Victoria > West Coast
Johanna
| Type | Coastal Cliffs |
| Conditions | S-SSW |
| Height | Saddle launch: 200'/60m asl |
| Rating | PG4 / PG2 supervised by PG4 / HG Int / HG Sup supervised by HG Int |
Accessible via Lavers Hill, or from Apollo Bay. It is 10km SE of Lavers Hill, off the Great Ocean Road via Geelonga and Colac. Drive into either Red or Blue Johanna Road to the state park. Melways Map 100 H6.
000 Emergency Markers (?)
- GOW021: Launch
Landowners
The area forms part of a camping reserve maintained by the Otway Shire within the Otway National Park. This site is licenced by Parks Victoria to the 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
Dunes and coastal cliffs ranging from 60' to 700' asl. The reserve has shower and toilet facilities, but no power is available.
Takeoff
The saddle launch can be reached through the last gate on your right just before you get to the Johanna car park. The track has degraded and and requires a high clearance vehicle. It's 700m to launch at the first saddle. Be considerate of hikers, the track is part of the Great Ocean Walk. Note: As of March 2022, the saddle track is impassable and closed by Parks Vic.
Take care to keep enough speed when launching, it can be more demanding than it looks.
Dune launches from near the car parks are possible, but please consider dune erosion and minimize impact. It is relatively easy to work your way up to the higher cliffs from here.
Landing
On the beach.
Flight
The flying varies from 80-100ft sand dunes to a 700ft coastal hill. There are some sheer cliffs approximately 350ft high in between. The dune section would only be rated as student, but the other areas would require an intermediate minimum rating. The complete flyable section would be approximately 2km long although in the right conditions the site can be, and has been flown to Moonlight Head in the west through to Cape Otway in the east.
Hazards / Comments
The main danger is that no landing is available at the base of the sheer cliff section, as the water is right up to the cliff at both high and low tides. It is a relatively remote area. The nearest shops are at Lavers Hill. The nearest hospital and doctor are at Colac and Apollo Bay, 65km to the north and east respectively.