About Toorongo Falls and Amphitheatre Falls
Toorongo Falls was an impressively tall waterfall (I’m guessing at least 30m tall) with reliable flow on the Little Toorongo River.
The smaller Amphitheatre Falls, on the adjacent Toorongo river, was a bonus waterfall to the Toorongo Falls.

The reliable flow of both falls could be attributed to the tendency of the Great Dividing Range (the dominant mountain range of northeastern Victoria) to attract rain.
The observation of an abundance of ferns further indicated that I was indeed in a rainforest.
In fact, the Great Dividing Range was also responsible for another reliable waterfall near Marysville further to the west at Steavenson Falls.
Both the Toorongo and Little Toorongo Rivers fed the Latrobe River, which itself flowed through Latrobe Valley in the heart of Gippsland.

The Latrobe River eventually fed the Gippsland Lakes further to the south.
Resilient in the face of drought
In my experiences at these waterfalls, I was treated to such lush green fern-filled scenery that it made me momentarily forget that the area was undergoing a drought in each of my visits here.
In the case of my first visit here in November 2006, it was in the midst of Australia’s worst drought in its recorded history to date that lasted most of that decade.
On my second visit in November 2017, the entire eastern Victoria region suffered through an abnormally dry Winter and Spring.

Indeed, the rainforest scenery here contrasted mightily to the everpresence of brown in almost every other place this side of Victoria that we had visited.
Hiking to Toorongo Falls
To experience the Toorongo Falls, I had the option of doing a 1.2km out-and-back walk or doing a longer 2.2km loop walk that included the nearby Amphitheatre Falls (or Amphitheater Falls in American English).
The loop part of the track began shortly after the footbridge over the Toorongo River.
Each time I’ve visited this place, I’ve done the longer loop walk in an anticlockwise manner.

This allowed me to first reach the Toorongo Falls after a moderate uphill climb to its viewing deck.
While I was able to see parts of the Toorongo Falls on the climb up, it was the viewing deck allowed me to experience the main drop of Toorongo Falls.
That said, it was clear that there were hidden tiers further upstream as well as cascading sections further downstream from my vantage point.
So it was another case where pictures really didn’t do this falls justice.
Hiking to Amphitheatre Falls from Toorongo Falls

After having my fill of the Toorongo Falls, I then continued another 600m as the track made a less steep climb then traverse from the Little Toorongo River drainage to the main Toorongo River drainage.
After the track made a descending bend to the left, I then encountered the lookout for the Amphitheatre Falls perched right above the middle of the river.
Amphitheatre Falls was probably on the order of 5m.
It fell where the Toorongo River shot through a chute in the underlying bedrock before meandering further downstream and joining the Little Toorongo River near the car park.

The remainder of the track was predominantly downhill for the last 800m or so.
Overall, in each of my visits, I spent about an hour away from the car, which was much shorter than the estimated 90 minutes that the signs had indicated.
Authorities
Toorongo Falls resides in the Toorongo Falls Reserve near Noojee, Victoria. It is administered by Baw Baw Shire Council. For information or inquiries about the area as well as current conditions, visit their website.
Related Top 10 Lists
No Posts Found
Trip Planning Resources
Nearby Accommodations
This content is for subscribers only. See Membership Options.Featured Images and Nearby Attractions
This content is for subscribers only. See Membership Options.Visitor Comments:
Got something you'd like to share or say to keep the conversation going? Feel free to leave a comment below...No users have replied to the content on this page
Visitor Reviews of this Waterfall:
If you have a waterfall story or write-up that you'd like to share, feel free to click the button below and fill out the form...

