The townships of Drysdale, Clifton Springs and Bellarine are situated in the centre of the Bellarine Peninsula about 16 kilometers to the east from central Geelong along the Bellarine Highway on route to Portarlington.
Over the years Drysdale has become one of Geelong’s great rural hubs. Its sandy loam soil was perfect for potato farming and more recently canola crops. The area is also home to beef, horse breeders and some lambs.
In between Drysdale and Portarlington lies Bellarine (the town) and is home to many of the Peninsula’s best wineries including Scotchman’ Hill, Kilgour Estate Winery and the Spray Farm just to name a few. Many have open cellars where you can try and buy and some even have gourmet cafe’s or restaurants. Small farms specailising in ’boutique’ stock like special breed sheep and specialty cattle even llamas or angora goats. While others are trying their hand at olives or organic fruits and vegetables.
Drysdale has a well developed town centre with large supermarket complex and smaller shops. There are plenty of cafes and specialty shops for visitors to explore including some local craft shops. One well worth checking out is the Drysdale Community Crafts which is in the old library on the main street next to the beautiful Uniting Church.
A popular tourist experience is to travel on the Drysdale to Queenscliff historic steam train which operates every Tuesday, Thursday & Sunday year round with extra running days on most public holidays & during Summer School Holidays. Drysdale Station situated beside the tranquil Lake Lorne is open on all running days and hosts a kiosk, small museum and tourist information centre. This delightful trip back in history takes visitors through the rolling Bellarine Peninsula plains to the historic seaside town of Queenscliff. There are special Blues Train tours available too, where local blues bands play in the carriages. The railway once linked Drysdale with Geelong now it is linked via a bus route which services much of the Peninsula.
Over the past few decades Clifton Springs has become a home for thousands of people with many new housing developments taking popping up like mushrooms. Many of the people commute to work in Geelong or even Melbourne which is about an hour and twenty minutes away by road. The townships are and surrounding area are home to about 10,000 and it is estimated another 3000 will move to the fast growing area in the next few years.
The area offers magnificent views of the surrounding hilly Bellarine Peninsula and breathtaking views across Port Phillip Bay with views of the You Yangs and even the skyscrapers of Melbourne on a good day.
The Drysdale Market is one of the more popular of the things to do in Drysdale it is held on the third Sunday of the month between September and April on the local recreation reserve and is the best place to sample some of the regions beautiful fresh produce and buy some beautiful craft items made locally.
Another attraction well worthy of a visit is the Drysdale Old Court House Museum ran by the Bellarine Historical Society where a wide assortment of artifacts, manuscripts, photographs and documents are on display showing some of the rich and interesting history of the area.
