Wednesday, October 18
Sorry, no photos from today!
I made my way down to Frankston Station to meet up with Leanne and Georgia from Uluru. They had offered to take me on a tour of the Mornington Peninsula, which I thought would be very nice! The weather was cooperating and it was looking to be a warm day, compared to some of the drearier days before.
The tram I had wanted to take to Flinders Street was waiting at the terminus well passed the time it was supposed to leave, so I ended up biting the bullet and hopped on the next tram that left. I get off at Southern Cross Station and took the train to Flinders Street before switching to the Frankston line. Melbourne’s public transit just wasn’t holding up to Sydney’s in my experience.
After meeting at the station the two ladies took me for a drive along the Esplanade, all the way down to Portsea, sharing stories of people they knew who lived along the way. The plan was to have lunch at a restaurant in Sorrento, but it was closed, so we went back to the Portsea Hotel to find it was also closed. I suppose Wednesday isn’t the day for eating out at the end of the peninsula, at least in the spring.
There was another restaurant that was open in Sorrento, so we ended up there, although it didn’t have the beachfront views we were after. Since I was in the Melbourne area, I had to try smashed avo on toast, which was quite excellent. Again, I was treated to lunch, which I greatly appreciated!
We took the road back up in search of gelato, but many of the places were closed. There was a bar that had gelato so we ended up stopping there and I tried Biscoff gelato, which despite my love of Biscoff, I don’t think I’d have again.
After gelato, I was dropped back off at the station and made my way back into the city. I arrived at Flinders Street against the rush of the commuters making their way back out into the suburbs. I made my way back to the hotel to relax, and headed to bed early as I would have an early morning the next day.
Today by the numbers
Steps taken: 4,187
Thursday, October 19
Today I had tickets to ride Puffing Billy, a heritage steam railway which winds its way through the foothills of the Dandenong Ranges, just east of Melbourne. My train was at 10:00, but I was up at 06:00 to make sure I had time to make it out to Belgrave, where the train departs.
The trams were quite busy, even before 07:00, and I made my way down to Flinders Street Station to catch the train to Belgrave. It was about a 90 minute journey, so I relaxed and listened to a podcast along the way.
Belgrave is a small suburb in Melbourne’s fringes, and has a small main street with plenty of cafes. I stopped at one to grab some breakfast before making my way to the station.
After doing some souvenir shopping, it was time to board the train. Each carriage is open-air, and passengers are encouraged to sit on the sills and dangle their feet off the side. It took a bit of effort, but I managed to get up there! This practice had been banned from 2018 to 2022 after a collision with a minbus; however, it was now allowed again, and was quite heavily advertised.
Our train departed promptly at 10:00 and we winded our way along the track. Most of the line is single track, with a few passing loops at various locations. We passed the site of the 1953 landslide, which threatened to close the railway forever. After a strong grassroots campaign, the line was reopened in 1962 and remains operating as a tourist railway.
There were lots of properties backing onto the railway, and as the train went by, people would be standing on their balconies waving. It was recess when we passed Emerald Primary School, and all the kids ran down to the fence to say hi. Puffing Billy runs everyday of the year, except Christmas, often with multiple trips per day, so it’s great to see the love the community has for this unique attraction.
We had an hour and a half once the train arrived in Lakeside before our return trip back to Belgrave, so I went for a walk around the lake and sat down at a bench to enjoy the second lovely day of Melbourne weather. On the way back to the train, I stopped at the museum to check out some historic Puffing Billy memorabilia. It was really interesting to see all of the work that goes into running the railway, as it is mostly done with the help of volunteers. It’s obviously a labour of love.
There was also a model railway near the station, but unfortunately it was only open on weekends. I made my way back to board the train and got a seat on the other side so I could get a different view on the way back.
The train only goes about 20 miles per hour (30 km/h) but it’s quite an enjoyable trip through the hills. On weekends they run the train further down the line to Gembrook, but during the week the eastern terminus is Lakeside.
After arriving back at Belgrave, I met up with Ken, who was on the Ghan and Kakadu tour. We had lunch at a local Indian restaurant, then he took me for a drive through the eastern hills and showed me his place.
I got dropped off at Croydon station and took the train back into the city. It was going to be an early night since I was going to get up at 02:00 to head to the airport.
Today by the numbers
Steps taken: 9,068
Distance travelled by train: 101 km
Quinn Kozlowski 
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