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Mornington Peninsula: Self-Guided Bike Tour w E-Bike Option
About This Tour
Explore historic Point Nepean National Park, with its spectacular scenery and coastal trails, on a comfortable bike with breathtaking views. Located at the end of Point Nepean Road, where Bass Strait meets Port Phillip Bay and the Mornington Peninsula ends, Point Nepean’s rich history has had a significant impact on Victoria and Australia in terms of immigration, quarantine and defense.
What's Included
✓ Included
- Lock
- Helmet
- Bike
- Single or Double Child Carrier (optional and at a cost)
- Park map
✗ Not Included
- Food and drinks
- Hotel pickup and drop-off
Itinerary
1
Enjoy an adventure with family or friends while cycling along the stunning coastline of the most southern point of the Mornington Peninsula. Point Nepean is one of Victoria's most dramatic stretches of coastline. Bayplay is the only operator that lets you explore it by bike, at your own pace.
2
Pick up your bikes from our bike shop inside Point Nepean National Park. Follow the signs to the Quarantine Station carpark, head towards the water and we are located on the right next to the Parks Victoria Information Centre. We have bikes available for 7+ yrs and bike carriers for kids 6 and under, please call ahead if you would like to book either of these.
3
Quarantine Station was used during the Gold Rush to slow and restrict sick visitors from getting to Melbourne. Visit the old hospitals they were required to quarantine in after a long ocean journey travelling to Victoria. The surrounding buildings had many purposes during and after this time, definitely worth visiting.
4
Gunner's Cottage was the original home built for the fort's Master Gunner. It's also the starting point for a short walking detour to the Point Nepean Cemetery, where shipwreck victims are buried. Toilets and limited facilities are available before you head out.
5
Only a short walk from the Gunners Cottage Carpark, head to Observatory Point for a scenic Picnic. Take in the vistas over Port Phillip Bay.
6
Back on your bike, ride Coles Track, the shared path linking Gunner's Cottage to Fort Nepean. Laid out in the 1940s for wartime telegraph services, the track still carries remnant poles from the line that once connected Melbourne to Fort Nepean during the Second World War.
7
Pull over along Defence Road near Cheviot Hill for the short walk to the Harold Holt Memorial, a granite marker at the spot where Prime Minister Harold Holt disappeared while swimming at Cheviot Beach in December 1967. A viewing platform overlooks the beach, though swimming and beach access here are prohibited.
8
Ride on to Cheviot Hill, the highest point in the park, where World War II gun emplacements still overlook the coastline. From here you'll look out over Cheviot Beach, site of both the 1887 wreck of the SS Cheviot and Harold Holt's disappearance eighty years later.
9
Continue cycling to Fort Pearce, built in 1911 to house 6-inch Mark VII guns with a firing range of over 12 kilometres. Dummy guns were installed here in 1942 when the coast was considered vulnerable to air attack, and the nearby Pearce Barracks once housed the soldiers stationed at Point Nepean.
10
Finish your ride at Fort Nepean, on the very tip of the Mornington Peninsula and one of Australia's best-preserved fort complexes. Park your bike and wander through tunnels and gun emplacements dating from the 1880s to the 1940s, standing where the first Allied shot of the First World War was fired on 5 August 1914.
11
Point Nepean National Park sits on the traditional Country of the Bunurong People, at the tip of the Mornington Peninsula. Across its 560 hectares of cycling trails and coastal roads, discover military forts and tunnels and a historic quarantine station, all set against panoramic views of Bass Strait, The Rip and Port Phillip.
Good to Know
- Public transportation options are available nearby
- Specialized infant seats are available
- Not recommended for travelers with poor cardiovascular health
- Travelers should have at least a moderate level of physical fitness
- The route is self-paced and most guests finish in 2 to 3 hours.
- The road is shared so riders need to be mindful when riding to keep an eye out for vehicles.
- The terrain is generally smooth and a Mostly Flat dirt track with hills until the end of Coles Track, from there there is a fairly steep incline to the end (Fort Nepean) - this is where the E-Bike is a well loved choice. Moderate fitness is recommended for mountain bikes. The E-bike suits guests who prefer a more relaxed pace on the hills.
- E Bikes are single rider - riders must be over 14 years old.
- Minimum riding age is 7 years and children must be able to ride confidently. Children must be accompanied by an adult at all times.
- Children under 7 have the option for a kids carrier or a shorter trail with small kids bikes - shorter easy route.
- There is no food or drink available at the meeting point or along the route, so bring water and snacks.
- Wear closed-toe shoes.