Parker Hill Campground and Stringybark Loop Walk

This is a 4.0 km (2.5 mi) circuit from Parker Hill Campground. Follow the clifftop Great Ocean Walk west to Point Franklin, then return inland via Crayfish Bay and Parker Hill tracks through the stringybark route network. Allow about 1½ hours for the full mapped loop. Older visitor information lists 3 km and one hour; the complete connected track line is closer to 4 km, so leave time for this full version. You can also start at Point Franklin and walk the loop in reverse.

The coastal leg opens to high views over sheltered Parker Inlet and the open Southern Ocean. Look toward Cape Otway Lightstation on the clifftop stretch; it appears in the distance. The inland return shifts from water views to stringybark forest around Parker Hill.

A steep stair spur, described as roughly 300 steps, drops to the sheltered inlet. It is an optional out-and-back detour and is not included in the 4.0 km loop. A separate route continues along beaches and rock ledges toward Point Franklin at low tide; do not add that shoreline section to this circuit without checking the tide and access.

Cape Otway Lightstation began operating in 1848 and was decommissioned in 1994, after the longest continuous operation by a light on the Australian mainland. The distant view from the clifftop ties the walk to the maritime history of this coast.

Parker Hill Campground is the practical start, and the visitor map also marks a Point Franklin carpark. The campground map shows toilets and picnic tables, but no food or drinking-water stop on the circuit was confirmed. Dogs are generally not permitted in Great Otway National Park.