Unique Original Articles » The town of Lorne Victoria Australia

Lorne is a seaside township on Louttit Bay on the Great Ocean Road, 140km south-west of Melbourne, or approximately two hours drive. Lorne is 30 kilometres west of Anglesea. The Erskine River runs through the middle of Lorne. With Lorne’s European feel and postcard seascape, this lovely coastal village has been tempting visitors for more than a century.

Set between the ocean and the magnificent Otway forests, Lorne has an appeal that is difficult to improve on. In addition mild weather, a touch of the café culture, shopping, fashion shops and galleries with plenty of accommodation it's no wonder Lorne is one of The Great Ocean Road’s most talked about vacation towns.

Before European colonisation the area was occupied by the Kolakngat Aborigines. Louttit Bay bears the name of Captain Louttit, who found sanctuary in the bay in 1841 whilst supervising the reclamation of cargo from a floundering ship. It was not until 1846 that this part of Australia was surveyed. That year, Captain Louttit re-visited as master of the 'Apollo' and gave the name to another great tourist town along the coastline - Apollo Bay.

The first European settler in the Lorne area was William Lindsay who was issued a timber-cutting authority in 1849. His two young sons died when a sand tunnel caved in. Their burial sites can be seen, not far from the suspension footbridge which goes from the Great Ocean Road across the Erskine River to the beach. Other people were interested in the vast timber supplies of the Otways. Tramlines and sawmills spread out into the local forests. The timber was transported via boats off the beach at Lorne. Lorne was also the site of at least five shipwrecks at this time - the 'Osprey' (1854), the 'Rebel' (in 1855), the 'Otway' (in 1862), the Anne' (in 1863) and the 'Henry' (in 1878)(1878).

The Mountjoy brothers came to Lorne in 1864. They started farming, built a two-roomed dwelling in 1865 then converted it into the Temperance Hotel in 1868 (now Erskine House). Other county properties were established and a townsite was surveyed in 1869. The town was laid out in 1871 being named after the Marquis of Lorne. In 1891 Lorne was visited by the well known author, Rudyard Kipling, who boarded in Erskine House.

Lorne's popularity in the summer months can result in full accommodation and traffic jams although it is fairly quiet outside of holiday periods. The Lorne Golf Course in Holiday Road overlooks Lorne. The Lorne pier is a popular fishing spot in an area noted for its snapper, garfish, salmon, trevally, couta, whiting, barracuda, trout and bream. The current permanent population of Lorne is around 1500.

New Year's Eve is an activity-filled day of the calendar for Lorne. The Mountain to Surf Swim is held on the first Friday evening in January and the Lorne Pier to Lorne Hotel swim on the following day. The Pier to Pub draws over 4000 entrants for the 1200m swim watched by over 20,000 onlookers. The Lorne Summer Fair is held on a Saturday later in January and the Great Otway Classic Foot Race is held on the Queen's Birthday weekend in June finishing in Lorne.

What ever your desire Lorne has it all. Plenty of accommodation exists in Lorne and there is a variety to suit all. There are resorts, hotels, apartment complexes, holiday houses and holidayparks.
Have fun.
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