Beeripmo Overnight Hike – Mt Buangor State Forest

Traditional Custodians - Beeripmo Balug clan of Djab Wurrung tribe.

Distance: Between 18-24km depending on detours

The trail is located approximately 180km from Melbourne VIC

We headed out to this trail over an Easter long weekend, leaving early and expecting obnoxious crowds but surprisingly this wasn’t the case. As it seems, Buangor State Forest is commonly overlooked due to the bigger, questionably better, Gariwerd (Grampians) located another hour-and-half with a shit-ton of people away.

Day 1 - The trail kicks off at Richards Campground, a pretty easy to-access campground. From there you stop all conversations and tackle a solid ascent past Raglan Falls (rainfall permitting) until it starts to level out and you get your first glimpses of Mt Cole and the granite-filled landscape to the West. It’s a good place to stop and drop your pack for a bit.

Fun fact: Beeripmo (bereep-by-bereep) translates to Wild Mount (otherwise known as Mt Cole) in Djab Wurrung language.

Back on the trail, the next point of interest is a junction where you can detour down to Bukertillible Cave (leave your packs at the junction; the trail is steep and not great). Having done the Bukertillible Cave circuit separately, I’d say save your effort on this hike and enjoy Beeripmo for its lo-fi casual calmness.

From there we meandered along the western-facing ridge to the Sugarloaf for a lunch stop, before realising that Beeripmo campsite was a short 45 minute jaunt away. Getting to Beeripmo campsite mid-afternoon had us consider finishing the hike in a one-day swoop, but luckily we didn’t as we were first on site to pick the sweetest spot and were treated to a mesmerising tree top sunset that evening.

Day 2

We weren’t as gung-ho come day 2, taking our time to pack up and head out. Beeripmo camp site has drop toilets, fire pits and a water tank (rainfall permitting), so you don’t have to rush on out to civilisation for anything of immediate need. We hiked on to Mugwamp Campsite which has its own little hut, but this is also commonly accessed by 4WD so stick to the hike-in sites for serenity’s sake (HOT TIP).

The Mt Buangor peak is not as taxing as most summits can be and gives you another sweeping view of the western plains speckled with granite, taking in Mt Langi Ghiran and the Grampians in the distance. The descent down through Long Gully was a pleasant surprise, tramping through swaying Eucalyptus trees with low strumming insects in the background before hitting gorgeous lush pockets of tall ferns. It’s a solid assault on the knees, so an old branch or hiking pole won’t go astray along here.

Next minute you are back at Richards Campground and a stone’s throw from the highway back to Naarm.

By Meg Perrier

https://www.deadlystory.com/page/aboriginal-country-map/Aboriginal_Country_In_Development/Djab_Wurrung

https://vacl.org.au/languages/djab-wurrung