Wilson Reserve Trail (Ivanhoe)
.jpg "Wilson Reserve Trail (Ivanhoe)")
The 21.5 hectare Wilson Reserve is located along the Yarra Valley floodplain. Its boundaries are defined by the Yarra River, The Boulevard, Chelsworth Park and the Ivanhoe Public Golf Course. The reserve is a diverse natural environment, including wetlands, native woodlands and aquatic vegetation. It is an important wildlife corridor on the Yarra River.
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The reserve connects with the upper and lower reaches of the Yarra River. In Banyule, the Yarra River connects with the Plenty River to the north and Darebin Creek to the south.
Activities in the park include walking/bike trails and wildlife observation. Beware of snakes from October to March.
Wilson Reserve Trail
This delightful walk on a shared path for bikes and walkers is a leisurely and quiet 4km walk that can be shortened if you have less time.
Accessible car parking and entry to the walk can be found at:
The scenic trail runs along the Yarra River, a great place to put life on hold for an hour or more. It features three playgrounds and seating to take a rest.
Flora and fauna are abundant. Look out for the superb fairy-wren, grey fantail and red-rumped parrot. You might even spot an eastern long neck turtle when taking in the wetland views.
There is a playground at Wilson Reserve which has a fun metal slide and a table.
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The walk is particularly lovely in winter when the wattles are flowering with beautiful golden colours along the banks of the Yarra. The huge River Red Gums along the banks of the Yarra are very impressive.
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The trail passes the site of Horseshoe Billabong which is the remains of an abandoned river course. Over many years, rivers carve out new channels and the old course is abandoned. This billabong is filled with flood water from the Yarra about every two years. Horseshoe Billabong remains dry for long periods of tine, but many plants regenerate in the moist floor. River Red Gums and Violets grow on the margins of the billabong and provide cover for many small birds and animals. Blue Wrens, Yellow Robins and Firetails are common amongst the scrub. This billabong is one of the last remaining on the middle Yarra, as many have been filled in or drained.
Some of the trail runs beside the Ivanhoe golf course. On this section there are protective cages which protect walkers from errant golf balls. There is also a gap in the fence to Ivanhoe Bar & Cafe which is a short walk up a side path and serves food and drinks.
Chelsworth Park is part way along the trail. Here there is a very basic playground with table and seats. The park has four ovals, bins and water taps and is a dog off-leash area.
There is a simple playground at the endpoint of the walk at Burke Road North Reserve with BBQs, table, water tap and basketball half court.
Note that there are no toilets on this trail.
History
The Yarra River was important to dreamtime myths and stories, with the surrounding billabongs, wetlands and river flats an important food source.
The area was almost entirely cleared for dairy farming and cropping in the mid-19th Century. In 1924, Christopher Bailey and HD Wilson started to buy land in the area. They devised a method where local residents could buy river frontage land in parcels. The swimming club, scouts and local residents decided to buy 7 acres by subscription. Riverfront land was offered at 2 shillings 6 pence a foot, and 300 pounds were raised to buy the land from Irvine in 1922. Once bought, the land was presented to Heidelberg Shire Council to be held in trust for the youth of Ivanhoe. The reserve became known as Wilson Reserve after "Skipper" Wilson, leader of the Sea Scouts in the early 1900s. Swimming and boating were popular pastimes up until the 1960s.
Flora and Fauna
The reserve is in the Gippsland Plain bioregion, represented by the floodplain riparian woodland ecological vegetation community. 2 water bodies are in the creekline grassy woodland and floodplain wetland aggregate communities, both endangered. There are 9 ecological vegetation classes within Wilson Reserve.
The reserve also has a bio-site of regional significance: bio-site number 5063 includes Willsmere Lagoon, Bailey Billabong and Hays Paddock.
Over 121 species of native birds have been recorded in the reserve. 7 frog species have been recorded at the billabongs at Wilson Reserve, including the brown tree frog, striped marsh frog, common froglet, spotted marsh frog, eastern banjo frog, smooth froglet and the Peron's tree frog. 6 micro-bat species have been recorded, including Gould's wattled bat, chocolate wattled bat, freetailed bat, Gould's white-striped freetailed bat, large forest bat and the eastern broad-nosed bat.
Getting there
The circuit can be accessed by bus route 546 with stops on Lower Heidelberg Road, and bus route 548 with stops on McArthur Road and Burke Road North. Ivanhoe rail station is a little further way at 1.2km.
Access for Dogs
Dogs and cats are prohibited from entering environmentally sensitive park and reserve areas as designated by signs. Dogs are permitted on the trail provided they are under effective control by a chain, cord or leash. There is a huge dog off-leash area at Chelsworth Park.
Photos:
Location
78 The Boulevard, Ivanhoe 3079 Map
Web Links
→ www.banyule.vic.gov.au/Events-activities/Parks-reserves/Wilson-Reserve
→ Wilson Reserve walking circuit map (PDF)
→ Friends of Wilson Reserve on Facebook
