Lysterfield Lake - April 2016

Since my trip up to Mount Bogong a couple of weeks ago I haven't actually got off the couch and done a walk, I've thought about it, but when the time came to head out of the house it would all get to hard, apathy would set in and I'd go nowhere. So this weekend I was keen to get out and do a walk. After considering all the hardcore walks I settled on something a little easier, Lysterfield Lake, yep a 6 kilometre amble in the suburbs of South East Melbourne, maybe apathy hadn't quite finished with me yet! Lysterfield Lake use to supply the Mornington Peninsula with water up until Cardinia Reservoir came online in 1975, since then its been used for recreation and conservation as well as being one of Melbourne's premier mountain biking destinations, infact the Melbourne Commonwealth Games mountain bike course was at Lysterfield Lake, but as I still haven't worked out how to do a good cycling post I decided to leave the bike at home and do a walk instead.

Spotted Gums are the tree of choice today.

So after our normal leisurely Sunday brekky down in Mornington I dropped Sam off at home at headed out to Lysterfield. The park is an extremely popular spot for a picnickers and there were plenty of families out this afternoon enjoying the warm afternoon, leaving the ute I wandered down towards the lakeshore past the picnickers with their sizzling bbq's, briefly considering whether they'd notice if I joined their picnic. Passing above the sandy swimming spot I headed for the dam wall, crossing over to the western side of the lake.

Lysterfield Lake below the picnic area.

The western side of the lake has a lot of Spotted Gum plantations, the uniform rows of trees standing out. I stayed below the plantation though and headed along the wide Casuarina Trail and then the less well defined Acacia Trail close to the lake shore. Acacia Trail was the pick of the trails on this walk as it passed through a conservation area full of native flora and fauna and the path was more like your typical bushwalking pad, the pad twisting and turning and generally seeming to take the most convoluted route to its destination. Halfway along Acacia Trail I broke out into an open grassy area that looks like its grazed by the local roos, the open area was home to around half a dozen humpies  in various states of repair, what's the go with humpies now days? It seems to be every second walk I do around Melbourne now days I come across a humpy, they certainly haven't been here since our indigenous people lived here, are they being built as a reminder of our indigenous heritage, by kids, by local indigenous people? 

The western and northern shoreline is a little more natural.

Uniform rows of Spotted Gums, if you look close you may see a mountain biker weaving through the trees on Tramline Track.

I'm not sure what the go is with all the humpies that seem to be springing up around the place.

Acacia Track.

After around 1 kilometre Acacia Trail re joins Casuarina Trail and I strolled up the wide gravel track through fairly open forest to the northern end of the lake, the walk then follows Short Cut Track for a short distance crossing over the lake inlet on the way, the creek feeding the lake being bone dry at this time of the year. Turning south onto Lake Track I started back towards the ute, the sun now making the odd appearance through the cloud. While this is a lakeside ramble you don't actually get a lot of water views on this walk so I was keeping an eye out for an unmarked track on my right that would lead me through the scrub to small jetty. Eventually I found a likely looking pad and headed bush, sure enough after 50 metres I got to the small jetty that led me out onto the water at the north end of the lake. Lysterfield Lake is a little more natural at its northern end, the banks lined with reeds and Tea Tree growing down too the water line, if I could have been bothered swapping lenses on my camera I could also show you a few of the water birds that make this end of the lake home, yeah I coulda.

Even on a suburban stroll I've managed to draw blood!

A lot of the immediate area around the lake is fenced off for conservation.

This is the un-marked pad that your looking for if you want to visit the small jetty at the northern end of the lake.

Looking down Lysterfield Lake towards the dam wall.

Leaving the hidden jetty I was on the homeward stretch now, first up I continued along the wide gravel Lake Track for awhile before turning onto a walking track through a conservation area. This last section through the conservation area was again nice walking, I think it would be even better in winter as the track crossed some reasonable length sections of duck boards. At the end of our long dry summer the wet areas were bone dry but with a bit of rain it would be very nice walking through the Tea Tree and Paper Barks with a bit of water on the ground. All good things come to an end though and after leaving the conservation area I was back in the extensive car parks that service the lakeside picnic areas and soon back at the ute. Taking off my boots I listened to some excited mountain bikers talking about their day, I couldn't help but to smile to myself and think how lucky we are to have such great facilities and live in such a great country.

Back on Lake Track and heading for the ute.

It was a little dry on this visit.

The walk finished off with a nice section across some duck boards in a conservation area.

The Dirt.

I walked 6.8 kilometres and climbed 82 metres on this very easy stroll. The walk would be suitable for strollers or wheelchairs if you stayed on Casuarina Trail and didn't take the Acacia Tail. I used the notes out of the Woodslane book Melbourne's Best Bush, Bay & City Walks by Julie Monday. Parks Vic have a lot of good free information online and with the variety of options on offer in the park its worth getting online to check it all out.

 The car parks in view and the walks rapidly coming to an end.

Now this has got absolutely nothing to do with Lysterfield Lake. This photo was taken over my back fence and I'm putting it on here to see if anyone can tell me what the reflections in the cloud are, now I'd like to think its the sun reflecting off Inca cities in the sky, but I actually think that seeing we live to the south east of the Melbourne CBD its the shadows cast by the buildings in the city.....but then again.