This new trail winds through one of Victoria’s best wine regions

Taylah Darnell Taylah Darnell
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There’s a new way to discover the Rutherglen.

Victoria is favoured among Aussies for many reasons – from its cool capital city to its incredible coastline. But the state’s biggest drawcard has to be its famed wine regions, from the Yarra Valley to the Pinot Coast.

Venture a little further and you’ll stumble upon the Rutherglen, home to historic towns and rolling vineyards boasting crisp whites and robust reds. It’s a remarkable region that has been flying relatively under the radar – until now, thanks to a series of new nature trails with a twist.

Introducing the Rutherglen Loops

Sprawling across 48 kilometres in northeast Victoria, the new Rutherglen Loops is a network of tracks connecting the region’s namesake with nearby landmarks like Wahgunyah and Lake Moodemere. Passing through bucolic countryside, the journey offers visitors a fresh perspective on Victoria’s pastoral heartland. But that’s just the beginning.

Rutherglen Loops in Victoria
The Rutherglen Loops trace 48 kilometres of northeast Victoria. (Image: Karen Webb)

Much to the delight of oenophiles, the Rutherglen Loops also incorporate a variety of local wineries and vineyards. In fact, 14 cellar doors feature on its map, transforming this seemingly ordinary series of nature tracks into a dreamy local wine trail. Accessible for both bikers and hikers, the Rutherglen Loops can be enjoyed as a multi-day adventure or broken down into four separate tracks.

The four-kilometre Town Loop winds through Rutherglen’s charming streetscapes and past local coffee shops. It’s perfect for an evening stroll, stopping in at Jones Winery & Vineyard and Anderson Winery along the way.

Rutherglen Loops in Victoria
See the best of the region on a bike. (Image: Karen Webb)

And while the River Loop covers the same distance, it’s geared more towards nature lovers keen to explore the Murray River shoreline. It’s the only track that doesn’t include a winery pit stop, so enjoy it in the morning before checking out the rest of Rutherglen’s offerings.

The Lake Loop can be completed by foot or on wheels. But at 14 kilometres long, it’s more of a trek than a walk, so jump on a bike if you’re short on time. The track makes for a great day out, circling Lake Moodemere and passing Cofield Wines, Dinah Wines, Pfeiffer Wines and Lake Moodemere Estate.

Rutherglen Loops in Victoria
The Lake Loop is great for a hot day. (Image: Karen Webb)

Aptly titled the Wine Loop, the fourth and final track offers an unrivalled wine country experience. The picturesque loop takes visitors to 12 cellar doors across 23 kilometres, from All Saints Estate in Wahgunyah down to Rutherglen’s own Buller Wines. Similar to many of Australia’s great rail trails, it truly showcases the best of the region.

All trails are accessible year-round and feature toilets, water stations and repair posts along the way. Bikes are available for hire at the Visitor Information Centre, which offers onsite parking as well.

Rutherglen Loops in Victoria
Stop in at local wineries along the way. (Image: Karen Webb)

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Taylah Darnell
Taylah Darnell is Australian Traveller's Writer & Producer. She has been passionate about writing since she learnt to read, spending many hours either lost in the pages of books or attempting to write her own. This life-long love of words inspired her to study a Bachelor of Communication majoring in Creative Writing at the University of Technology Sydney, where she completed two editorial internships. She began her full-time career in publishing at Ocean Media before scoring her dream job with Australian Traveller. Now as Writer & Producer, Taylah passionately works across both digital platforms and print titles. When she's not wielding a red pen over magazine proofs, you can find Taylah among the aisles of a second-hand bookshop, following a good nature trail or cheering on her EPL team at 3am. While she's keen to check out places like Scotland and North America, her favourite place to explore will always be her homeland.
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This luxe trawler tour is redefining Victoria’s seafood experience

    Chloe Cann Chloe Cann
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    Victoria’s ‘mussel capital’ is the source of exceptional shellfish used by top chefs far and wide. Step aboard a beautifully refurbished trawler to see how these plump and juicy bivalves are sustainably cultivated.

    A curtain is slowly winched from the placid, teal waters just off Portarlington, like a floating garland beside our boat. The ropes heave with blue mussels, the star attraction of our tour. But as we reach to pluck our own, it’s quickly clear they’re not alone; a mass of weird and wonderful creatures has colonised the ropes, turning them into a living tapestry. ‘Fairy’ oysters, jelly-like sea squirts, and tiny, wriggling skeleton shrimp all inhabit this underwater ecosystem.

