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History of the Dandenong Ranges:
"Free" Drive and Walking Trail Maps are
available from Restaurants and B&B's on the mountain.
More
than 300 million years ago a great volcano welled up as a cauldron in
the crust of the earth in the area cantered near the present township of Olinda. From this cauldron four series of lava flow were extruded. The
first massive flows spread as far north as Coldstream. The second flow
spread southwards past Fern Tree Gully which today is the base of the
ranges as seen from Melbourne. The third lava flow was thinner and
formed a platform between the first two flows. The fourth flow followed
ejection of volcanic ash and was a thick lava which reached as far as
Emerald. After prolonged weathering these rocks broke down to form the
rich soil of the forested ranges. The formations left by the erosion,
forming the subsided mountain and valleys were first settled around
1855.
The first Inhabitants:
The first men to arrive in the Dandenong Ranges were the aborigines.
There may have been two migrations with the first being the smaller
aborigines similar to the Tasmanian aborigines, perhaps 40 – 60,000
years ago, at the time of an ice age when the sea levels where lower
than now and a land bridge existed between Asia and Australia. They were
probably later replaced by the second taller race who by this time, were
unable to cross Bass Strait into Tasmania because of the higher sea
levels. When white man arrived in Victoria in the 1830’s, the
Dandenong's were part of the tribal territory of the Wurundjeri tribe.
They used the Dandenong's as their summer hunting ground and for
gatherings with other adjacent tribes. They came to the hills in search
of rest, coolness or to recover after ill-health or battle. They gave
the hill a name describing the qualities which attracted them to the
place-”Corrhanwarrabul” signifying that this was an attractive place
where birds sang, kangaroos jumped and lyrebirds performed. At this time
the Dandenong's probably had a park like appearance with mighty mountain
ashes soaring up to 100 miters into the sky and grassy glades between
them. Most of the soils in the Dandenong's are volcanic in nature
representing three or more volcanic eruptions. This contributes to the
red earth nature of the soils. Coupled with a rainfall up to 1400 mm in
parts, this produced one of nature’s wonderlands with permanent streams
descending on both the west and the east sides
The white man:
The first white man to claim dominion over part of the Dandenong's, was
James Clow whose land stretched from the present city of Dandenong to
Olinda and Monbulk. He named his property after the aboriginal name “Corrhanwarrabul”.
Other settlers followed and soon the whole of the Dandenong's was
included in settler’s runs. In the 1850’s, the Dandenong's attracted the
notice of many people with a botanical bent, including the famous Baron
von Mueller, Victoria’s Government Botanist. In the 1870’s, von Mueller
set up a semi-permanent camp at the Basin in order to make an intense
study of the Dandenong's flora. The worth of the mountain ash was
recognized by these early adventurers and some were felled for use as
masts in the sailing ships of that time. Hence the name “Mast Gully”
creek. They were soon followed by the timber getters splitting the logs
for palings which were used for sides of houses or fencing material. A
timber camp was opened at Olinda in 1855 and another at Kallista in the
1860’s, followed by one at Sassafras in the 1870’s. The timber was taken
out by a track via the present Ferntree Gully to Oakleigh where the
nearest main road existed. The transport was mainly bullock teams.
During the 1880’s and the 1890’s the Dandenong's forests were decimated
mainly as a result of poverty stricken city folk being allocated 10 acre
farm lets in the Dandenong's on which to make a living.
The name “Kalorama”
was coined about the turn of the century by a guest of Ellis Jeeves. The
guest was a Reverend Henschelwood who used a derivation of the Greek
word KOLOS to mean “beautiful view”. Ellis applied the name to his home
and it remained its name until it was demolished by the Forests
Commission in 1970. The name Kalorama was applied to the district
between 1926 to 32 when, in order to overcome postal confusion, the name
was chosen from a list submitted at a public meeting. Kalorama, a
residential area in the Mount Dandenong Ranges, is only 36 km east of
the City of Melbourne. It can best be reached via the Tourist Road from
Montrose which is situated at the end of Canterbury Road. There is a
special viewing position at the Five Ways Corner with a panoramic view
over the Sylvan Reservoir and the Olinda State Forest to the Warburton
Ranges. Much of Kalorama is parkland and forest reserve, which adds to
the spacious residential environment. Some of the houses date from
pre-war times when Kalorama was a weekend resort. Several resort and
guest-house places continue to offer accommodation to visitors. This
includes a large number of very romantic, luxury Bed and Breakfast
places.
Places To Visit:
Kalorama Scenic Lookout , numerous gardens and nurseries, feed the
kookaburras, Parrots and watch the city lights by night. Experience the
country atmosphere, the forests of the Dandenong Ranges with all it's
bird life and tranquillity or play golf at the Olinda Golf course. Visit
the tea houses, restaurants, coffee shops, craft shops, antique shops
and Mt Dandenong Observatory Restaurant for great views. Try walking,
cycling or horse riding. Enjoy a picnic at the many Picnic Grounds.
Catch the historic Puffing Billy train. Spending time at romantic Bed &
Breakfasts or Country Houses. Walk through the National Park Rain
Forest. See Historic Homes, the Tulip Farm or fish for Rainbow Trout.
Visit the Country Markets, Sherbrooke Forest, the Yarra Valley
Wineries
and Healesville Sanctuary. This is an ideal spot for a Weekend Getaway.
If you decide to walk in the Dandenong Ranges be sure to take a map
(perhaps a mobile phone), a hat and sunscreen, and observe National Park
guidelines such as fire restrictions, respecting local flora and fauna,
leaving cats or dogs at home, not littering, and riding mountain bikes
only on designated trails.
The best northerly access to the Dandenong Ranges is via Canterbury Road
and Montrose onto the Mount Dandenong Tourist Road to Kalorama and
Olinda or the southern access via Burwood Highway and Ferntree Gully
onto Mt Dandenong Tourist Road to Sassafras. The many Bush Nature Walks
are denoted by markers and information sheets which describe the plants
along the walks.
Reference: Parks Victoria
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