Lower Plenty River Walk

Greensborough Historical Society presents a Lower Plenty River Walk
Date: Sunday - 1st May 2011 at 1:00pm
Meeting place: Old Lower Plenty River bridge
Duration: 2 to 2½ hours
Cost: Gold coin donation would be appreciated
Recommended footwear: Good walking shoes
Bookings not required. A courtesy email to say you will be there would be appreciated to info@greensboroughhistoricalsociety.org.au.

Society committee member and local historian, Ann Paul, will conduct an informative walk along the lower reaches of the Plenty River at Lower Plenty. Ann has for many years extensively researched the early history of this part of the river and township and has conducted a number of similar walks over the years.

Ann has prepared informative notes for the walking trail which will be available on the day. The walk will cover indigenous and European colonial history.

Heritage Walk along Plenty River

As part of Eltham & District Historical Society's regular series of heritage walks, the July walk will be along the Plenty River. It will include sites of historic interest along the river at Lower Plenty, Viewbank and Yallambie.

The walk will be on Saturday 4th July and will commence at 2pm on the western side of the old main road bridge in Old Lower Plenty Road, Viewbank (Melway Ref. 20 K9). Anyone wanting transport from Eltham should meet at the Eltham Local History Centre at 1.45pm. The walk will take about two hours. The distance will be between 3 and 4kilometres, going first downstream to the locality of the original ford, then upstream to view “Yallambie” homestead, both from the street and the river parkland at the rear.

Anne Paul and members of the Friends of the Lower Plenty River will also be attendance to add their insight. The walk is open to Society members and the public. There is no charge.

Ring Russell on 9439 9717 to advise if you are coming or for further information. The phone number for contact on the day is 0409 021 063.

Explore the Plenty

An overcast day and cold winds did not deter about 20 people from attending the "Explore the Plenty" walk presented by Parks Victoria and supported by Melbourne Water and the Plenty Valley Conservation Group as part of the City of Whittlesea Heritage Program this week.

The Plenty River extends from Mt Disappointment southwards to the confluence with the Yarra River and flows for approximately 24 kilometres through the Plenty Gorge Park. The river was a key to the settlement and early growth of the region.

Everybody introduced themselves and explained the interest or roll the river had played in their lives. Melbourne Water has recently undertaken a major a renovation and re-vegetation project just immediately off the Bridge Inn Road bridge, Mernda.

Further work could be seen as we walked further - in contrast to a five kilometre stretch yet to be tackled which includes willow trees, hawthorn bushes and a cactus tree.

The geology of the River and its flow was explained to us as were the stories behind the construction of the Bridge Inn Road bridge an important thoroughfare in it's day as gold seekers headed for the St Andrews goldfields. The remains of a mill can now be more easily seen thanks to the clean up project, blue stone blocks probably quarrried from a nearby site.

Recent discoveries by Parks Victoria has led to the site of the Bridge Inn Hotel and hopefully more can be learned from this site in the future.

We visited the site of the aqueduct which carried water to the population of Melbourne, complete with its decorative cornices.

The walk finished at the farm house property "Cremorne" which was acquired by Parks Victoria some 18 or more months ago. Three brothers who attended the walk had grown up in the house and recounted days prior to the urban development that encroaches on the area today.