Schwerkolt-Creekside Walk

Welcome to the Walk Lightly, Embrace Nature series, brought to you by the Yarran Dheran Advisory Committee. This is the Schwerkolt–Creekside Walk, beginning at the Information Centre.

The walk takes approximately sixty minutes return on moderate terrain, following the red trail. This walk invites you to slow down, breathe, and notice the land around you.

This landscape has been shaped over thousands of years by the Wurundjeri Woi-wurrung people, later transformed through colonisation, and now nurtured through ongoing restoration. As you move, allow curiosity to guide your steps. Pause wherever something draws your attention.

Before you begin, take a moment to notice where you are. Yarran Dheran is a 7.4-hectare bushland reserve on the southern bank of Mullum Mullum Creek. It is one of the rare remnants of valley heathy forest remaining in urban Melbourne.

Notice the air on your skin, the quality of the light, and the sounds around you. Even brief time outdoors can be beneficial. Research suggests that as little as ten minutes in nature can help reduce stress and improve mood and focus.

Buddha once said, “Be where you are; otherwise, you will miss your life.”

As you begin walking along the red trail, set a gentle intention—perhaps to move with curiosity rather than urgency. You might notice how the gravel feels beneath your feet, or the sound of the wind through the trees. Allow the environment to set the pace.

Continue to Part 2 as you follow the Yarran Dheran Track toward the Wetlands.

Following the Yarran Dheran Track, pass through the picnic area until you reach the Wetlands. A streamlet begins at the Ashburton carpark, bringing stormwater to the ephemeral wetlands. As you walk, listen for the sound of frogs, birdsong, and rustling leaves.

Natural soundscapes such as flowing water and birds have been shown to lower heart rate and reduce anxiety, supporting a calmer nervous system. For tens of thousands of years, this kind of slowing down and careful attention to place has been central to how the Wurundjeri Woi-wurrung people lived with and cared for this land.

Their deep knowledge of waterways and seasonal cycles supported sustainable food, shelter, and movement across Country. Writer Bruce Pascoe reflects, “If we are to attempt to understand Indigenous philosophy, it has to begin with the profound obligation to land.” A similar idea is echoed in a proverb that says, “We do not inherit the earth from our ancestors; we borrow it from our children.”

As you arrive at the Wetlands, pause for a moment. Notice the ground beneath your feet, the path, and the built elements. Then look out across the Mullum Mullum Valley and consider what this landscape might have looked like three hundred years ago.

Continue to Part 3 when you arrive at Schwerkolt Track, the trail that runs along the creek.

The creek flows for twenty-two kilometres, from Croydon to the Yarra River at Templestowe. It acts as an important wildlife corridor, supporting birds and animals as they move in response to food and seasonal change.

Notice how the water moves, weaving around and over rocks, flowing past fallen branches. The health of the creek is closely tied to the surrounding bushland.

Native vegetation filters stormwater, stabilises soil, and reduces erosion. Shade keeps the water cool, supporting fish, insects, and aquatic plants, while fallen leaves and woody debris provide food and shelter. This narrow strip of bushland acts as a living buffer, protecting the creek within an otherwise urban landscape.

Pause and listen. On warm days, you may hear a hum of birds, insects, and frogs. Notice the layers of life around you—the movement and the quiet moments in between.

Are there signs of the city here, or does the bush feel like a world apart? Allow yourself to settle into the rhythm of the reserve.

Continue to Part 4 once you reach the Eastlink bike trail.

As you continue along the creek, notice signs of the current season—bird calls, flowering plants, insect activity, and subtle shifts in temperature. While many people recognise four seasons, the Wurundjeri Woi-wurrung people observe seven local seasons, each marked by changes in weather, plants, animals, and even the night sky.

You might be walking during Orchid Season, when orchids flower and wattles bloom, or Tadpole Season, when rain continues and frogs and birds become more active. Perhaps during the Dry Season, marked by heat and low rainfall, or Eel Season, when temperatures cool and manna gums flower.

These seasons reflect close observation and deep attunement to place. Slowing down enough to notice such changes can foster a sense of belonging, even in an urban environment.

Allow yourself a few slow breaths. You may like to sit on one of the benches along the track and observe the seasonal signs around you. Acacias provide a riot of colour over winter and spring, and you might catch the scent of Native Mint Bush on the breeze—try gently crushing a leaf between your fingers to release its aroma.

In summer, look for the white flowers of the Victorian Christmas Bush along the track. As you continue, notice the branches and rustling foliage high in the eucalyptus as birds come and go.

Thich Nhat Hanh wrote, “Feelings come and go like clouds in a windy sky. Conscious breathing is my anchor.”

Continue to Part 5 as you pass the footbridge.

As you ascend toward the Schwerkolt Cottage, notice the old fruit trees on the right—remnants of the Schwerkolt family orchard. Those that still survive are pear trees. Some have colonised the other side of the path next to the creek and continue, even now, to provide fruit for birds.

