Cream Teas and Cockatoos

A Walk in The Dandenong Ranges National Park

You know a walk is going to be good when even in the carpark you are accosted by the screeches of Cockatoos and the melodic calls of beautiful Rosellas. 

Starting at Grants Picnic Ground, where there’s ample parking, you can pick from a variety of walks of varying distances. We did the outer loop which starts with the Lyrebird walk and ends with the Coles Ridge Track. Head north in the car park to pick up the start of the Lyrebird walk, it’s not very far from the cafe so ask if you are unsure.

The first part of this walk is a treat for parrot lovers. The tree canopy seems alive with them, a good pair of binoculars would have been handy at this point! The juxtaposition of the spectacularly tall Eucalyptus trees with the large tree-ferns is a wonder for a European like me. That, along with the cacophony of noises coming from the dense foliage, kept me fascinated for the whole walk.

Initially the walk is very easy going but does start to meander downhill, never getting too steep but definitely makes you start to think, ‘What goes down…’ And yes, the climb back up is steeper and more tiring so pace yourself!

We weren’t lucky enough to see a Lyrebird, however we saw Sulphur-crested Cockatoos, Crimson Rosellas and Australian King Parrots so we didn’t feel hard done by at all.

The last part of the walk is wide, open and easy going. A nice respite from the hard climb and a great end to the walk.

You can definitely get a coffee at the cafe in the Grants Picnic Ground car park, however for a more luxurious treat, why not head to Sassafras village for a cream tea?! We dropped in to Dine Divine, a cafe set in a beautiful church. The clotted cream may not be up to Cornish standards but it was a lovely treat never-the-less.

There’s definitely more to explore along the high street here, fun shops ( a Bob Dylan children’s book caught my eye! ), Miss Marples Tearoom and Fortnums, a rather splendid restaurant with an airy, english-style conservatory.

All-in-all the Dandenong Ranges National Park is great area to spend a day with lots of options and the fleeting chance of seeing a superb lyrebird… sigh…

A map of the walks available in this area:

A map of the whole day!

Thanks for reading! Stay tuned for more posts about Melbourne, Sidney, Bali, and many other places we’ve travelled to!

Anna & Morgan

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The Wandering Hustlers is a travelogue made by Morgan and Anna - two digital nomads, wandering the world.