Boroka Lookout

2nd category climb

Length: 15.1km
Average gradient: 4.0%
Elevation gain: 600m

The view from Boroka Lookout.

Introduction

Winding its way up from the valley town of Halls Gap, the climb to Boroka Lookout in the Grampians National Park rewards you with fantastic views upon reaching the summit. While the climb’s average gradient doesn’t appear overly challenging, you’ll come face-to-face with four short sections over 10% in the second half of the climb.

The start

The climb to Boroka Lookout begins at the northern edge of Halls Gap, at the intersection of the Grampians Road (C216) and Mount Victory Road (C222). If you are looking to time yourself, you should start your watch as soon as you turn onto Mount Victory Road.

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The finish

The climb to Boroka Lookout ends at the entrance to the lookout car park. If you are timing your climb, stop your watch as you pass the reflector poles at the entrance to the car park.

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At a glance

  • A mostly gentle climb with several flatter sections and a couple of downhill stretches.
  • Turn right onto Mount Difficult Road at the 9.4km mark to continue the climb.
  • There are 4 pinches in excess of 10% in the final 5km of the climb, the last approaching 20%.

Climb details

At 15.1km in length, the climb to Boroka Lookout is a good test of your fitness and endurance and several painfully steep sections will also test your strength.

From the start of the climb Mount Victory Road provides you with a fairly steady gradient of around 4% which fluctuates only slightly for the first 5km. At 5.5km into the climb you’ll be presented with a kilometre-long false-flat before the road resumes its previous, steady gradient.

At the 9km mark the road flattens out once again before you’ll take a right-hand turn onto Mount Difficult Road and a difficult final 5km to the lookout.

In contrast to the steady gradient of Mount Victory Road, Mount Difficult Road undulates quite dramatically with three steep pinches over 10% in its first 3km.

The first pinch comes in the form of a sharp right-hand bend around 500m after the turn off with the second following several hundred meters later. At the 11km mark the road falls away for around a kilometre before a third short pinch of 10% for a couple hundred meters. The road continues to undulate for the next 1.5km before a fourth and final pinch, this one tilting upward at around 20%.

After this final steep section, the road flattens out briefly before undulating for the last 500m into the Boroka Lookout car park.

Profile

Location

Boroka Lookout is one of the most popular tourist destinations in the Grampians National Park in western Victoria and is best accessed from Halls Gap. If you are coming to the Grampians from Melbourne, you have a three hour drive ahead of you and you should take the Western Highway through Ballarat and Ararat before taking the Ararat Pomonal Road (C222) and Grampians Road (C222) into Halls Gap.

Times

If you are interested in comparing your time up this climb to those of other riders, head to the Boroka Lookout Strava segment.

Flyover

8 Replies to “Boroka Lookout”

  1. Beginning from Halls Gap I combined this climb with Reeds Lookout. Definitely worth the effort of climbing those tough steep sections on Mt Difficult Road to be rewarded with the amazing views of this lookout- breathtaking. Needed to be careful descending Mt Difficult Road as the road surface has many uneven sections with pot holes. Thanks again for the informative reviews Matt.

  2. Really nice ride and the colours on the east-facing rock faces as I climbed out of Hall’s Gap soon after sunrise were stunning. Advance knowledge of the ride through your excellent page was very helpful – thank you!

  3. Rode this today and really enjoyed it. Knowing what was coming made the final few pinches a lot more bearable – thanks Matt!

    The climb up to Reeds/Boroka from Zumsteins is also worth a mention. It’s a similar gradient to the climb from Halls Gap with a long false flat. There are some stunning views, especially in the sections where the road snakes around the cliff faces. Beautiful part of the world.

  4. I did this climb a few years ago while holidaying at Halls Gap. The nasty pinches towards the top hit me with surprise, particularly after doing the relatively easier climb to Reeds Lookout. However, the views and satisfaction you achieve once at the top make up for it. Make sure you take your camera for that “bike at top of mountain” photo!

    Heed the warnings about wildlife crossing the road while descending in the Grampians. They are a real problem and will easily skittle you.

  5. I rode this climb for the first time over the Queen’s Birthday weekend. That final pinch is nasty.

    I didn’t see any cars on the way up, but I saw lots on the way down. Unfortunately, most of them were on the wrong side of the road. Be very careful on the descent.

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