Augustus Schwerkolt purchased land here in 1861 and built his first stone house around 1864, using stone he quarried from within Yarran Dheran. The house was destroyed by fire in 1905, and the current Schwerkolt Cottage, built around 1884–1885 during his second marriage, used stone quarried from the creek and timber from the property. Remarkably, the cottage survived the Black Saturday bushfires of 1905 and was restored in 1964. It is now one of the few nineteenth-century stone cottages in metropolitan Melbourne still standing on its original site.

His orchard, in the middle of the twentieth century, was leased out for horse agistment, and the area continues to be identified by locals as ‘the horse paddock’.

European settlement transformed the landscape. Bushland was cleared for farming, orchards, and vineyards, while Schwerkolt quarried stone, cultivated orchards, and produced wine, reshaping the valley. Because charcoal is much easier to transport than timber, many trees were cut down and burnt to provide charcoal for the needs of the growing Melbourne. By the mid-twentieth century, most of these activities had ceased, and focus shifted toward conservation and restoration, particularly through the influence of the Antonio brothers, who farmed land in Antonio Park.

The Schwerkolt Cottage and Museum Complex are open on Saturdays, Sundays, and most public holidays from 1pm to 4pm. Inside, you can explore the three-room pioneer cottage furnished in the style of the period, as well as outbuildings, a barn, wine cellar, smokehouse, and local history displays that tell the story of early settlement in this valley and the lives of the people who lived here.

Painter Vincent van Gogh famously said, “Do go on doing a lot of walking and keep up your love of nature, for that is the right way to understand art better and better. Painters understand nature and love her and teach us to see.”

Take a mindful moment here. Notice the trees around you—are they young or old? What clues suggest their age? Observe the textures, shapes, and patterns in the landscape.

When you’re ready, begin Part 6 and make your way back along Schwerkolt Track.

As you walk back, notice the wooden markers along the trail featuring Indigenous artwork. These poles mark distances for the Mullum Mullum parkrun, a weekly event that brings people together through movement, connection, and shared use of this space.

Yarran Dheran exists today because of generations of community care—from advocacy to protect the valley from development, to volunteers who regularly plant, weed, and monitor wildlife, and those who support environmental education to build appreciation and understanding of the Mullum Mullum Valley.

In turn, the reserve supports the community, offering a place for reflection, exercise, and connection with nature. This ongoing exchange—people caring for the land, and the land caring for people—helps both the bushland and the community thrive.

Albert Einstein wrote, “Look deep into nature, and then you will understand everything better.”

You may like to cross the footbridge. If you follow the stairs upward, there is a lookout that offers a scenic view over the tree canopy and the Schwerkolt Cottage parkland. Alternatively, you may prefer to simply watch the creek from the footbridge.

This bushland is home to a variety of birds, including the Little Pied Cormorant and the Pacific Black Duck. Little Pied Cormorants often dive beneath the surface to chase fish, crustaceans, and insects, using their feet for propulsion. Ducks may be seen dabbling along the creek, dipping their heads and necks while their tails point upward to reach vegetation and insects.

Take a moment to appreciate the creek. Can you see any ripples or movement beneath the water?

At your own pace, make your way back along the creek and continue to Part 7 as the path becomes gravel along Schwerkolt Track.

Walking slowly, notice the rock face on the left side of the path. The cracks and ledges create tiny shelters where small creatures find shade and safety.

On warmer days, you might see skinks or other small lizards basking on the stone before darting back into the crevices at the slightest movement. Insects and spiders also shelter in these cool gaps, forming part of the food web that supports many of the insect-eating birds you hear around you.

Places like this have been shaped over thousands of years by water, weather, and living things. While the details change—species moving in and out, plants growing and falling—the relationships between rock, soil, plants, and animals continue, linking the present to a much older landscape.

As Charles Dickens wrote, “Nature gives to every time and season some beauties of its own.”

Pause for a moment and listen. What can you hear? Take a slow breath in through your nose and out through your mouth. Can you hear your breath?

After a few long, deep breaths, listen for birdsong and movement. Fairywrens, thornbills, and scrubwrens move through the undergrowth, while rosellas and lorikeets call from the higher branches. Some birds live here all year, while others move through the Mullum Mullum Valley with the seasons, following flowering plants, insects, or water along the creek.

As you ascend towards the Wetlands, notice how the bird sounds change. Each pocket of habitat—the creekline, the open clearings, and the taller forest—attracts its own mix of calls, so even within this reserve you can hear many different harmonies sharing the same landscape.

Start Part 8 as you pass the Wetlands.

As you make your way back towards the Information Centre, notice how the landscape feels now compared to when you began.

This reserve tells a story of stewardship, disruption, and repair, a reminder that change is constant, and renewal is possible.

Andy Goldsworthy wrote, “We often forget that we are nature. Nature is not something separate from us.”

As you leave, consider how you might carry this attentiveness into daily life—perhaps through a mindful walk, watching a bird, or tending a garden. In doing so, you continue the quiet work of care, linking yourself to the land and to the community that sustains it.

This concludes the audio narration for the Schwerkolt–Creekside Walk. We hope you enjoy exploring the other walks within Yarran Dheran Nature Reserve, and we look forward to welcoming you back again soon.