The address notes one entrance for Gardiner's Creek. In reality, the path stretches a long way,…read morefrom a start near St Kevin's school all the way to Blackburn (a sort of north east trajectory). It's great to jog along, as the path is almost entirely shaded. Sometimes you'll be running with only a tiny distance between you and the houses around you, but sometimes it'll be great expanses of greenery. One could use the word "lush" accurately here. I walk the particular stretch noted with my dog. It's a good distance for a walk, covering about a kilometre an a half, with a convenient bin along the way to drop the, um, rubbish. Look out for cyclists, there are a lot of them.

Pretty good local park. The playground, BMX track, and picnic area attracts a lot of families…read more The football field is used for organized sports most weekends. The best feature of this park is that it connects the fully separated bicycle paths that link the two primary schools, the train station, and the supermarket.

I'm glad that I discovered this place while working out where I wanted to go while wandering around…read moreFrankston because these gardens turned out to be really quite delightful. In fact, it is quite surprising to find such a lovely place in an outer suburb, but here it is. Then again, I do notice that is adjoins the Frankston hospital, so there is probably a reason as to why these gardens exist. Still, they are definitely worth checking out, or even having a picnic in.

This was another nice park that I encountered while making my way back to Frankston. I actually…read morediscovered afterwards that this was where the war memorial was located, so I was sort of kicking myself that I didn't to as thorough research as I should have done before heading down here. Then again, I'm sure I'll be down this way again in the not too distant future. Yeah, as I mentioned, it is a pretty cool park, and it has some nice facilities as well, though the playground isn't as big as some that I've seen. Still, it's worth spending time here.

What a great park and it just keeps getting better. So much for the kids to do and great places for…read moreadults to relax or play as well. Apart from the old steam train that the kids love to climb on, there is a multitude of other equipment for them to enjoy and wear themselves out (do they ever wear out) on. Plenty of space, plenty of grass, plenty of trees, fairly well fenced off from the traffic as well. Has to be the best park in the local area and they are adding climbing walls and a bunch of other stuff to make it even better. Locally known as the train park, close to shops, Bayswater railway station and bike paths. There is just so much to like and it is free.

A wonderful hidden little strip of nature. A wonderful respite from the hustle and bustle of…read moresuburbia, parks like this are largely underappreciated. Brought the wife and kids down here a couple months ago for some live jazz, and whenever we visit friends nearby we picnic with their family here too. Today I brought my laptop and got some work done in the shade, listening to the water fowl play, and the other murmurings of a park. A pleasant reminder that I should share my love of this special place with my fellow suburbanites. Pros: Proximity to life, great walks around the lake, wildlife, great for sunset/sunrise walks. Cons: No Swimming thanks to pollution.

It is amazing how Melbourne's suburbia hides away little pockets of nature. You can be driving…read morealong with the trees on the nature strip and eventually you realise the houses themselves are gone, replaced by the sprawling expanse of a sanctuary. Blackburn Lake Sanctuary is on of these many magical places. Tucked in from the train line and busier surrounding roads, it is near a number of schools, so it's no surprise their field trips will include walking through the park and looking for wildlife. With open park area and play ground for kids, there is perfect space for picnics and events. Community music events - like a jazz festival in February - will often set up shop here for people to attend and listen for free. And after you've stuffed yourself with nonna's best home cooking and cleaned up the paper plates, what better way to burn it all off than with a walk around the lake itself. Not so big that the whole family couldn't do it, there are several smaller paths leading to different places outside the realms of the park. One school actually backs on it, as does a nearby church. All manner of wildlife can be found - ducks, birds, even a fox once or twice. Don't swim - apparently in the 50s they used to, but sadly water pollution has turned that idea quite sour. However, sitting by the water and watching life go by has never looked better.

