Victoria > West Coast
Spion Kop (Fairhaven, Aireys, Moggs)
| Type | Coastal Hill |
| Conditions | SSW to SSE |
| Height | 150' / 45m asl |
| Rating | PG2 / HG Supervised - Students prohibited |
Just past the township of Aireys Inlet at Fairhaven near Anglesea via Geelong. Turn right at Moggs Creek off the Great Ocean Rd. Melways Map 93 C9.
Landowners
Parks Victoria has licenced this site to VHPA via the SAFA.
Contact
Dynasoarers , Rob van der Klooster (0408 335 559), Peter Hannah (0422 148 545), Jan Bennewitz (0423 139 923)Responsible
DynasoarersDescription
Spion Kop is Victoria's most popular coastal site and very beginner-friendly. Given the right conditions it is possible to cross a large gap and fly to the larger hills to the west - more difficult for paragliders but nearly always possible for high-performance HGs. You can also fly the low 20' primary dunes at the base towards the Aireys Inlet lighthouse.
As of Dec 2019, there are new rules that apply for flying anywhere along the Spion Kop, Eastern View, Fairhaven and Moggs Creek area. A notice board issued by GORCC will be displayed at the Spion Kop launch. This will give information on the location of the Hooded Plovers and general advice and requests. This will be updated daily or as necessary by GORCC and must be strictly adhered to.
- If you intend to fly you must first check the new notice board at Spion Kop.
- If you intend to beach launch from Mad Max, you must first check the notice board at Spion Kop.
- Under no circumstances are you to enter the dunes or launch backing up the dunes. Hefty fines apply.
- If it's too light to beach launch then launch from Spion Kop.
- Gain at least 100ft and cross over plover areas and fly away. There is 6 kilometres of coast to play on so there is no excuse to fly anywhere near them.
- Familiarize yourself with our Hooded Plover rules.
Beach nesting birds: Hooded Plovers nest in this area. Visit this page to learn more.
Pilots are required to be Spion endorsed to fly this site (including when launching at Mad Max). You can complete the Spion site specific induction with any authorised officer of the Dynasoarers. Just give them a call.
Takeoff
Spion
The site permit allows set up only within the marked areas.
Mad Max
This PG beach launch offers a nice alternative to the main Spion launch in stronger conditions. Do not walk through the dunes and do not kite up the dunes. As always, give marked Hooded Plover nest sites plenty of room.
Landing
A maximum of four gliders are allowed on the beach at Mogg's Creek at any one time. Use a different section of beach if you must land anyway. The car park can be used as a de-rigging area if there is enough room and it does not inconvenience the public. Landings on top are banned.
Flight
Typically, the wind is off a bit to the right. If it's straight in or off to the E a bit, hang gliders can fly around Big Hill and on to Lorne in the west.
Hazards / Comments
The beach is generally large, but can be very small at high tide when the surf is big. In summer, it can be full of people near the accesses - the beach is many km long, pick an empty stretch to land on if you have to. If there isn't enough beach available to safely land, don't launch.
Beware of the power lines above the bridge on your landing approach into Moggs Creek. These lines also pass directly behind takeoff and along the highway east and west. Remember this if landing away from Moggs Creek. When flying to Lorne, be aware there are no safe landing areas between Eastern View and the Lorne township.
Map information
