Over the past five years, Sydney-based artist and book designer Evi O has clocked in close to 250 bushwalks around Victoria, New South Wales and Tasmania.
Evi, who grew up in Indonesia and moved to Sydney for university, tells Broadsheet spending time outdoors wasn’t a big thing for her growing up. “Believe it or not, I climbed my first tree when I was 29 … I was born a city girl and had always glorified urbanity, although a part of me was always curious about the other side.”
In her mid-twenties, she felt called to nature and started bushwalking. When the pandemic hit in 2020, she and partner Andrew Grune had only just started seeing each other and began going on bushwalking dates. “Honestly, we were both too scared to admit we liked each other and just kept going out on road trips,” she says.
The couple eventually turned their joint love of bushwalking into successful book series Day Trip, featuring state-based guides to nature walks – plus spin-off Dog Trip, which focuses on dog-friendly nature walks – that Evi designs, Grune takes the photos for, and the pair co-writes.
“I bushwalk when I need to steam off in a major way – it’s like an instant holiday,” she says. It also stops life from feeling overwhelming and helps her keep her priorities in check. “Spending time in nature helps me zoom out from modern humans’ everyday problems … It will give you the feeling that life can be done in many ways, and that has positively made me more intentional with things I choose to do in life.”
When she’s down in Victoria, she has three favourite places to daytrip, bushwalk and refuel – starting just 45 minutes from Melbourne Airport. Thankfully Evi’s an Avis Preferred member, which means she can skip the queue at the car rental desk. The membership gives her a direct-to-car experience at the airport, meaning she can head straight to the car after arriving and drive off without needing to sign paperwork or get the keys (they’re waiting for her in the car). All she needs to do is load her stuff in the back, start the car and she’s off on her road trip while other passengers on her flight might still be waiting to get out of the airport.
Here are her top Melbourne daytrip stops – all conveniently close together, so you can tackle them on separate trips or all on the same day.
Hanging Rock
Like many, Evi was first inspired to visit Hanging Rock because of Peter Weir’s 1975 film Picnic at Hanging Rock. Only a 45-minute drive from Melbourne Airport, it’s a “must-go for rock-lovers”; Evi says they’ll be “wowed by the array of volcanic formations there” – the result of an eruption estimated to have occurred 6 million years ago.
Hanging Rock is a culturally significant place for three Aboriginal Traditional Owner groups – the Woi Wurrung (Wurundjeri), the Djaara and the Taungurung. Evi recommends spending a whole day at the site, where you can get lost in the rocks, though two to three hours (preferably during sunrise or sunset) will suffice if you’re short on time. If you plan to enjoy your own picnic at Hanging Rock, bring a cushion or two.
Kyneton
This country town and cultural hub is just a 17-minute drive from Hanging Rock. If you plan to stop by, Evi says a visit to Stockroom Art Gallery – regional Victoria’s largest privately owned contemporary art space, housed in an 1850s butter factory – is a must. You can also enjoy a leisurely stroll around the Kyneton Botanic Gardens; Evi’s whippet Henri recommends the dog-friendly Campaspe River Walk.
When you’re done, stop by Country Cob Bakery, home of Australia’s best pie of 2023. “When in doubt go with a classic beef pie,” says Evi. Or drop into a servo and pick up her favourite road trip snacks: a Boss Coffee iced latte, Sour Squirms and a Twirl Breakaway.
Organ Pipes National Park
“I like that it’s not that hard, but you get heaps to see – I feel like you get a lot of rewards by not doing much,” Evi says of Organ Pipes, a national park that’s just a 37-minute drive from Kyneton and conveniently on the way back to Melbourne.
There are three volcanic rock formations to observe during the short walk, including the Tessellated Pavement, which Evi describes as “volcanic tetris”, and Rosette Rock, which “looks like a rock that failed to enter a time travel trip – it looks like the rock has been sucked into this vortex and stopped halfway”.
This article is produced by Broadsheet in partnership with Avis. Sign up to the complimentary Avis Preferred program to bypass the queue and go straight to your car on pick-up at Melbourne Airport. Avis Preferred membership is designed to get you in the car and on the road as fast as possible, so you can discover more in, around and outside Melbourne on your next trip. Conditions apply for Avis Preferred Membership. Avis Preferred services vary by location – find out more on the Avis website.
