More ways to experience Woowookarung
Friday 17 May, 2024
Works to create two shared trails in Woowookarung Regional Park are now complete and open for locals seeking opportunities to hop on their bikes or join in on a walk with friends, including any four-legged companions on-lead.
Parks Victoria is encouraging nature enthusiasts to experience a beautiful backdrop of grass trees and native heath from Fern and Cherry Ballart Loops, which connect to provide a three-kilometre route through the north of the park.
Whether you’re catching up with a mate, wanting to break a sweat or stretch your legs after a challenging day at work, the new trails on Wadawurrung Country are approximately four kilometres drive from the heart of Ballarat.
Supported by a newly built car park, they are an exciting step in Parks Victoria’s vision to improve access and recreational experiences as part of the Woowookarung Regional Park Strategic Directions Plan.
Now eight-years into what began as a grass roots initiative to re-imagine the 641-hectare park, it has become a recreational haven, full of rich and diverse experiences that exist in harmony with the landscape and its deep cultural heritage. Since 2016, visitor numbers have grown more than 300 per cent.
Easily accessible bush walking and bike riding is available in more than 70 per cent of the park, where illegal vehicle activity has been restricted, including the Grass Tree Nature Trail and the Victorian-first Dementia-friendly Forest & Sensory Trail
Other improvements include new way finding and interpretive signage, four new car parks, bike and foot wash stations, a new park entrance off Recreation Road, and the repair of damaged roads and smaller trails.
Parks Victoria has also capped eight mineshafts within high-activity areas of the park. Once a scar on the landscape, their history is now protected, and visitors can safely peek into them.
Quotes attributable to Siobhan Rogan, Area Chief Ranger:
“The new Fern and Cherry Ballart Loops interact beautifully with the natural waterways of Woowookarung Regional Park and guide you through pockets of special vegetation. Boardwalks and stepping stones will keep your feet dry, allowing you to focus on the vibrant colours of the pink heath and orange hue of our native pea species, which come to life over winter and spring.
We are incredibly proud to see the park continue its growth as a welcome space for so many. We’re so grateful to the local community who love this park and continue to provide Parks Victoria with support, ideas and boots-on-the-ground actions to continue its development.”
Parks Victoria is encouraging nature enthusiasts to experience a beautiful backdrop of grass trees and native heath from Fern and Cherry Ballart Loops, which connect to provide a three-kilometre route through the north of the park.
Whether you’re catching up with a mate, wanting to break a sweat or stretch your legs after a challenging day at work, the new trails on Wadawurrung Country are approximately four kilometres drive from the heart of Ballarat.
Supported by a newly built car park, they are an exciting step in Parks Victoria’s vision to improve access and recreational experiences as part of the Woowookarung Regional Park Strategic Directions Plan.
Now eight-years into what began as a grass roots initiative to re-imagine the 641-hectare park, it has become a recreational haven, full of rich and diverse experiences that exist in harmony with the landscape and its deep cultural heritage. Since 2016, visitor numbers have grown more than 300 per cent.
Easily accessible bush walking and bike riding is available in more than 70 per cent of the park, where illegal vehicle activity has been restricted, including the Grass Tree Nature Trail and the Victorian-first Dementia-friendly Forest & Sensory Trail
Other improvements include new way finding and interpretive signage, four new car parks, bike and foot wash stations, a new park entrance off Recreation Road, and the repair of damaged roads and smaller trails.
Parks Victoria has also capped eight mineshafts within high-activity areas of the park. Once a scar on the landscape, their history is now protected, and visitors can safely peek into them.
Quotes attributable to Siobhan Rogan, Area Chief Ranger:
“The new Fern and Cherry Ballart Loops interact beautifully with the natural waterways of Woowookarung Regional Park and guide you through pockets of special vegetation. Boardwalks and stepping stones will keep your feet dry, allowing you to focus on the vibrant colours of the pink heath and orange hue of our native pea species, which come to life over winter and spring.
We are incredibly proud to see the park continue its growth as a welcome space for so many. We’re so grateful to the local community who love this park and continue to provide Parks Victoria with support, ideas and boots-on-the-ground actions to continue its development.”