Places In Victoria: The Murrindindi Scenic Reserve

Basic Information

• Name: the Murrindindi Scenic Reserve
• Where: Victoria, Australia
• Cost: Free
• More Information: Trip Advisor

Narrative

The Murrindindi Scenic Reserve is located in central Victoria and about an hour and a half drive north of Melbourne:

The reserve is actually the next range over to the east of Mt. Disappointment near Flowerdale, to the west of Marysville, and north of the Dandenong Ranges outside of Melbourne.  The reserve is made up of rolling, thickly forested hills that are filled with wildlife, running creeks, waterfalls, and hiking trails. My wife and I drove through the Murrindindi Scenic Reserve by starting from the small town Toolangi and finishing at another small town named Yea on a 4 wheel drive road that goes across the range:

The Murrindindi area is actually composed of two adjacent state parks. The Toolangi State Forest in the south is where we began the drive and the road leads to the actual Murrindindi Scenic Reserve which located right in the middle of the two parks. From the reserve the road continues north through Black Range State Forest and ends just outside of the city of Yea.

Long before the Murrindindi was known as a weekend getaway for Melbournites, the range had a long history of logging and even today the logging continues to be a major industry in the area:

Fortunately the logging industry today uses sustainable logging techniques that when not used in the past had nearly led to the cutting down of all the trees in the range. Due to a massive reforestation program the regrowth on the range has been extensive as is evident by these giant mountain ash gum trees pictured below:

The road running through Toolangi State Forest is actually very well maintained and can be easily traveled on by a sturdy two wheel drive car. Eventually as we drove through the thick forests of mountain ash we finally reached the Murrindindi River:

It was more like a creek than a river, but as we traveled further up the river and entered the actual scenic reserve the river slowly grew in size due to all the nearby tributaries:

The scenic reserve has a large well maintained campground that features a number of hiking trails throughout the park. However, if you travel to the reserve make sure you take the short walk to see the Murrindindi Cascades:

The cascades are a series of small waterfalls and rapids that seems to flow out of every rock in the area and from every direction. It is really quite a beautiful place:

A well maintained trail with bridges runs parallel to the river:

The cascades are quite scenic and a number of people could be seen finding their own secluded part of the rapids to lounge in or have a picnic. Definitely a must see site if you decide to visit the reserve.

As you can see below besides the cascading water, the campground is also surrounded by towering trees and even higher hills:

The Murrindindi Scenic Reserve is great place to camp for a weekend and is close enough to the Yarra Valley that you could actually do some wine tasting at the famous wineries in the valley during the morning before heading up to the reserve in the afternoon to enjoy the scenery and setup a camp site. Then you can make dinner and enjoy a bottle of fine Yarra wine with your meal.

Next Posting: The Black Range State Forest