Halls Gap is a town in

Victoria Victoria most commonly refers to: * Victoria (Australia), a state of the Commonwealth of Australia * Victoria, British Columbia, provincial capital of British Columbia, Canada * Victoria (mythology), Roman goddess of Victory * Victoria, Seychelle ...

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a Sovereign state, sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous List of islands of Australia, sma ...

. It is located on Grampians Road, adjacent to the

Grampians National Park The Grampians National Park commonly referred to as The Grampians, is a national park located in the Grampians region of Victoria, Australia. The Jardwadjali name for the mountain range itself is Gariwerd. The national park is situated betwee ...

, in the

Shire of Northern Grampians The Shire of Northern Grampians is a local government area in the Wimmera region of Victoria, Australia, located in the western part of the state. It covers an area of and in June 2018 had a population of 11,431, having fallen from 12,087 in 200 ...

local government area. The town is set in the Fyans Valley at the foot of the Wonderland and Mount William ranges. At the 2016 census Halls Gap had a population of 430. The approximate driving time from

Melbourne Melbourne ( ; Boonwurrung/Woiwurrung: ''Narrm'' or ''Naarm'') is the capital and most populous city of the Australian state of Victoria, and the second-most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Its name generally refers to a met ...

is 3 hours.

History

The first settler was Charles Browning Hall who set out in search of a suitable grazing run when he found the cattle market at

Port Phillip Port Phillip (Kulin languages, Kulin: ''Narm-Narm'') or Port Phillip Bay is a horsehead-shaped bay#Types, enclosed bay on the central coast of southern Victoria (Australia), Victoria, Australia. The bay opens into the Bass Strait via a short, ...

overstocked in 1841. Establishing a station just east of the Grampians in a spot known as "Mokepilli" to the indigenous inhabitants the Mukjarawaint. Halls Gap was originally located at where the now Lake Bellfield Reservoir is now located. Hall discovered the gap by following Aboriginal tracks. Hall's Gap Post Office opened on 3 February 1893, closed in 1896, and reopened in 1902.

Indigenous Peoples

The indigenous people of the area are the Mukjarawaint., who referred to the area as "Mokepilli". The indigenous people speak the djab Wurrung language HallsGap (1)

Today

Its chief industry is tourism, due to its location in the

. Australia's longest running Aboriginal cultural centre, Brambuk, is located in the town. The

Halls Gap Zoo Halls Gap Zoo is a country zoo located about from Halls Gap, Victoria (Australia), Victoria, Australia. From the zoo you can see Grampians National Park. It is Victoria's largest regional zoo, holding over 160 native and exotic species. Histo ...

is located from town. There is now a local chemist in town located at the Stoney Creek shops. Golfers play at the course of the Halls Gap Golf Club on Red Gum Lease Track.

Food and Wine Festival

Halls Gap is home to one of Australia's longest running food and wine festivals, held over the first weekend of May every year. Launched in 1992,

Grampians Grape Escape Grampians Grape Escape is one of the longest running food and wine festivals in Australia and a hallmark event for Victoria. It was launched in 1992. Held in the Grampians National Park at Halls Gap during the first weekend of May every year, the ...

is a hallmark event for Victoria and provides food and wine offerings by more than 100 local artisan producers, live music and family entertainment.

Climate

References

External links

Official Halls Gap Tourism website

Grampians Grape Escape website
{{Authority control Towns in Victoria (Australia) Wimmera Grampians (region)