There are over 200 flood retaining basins in Melbourne. Many have been developed as parkland or as walking paths and this is one of them. Their purpose is to retain water after heavy rain to prevent flooding further downstream.
The entrance from Taylor Street.
There is a small stream running through this one with a wide formed path around the perimeter rim.
The wide gravel path.
First impression is that it is not well maintained, but many new plantings of shrubs and grasses became evident along the paths which shows someone cares.
Some of the newly planted shrubs and grasses.
Near the end of the basin, a bridge crosses the stream, so a walk on both sides is possible. The area can be accessed from both ends.
The bridge across the tiny stream.
De-barking trees always interesting.
The circuit walk is about one kilometre and was full of surprises. The first surprise was a large tree near the entrance in Taylor Street. Close inspection revealed a multitude of acorns growing on it. It was an oak tree.
These acorns attracted my attention.
The giant oak tree.
Further surprises were splashes of colour belonging to flowers, unexpected as it was not spring. Some were small and others were very small.
One of the small flowers.
An even smaller one.
My go-to for native flower identification is Kuranga Native Nursery in Mt. Evelyn. They quickly identified a sweet bursaria shrub and sedge grass.
The sweet bursaria shrub.
The sedge plant.
I saw six other colourful specimens but they were not identified as native. The most colourful was a mass of Watfonia.
A non-native watfonia.
Another surprise was a nesting box, attached high up in a large gum tree. These nesting boxes are appearing in a few parks and reserves, which means someone is caring for our fauna.
A safe retreat.
It is not a quiet walk as the gravel and crushed bluestone path crunches underfoot. That could be a bit of a challenge for wheelchairs, although it is mostly level with only one sloping part.
The path gives a slightly elevated view of 'valley' where the stream runs, although on my visit very little water was evident.
A large area of rushes and reeds.
Towards the downstream end it expands into areas of reeds and rushes, no doubt hiding some fauna.
A single rush.
Reeds and new plantings.
The loud crunching from the path may have been the reason I saw few birds, with only one rainbow lorikeet coming close enough to photograph.
The lone lorikeet.
The area is well treed and quite dense in the lower parts.
Look but don't touch.
Native grass specimen
At one end, posts with measurement markings would give the depth of water when flooded. The general appearance gives the impression that it has been a long time since any flooding occurred.
The depth indicators.
This would make an interesting and easy walk with plenty to see if you look closely. The best place to park is in Taylor Street, which is on the corner of Green Street.
