Mutton Bird Island Lookout

Mutton Bird Island Lookout is a clifftop platform in the Loch Ard Gorge precinct, looking across the Southern Ocean to Mutton Bird Island and its limestone sea arch. You view the offshore island from the mainland; there is no walk out to it. If you're already exploring Loch Ard, I'd make the stop for the island's distinct shape and the chance of seeing its shearwater colony.

From the signed Mutton Bird Island car park, the upper deck is 150 m along a level crushed-rock path. Steps lead down to the lower platform. Use this dedicated lot for the short approach: it has no designated accessible parking space and is not suitable for caravans or other long vehicles. Those vehicles are directed to the main Loch Ard Gorge car park, which means a longer walk through the precinct. There are no toilets in the precinct.

The upper deck gives you the island's full low profile against open water. Include the arch and some ocean around it so the shape reads clearly in a photo; you don't need to commit to the longer loop to see it.

Short-tailed shearwaters, often called muttonbirds, return to burrows on the island from September to April, with the strongest viewing in January and February. Thousands may return in the evening during the season, though wildlife is never guaranteed.

The Loch Ard shipwreck happened just offshore of Mutton Bird Island in 1878. Of the 54 passengers and crew, teenagers Eva Carmichael and Tom Pearce were the only survivors; they reached shore through the gorge. The lookout also sits within a wider limestone coast shaped by rain, wind and ocean waves over thousands of years.

If you'd like a longer walk, the 3.2 km return Living on the Edge route includes this platform and continues to Thunder Cave and Broken Head.