Lorne Pier

Lorne Pier is a fishing and walking pier at Point Grey, on Lorne’s southern foreshore where sheltered Louttit Bay opens to Bass Strait. Walk out for the open-water view, then turn back toward town; the long stretch above the water is exposed, so wind can make it less comfortable to linger. A foreshore track links the precinct with central Lorne.

The first pier at Point Grey was built in 1879, when sea transport brought visitors and supplies to Lorne and carried timber from inland sawmills toward Geelong and Melbourne. Horse-drawn trolleys hauled the timber to ships. The current pier dates to 2007, replacing the earlier working structure.

Before European settlement, Gadubanud people gathered food along Point Grey’s coast. Shell middens record a diet that included abalone, turban shells, mussels, limpets and fish.

The Lorne Pier to Pub begins at the pier and has run since 1981. The open-water race covers about 1.2 kilometres; in 1988, 3,071 swimmers made it the largest open-water race recorded in Guinness.

At the outer platform, turn back along the pier to catch its rails leading toward Lorne, then face seaward for Bass Strait. People fish along the pier, and stingrays sometimes pass below; seeing one is a bonus, not a sure thing.