    We prize our bivalve bounty from the ropes, and minutes later the mussels arrive split on a platter. The plump orange morsels are served raw, ready to be spritzed with wedges of lemon and a lick of chilli as we gaze out over the bay. They’re briny, tender and faintly sweet. “This wasn’t originally part of the tour,” explains Connie Trathen, who doubles as the boat’s cook, deckhand and guide. “But a chef [who came onboard] wanted to taste the mussels raw first, and it’s now become one of the key features.”

    A humble trawler turned Hamptons-style dreamboat

    inspecting bivalve bounty from the ropes
    Inspecting the bounty. (Image: Visit Victoria/Hannyn Shiggins)

    It’s a crisp, calm winter’s day, and the sun is pouring down upon Valerie, a restored Huon pine workhorse that was first launched in January 1980. In a previous life she trawled the turbulent Bass Strait. These days she takes jaunts into Port Phillip Bay under the helm of Lance Wiffen, a fourth-generation Bellarine farmer, and the owner of Portarlington Mussel Tours. While Lance has been involved in the fishing industry for 30-plus years, the company’s tour boat only debuted in 2023.

    holding Portarlington mussels
    See how these plump and juicy bivalves are sustainably cultivated.

    It took more than three years to transform the former shark trawler into a dreamy, Hamptons-esque vessel, with little expense spared. Think muted green suede banquettes, white-washed walls, Breton-striped bench cushions, hardwood tables, bouquets of homegrown dahlias, and woollen blankets sourced from Waverley Mills, Australia’s oldest working textile mill. It’s intimate, too, welcoming 12 guests at most. And yet there’s nothing pretentious about the experience – just warm, down-to-earth Aussie hospitality.

    As we cruise out, we crack open a bottle of local bubbles and nibble on the most beautifully curated cheese platter, adorned with seashells and grey saltbush picked from the water’s edge that very morning. Australasian gannets soar overhead, and I’m told it’s not uncommon for guests to spot the odd seal, pod of dolphins, or even the occasional little penguin.

    The sustainable secret behind Victoria’s best mussels

    blue mussels off Portarlington
    Blue mussels sourced just off Portarlington.

    Connie and Lance both extol the virtues of mussels. They’re delicious. A lean source of protein and packed with omega-3 fatty acids, vitamin B12, iron, selenium, and zinc. They’re cooked in a flash (Connie steams our fresh harvest with cider and onion jam). And they’re also widely regarded as one of the most sustainable foods in the world.

    Portarlington mussels with lemon and chilli
    Mussels served with lemon and chilli.

    “Aquaculture is [often] seen as destructive, so a lot of our guests are really surprised about how environmentally friendly and sustainable our industry is,” Lance says. “[Our mussels] would filter 1.4 billion litres of water a day,” he adds, explaining how mussels remove excess nitrogen and phosphorus from the water. “And through biomineralisation, we lock carbon into mussel shells.”

    a hand holding a Portarlington mussel
    Mussels are a sustainable food.

    Despite their glowing list of accolades, these molluscs have long been seen as the oysters’ poorer cousins. “It was a really slow start,” explains Lance, who says that in the early days of his career, “you could not sell mussels in Victoria”.

    But word has slowly caught on. Chefs as globally acclaimed as Attica’s Ben Shewry and even René Redzepi of Noma, Denmark, have travelled to these very waters just to try the shellfish at the source, sharing only the highest praise, and using Lance’s mussels in their restaurants.

    guests sampling Portarlington mussels onboard
    Sampling the goods onboard. (Image: Visit Victoria/Hannyn Shiggins)

    According to Lance there’s one obvious reason why the cool depths of Portarlington outshine other locations for mussel farming. “The water quality is second to none,” he says, noting how other regions are frequently rocked by harvest closures due to poor water quality. “We grow, without a doubt, some of the best shellfish in the world.” And with Lance’s bold claims backed up by some of the industry’s greatest names, perhaps it won’t be much longer until more Aussies uncover the appeal of Portarlington’s mussels.

    This new trail winds through one of Victoria’s best wine regions