LIVE WIRE PARK A WINNER
NESTLED among the trees and conveniently located five minutes from the town centre, Lorne’s newest attraction Live Wire Park is sure a treat.
The $5 million outdoor adventure course and zip line coaster opened its gates to the public just over three weeks ago.
The main attraction of the park is the Shockwave Zip Coaster, a 525m elevated zip line that takes you zooming down a course of twists and turns through the trees.
The Addy was lucky enough to try the coaster on Tuesday, in what would prove to be one of my toughest journalistic assignments yet.
Now, I would be lying if I said I wasn’t a bit of a thrillseeker. I’ve done a couple of roller-coasters in my time, so it takes a bit to get my blood pumping.
The Shockwave starts at the top of a pretty steep hill and you’re high off the ground right at the start.
While it begins quite slowly, it picks up speed quite quickly as you make your way down the course.
It’s not the speed that gets you on the Shockwave, it’s the way your body swings with each twist of the wires — just enough for you to begin to question exactly how close you are to the trees.
While I may not have been screaming my way down the ride, I cannot say I didn’t hear some other patrons of the park shouting their way down.
Once at the bottom of the zip line, I was eager to trek back up the hill and give it another go.
Unfortunately, we did not have time to test the tree top circuit, which boasts three different courses (canopy, short and long) for different ages and fitness levels.
The park is the vision of proud father and son Chris and Luke Nesbit.
“When we acquired this land we thought, given its place in the Otways, this was a natural fit,” Chris Nesbit said.
“We haven’t taken advantage of nature and trees, we’ve added to it.”
Live Wire Park is powered by solar and the water used on site is collected, stored in tanks, treated and re-used to minimise waste.
“We’re totally off the grid here, which is something we’ve always wanted to do,” Mr Nesbit said.
Live Wire Park is open from 8.45am to 5pm every day of the year except Christmas. Bookings are encouraged to be made in advance online.
For more information or to book, visit livewirepark.com.au