COVID-19 - Exercise - Dandenong Creek (3)

When the boys were younger we often went for a walk down to Dandenong Creek where we usually explored part of the Bayswater side of the creek. During the past two months we have had many walks on paths bordering this section of the creek, though we normally choose to walk on the gravel track on the Heathmont side to avoid cyclists who generally prefer the bitumen track that leads to Bayswater.

When these photos were taken we had had several days of rain so the creek was flowing freely. Immediately after the rain the water levels would have been much higher and the creek floods in some places. It is a very pretty area and after the rain and cooler weather it was very green.

When we walked down to the creek in the 1980s and early 1990s there were rocks in a few sections of the creek which the boys, of course, wanted to climb on and try to cross the creek without falling in. Much work has more recently gone into managing the creek and rocks, in some sections, have been placed at intervals causing small rapids.

Near Armstrong Road is a pedestrian bridge crossing the creek from the Bayswater side to the Heathmont side. Another pedestrian bridge crosses the creek before Wantirna Road.

On the Heathmont side of the creek there is also another path closer to the bank but after rain it is defintely too muddy to use.

The trail on the Heathmont side of the creek is generally steeper than the Bayswater path and passes through bush. Replanting is ongoing in some areas.

On the Bayswater side walkers pass paddocks with horses, some factories and the back of the cricket grounds of J W Manson Reserve. Parker Reserve is on the Heathmont side near the bridge (Armstrong Road Road end).

View looking towards the Dandenongs with the Bayswater track on the right and the unofficial lower path on the left.

As on other sections of the Dandenong Cteek Trail there is always birdlife. In the above photo a cormant surveys the water while two ducks swim pass. Many ducks live by the river and there are a number of locations where the ducks congregate waiting for a feed from tame humans. (More about the birds)

There are two small billabongs close to the main path on the Heathmont side (Wantirna Road end)

We normally park at the carpark off Wantirna Road before the bridge. There are a number of other entrances on to this section of the Dandenong Creek Trail including Armstrong Road, Rachelle Drive and Waldheim Road (opposite Stud Road) or Ridandic Drive (these two join before reaching the creek path). In the past I used to enjoy walking along the track off Waldheim Road, especially when the path meandered through pine trees which were sometimes inhabited with black cockatoos. I have not seen any black cockatoos recently.

The pedestrian bridge near Wantirna Road has been decorated with padlocks.

We have come to know this section of the Dandenong Creek Trail well. In the future we will explore the track as it heads towards Bayswater itself, then towards The Basin and beyond.

NB: This week we walked the section of the Dandenong Creek Trail from the bridge near Armstrong Road to Dorset Road.

Dandenong Creek Trail to Dorset Road (Melways)

From the late 1800s the land on the Bayswater side of the creek from Warrandyte Road towards Bayswater was farming - mainly orchards and market gardens while the land near Boronia was largely used for growing flowers.

The section of the creek from the bridge to just before Bayswater Road has been recently daylighted - pipes through which the creek had been diverted have been removed allowing the creek to flow freely. A sign along the path includes the statement that floods are natural. An information board refers to floods that had occurred in the past including in 1934 when flood levels reached 6.8 metres. This was why the project to divert the creek water underground was undertaken in the 1930s.

This section of the Dandenong Creek Trail passes the back of Bayswater Secondary College then continues behind Bayswater Park. An underpass / floodway leads to the other side of Bayswater Road. The path continues past Glen Park then meanders on to Dorset Road and another underpass leading to the continuation of the trail - a walk for another day. There are also paths to tributaries of Dandenong Creek including Tarralla Creek - the list of possibilities keeps expanding.

See also other posts related to this topic:

COVID-19 Musings - Exercise
COVID-19 Musings - Exercise - Walking on Shared Paths

COVID-19 Musings - Exercise - Dandenong Creek (1)

COVID-19 Musings - Exercise - Dandenong Creek (2)
COVID-19 Musings - Exercise - Dandenong Creek (4)
COVID-19 Musings - Exercise - Dandenong Creek (5)
COVID-19 Musings - Exercise - Dandenong Creek (6)

See also all posts relating to COVID-19