chimes in with what’s ahead: hidden gems, upcoming stops, history, geology, and wildlife, right through your car’s speakers.
Recorded for this trailhead
Zumsteins: Cottages, River and Fish Falls0:00 / 1:05
“You're coming up on Zumsteins, where a short riverside walk takes you through the remains of an old holiday retreat. The historic loop is only about 250 metres, so allow 15 to 30 minutes to wander and read the signs.”
Plays as you drive up to this trailhead in the Parkwolf Grampians Tour Guide.
More stories near here in the app
- The Wallaby in the Undergrowth
- A New Way Through the Gorge
- MacKenzie Falls: Choose Your Walk
- The Ducklings That Jump from Trees
- 233 audio storiesacross Grampians’s roads, triggered by GPS as you drive
- Wildlife heatmapsfor Short-beaked Echidna, Powerful Owl, Wedge-tailed Eagle, and 13 more
- Works offlinemaps, 81 trails, 62 places, and audio download before you lose signal
- CarPlay readysimple controls built for the drive
“Fantastic app with many points of information… It’s great to just turn on while you’re driving and it gives you an audio tour of the national Park. We love it!!!!”
Trail guide
Hiking Zumsteins Historic Walk
The short versionThis is a closed loop through the Zumsteins Historic Area, starting and finishing at the…
This is a closed loop through the Zumsteins Historic Area, starting and finishing at the Zumsteins Picnic Area. The total loop distance is 250 metres, and most people take 15 to 30 minutes because you stop to read things rather than because it is hard work. Difficulty is easy, about 2 out of 10.
What you walk pastThe loop circles the former Zumstein holiday retreat.
The loop circles the former Zumstein holiday retreat. You pass pise (rammed earth) cottages, the Walter Zumstein memorial, and interpretive signs that fill in the story, all set among trees with the Mackenzie River close by. A short timber boardwalk leads out to a viewing platform over the Mackenzie River, which is the natural turning point of the walk before you complete the circuit back to the picnic area.
A heritage walk, not a hikeWalter Zumstein first came here in 1906 and set up an apiary in 1910.
Walter Zumstein first came here in 1906 and set up an apiary in 1910. With Jean, he developed the site into a holiday retreat through the 1930s, with three pise cottages, a tennis court and a swimming pool. Come for the history and the river edge, and set your expectations accordingly. There is no climbing and no wilderness feel.
Surfaces and accessibilityUnderfoot you get mostly compacted paths, a formed timber boardwalk and viewing platform, and…
Underfoot you get mostly compacted paths, a formed timber boardwalk and viewing platform, and concrete and wooden bridges, with some uneven ground in places. The boardwalk and viewing platform are described as pram and wheelchair accessible, but the full loop mixes other formed surfaces and uneven sections, so it is not guaranteed to be uniformly barrier free. If wheels are a factor, the boardwalk and platform section is the reliable part, and you can turn back rather than commit to the whole circuit.
Access, parking and facilitiesStart at Zumsteins Picnic Area, beside the Mackenzie River.
Start at Zumsteins Picnic Area, beside the Mackenzie River. Park at the Zumsteins Picnic Area off Mount Victory Road and start the loop from the picnic area. On site you will find accessible toilets, picnic shelters, picnic tables and electric barbecues, which makes this an easy add on to a lunch stop.
DogsOrdinary dogs are not permitted anywhere in the national park, including here.
Ordinary dogs are not permitted anywhere in the national park, including here. Assistance dogs are handled under separate entry requirements.
If you want a longer walkFrom the same area, Fish Falls is the longer and more natural river walk, and Mackenzie Falls…
From the same area, Fish Falls is the longer and more natural river walk, and Mackenzie Falls is substantially more strenuous. Pairing the Zumsteins loop with one of those gives you a full outing, with the history first and the legwork after.
Wildlife
Wildlife in Grampians
157 sightingsShort-beaked EchidnaMost seen around 6 PMSighting map
37 sightingsPowerful OwlMost seen around 6 PMSighting map
59 sightingsWedge-tailed EagleMost seen around 11 AMSighting map
24 sightingsEastern Brown SnakeMost seen around 11 AMSighting map
10 sightingsTiger SnakeMost seen around noonSighting map
29 sightingsRed-bellied Black SnakeMost seen around 11 AMSighting mapSighting maps show where each species has been reported across Grampians. Wildlife moves, so no sighting is guaranteed.