Ruffey Lake park has something for everyone. Plenty of…read moreBBQ's and covered tables and benches, fun playgrounds, and a huge off leash dog area. Clean toilets and actual working taps ( yes lots of public toilets have no working taps, no locking doors and just plain gross). I find Ruffey lake very enjoyable to visit and amenities are well maintained. Lots of hills and paths for variety. Definitely a lovely day out!

This is a big park. Like huge…read more It feels like you could be far away from the world, but then you can get a glimpse of nearby houses and a small view of the Doncaster mall sitting up on a hill. It really is nice for a daytime, the sun is out so you should be outside type of day. It's good for a walk around their many paths, or for a picnic on one of their many open hilly spaces. If I was a dog, this would be optimum day out stuff. Because at Ruffey Lake Park, there are dogs galore, on leashes, on the footpath, running around, soaking up some sun rays, taking a dip into the lake, this park is their oyster. The lake itself, is average size, it's nothing to exclaim over, or take in. For seating, if you didn't take a blanket with you and are one of those don't-like-grass people, then find yourself one of the many benches that are laid out throughout the park. For the kiddies, there are two playgrounds with swings and activities, I feel like whenever I've been here, that area is hands down the most populated part of the park. For all of your park needs, Ruffey Lake is a stand out.

An ancient gem. Ahuge, vast old volcano /parkland hidden off the Calder Hwy…read more You drive in through the gates and the noise of the highway disappears and is replaced by bush sounds. Peace and quiet are valued and other park attendees respect each others' space and individual nature experiences. Walkers, joggers, hikers, day trippers, locals; all types are here and hanging out. Those that walk down the steep mountainside are greatly rewarded with a view of The Pipes. An old volcano stood here eons ago. Soo Ancient this place is We are the guardians' of this sacred place, treat it as you would your own home. Soo much sacred geometry to view here, for those that can see. I'm lucky to live within 5kms and get to frequent this place. I can see how some people might get bored here but you have to explore every rock, path, grass mound, butterfly, organ pipe, river, etc with a open, childlike engry to get the most out of this place. I often see wallabies and kangaroos; side note: I hit a roo on my way out one night, driving at low speed at sunset. Roo was fine. Car had acouple scratches. Roo was jumping in a pack then randonly darted in the direction of the road and hit me. Best be careful of the inhabitants and respect their home. Cows grazing on the other side of the mountain Beautiful river flowing down the bottom. Snakes are around, my friend has seen them but I sadly have not. Take sandwiches, crackers, water, snacks for lunch or dinner down by the river or in the picnic area. Take a bag to take your rubbish home, no bins. Bascic, clean bathrooms located in the carpark. Free parking. No attendants work here, its unmanned. Police drive around occasionally. Enjoy the place and remember, you are where you are suppose to be, trust the process & explore

This national park is right off the Calder Freeway, and with all those fast cars, make sure you…read moredrive carefully. As we rode on up, we saw a truck just outside the gate with a official looking man and thought - you've got to be kidding me, as he was closing the entrance gate. Asking him, he said the gates close at 4:30 but we can park outside and he can't stop us from going inside. Lesson learned and we did just that. We followed the pavement leading to the actual car park, then followed the track downwards into the valley. There were a few different walks, 80m to the right are the Organ Pipes. 240m to the left are the Rosette rock and the Tesselated pavement formation. To any one who knows rock talk formation stuff, this can be a learning experience. I, on the other hand, read some of the info boards and thought okay cool, this looks different, and how weird. I'm sure there is more to be appreciated here. Anyways, there are a ton of picnic benches here, so come for a picnic and a walk. Because I was here after closing times, it was the time of day that rock wallabies and kangaroos were out and about. And that was by far cooler than the cool rock formations I saw, it added to my time here. For a small park, its good for a drive up and a few hours of sunlight to picnic in and see some different formations. This park really defines the Aussie landscape, hilly, rocky, dry with kangaroos. Oh and its opposing the Calder Freeway, so even with being guarded by hills, you still get the noise factor from the cars.