A 9km trail located around The Basin/Kilsyth South area, the Mount Dandenong Trail is a challenging hike in the always popular Dandenong Ranges area.
Beginning at the corner of Pavitt Lane and Sheffield Road, the trail begins with a gentle incline heading east.
Most of this section of this trail in the Dandenong Ranges National Park is rocky and is your standard gravel trail. This area is home to a horse riding club and thus this section is wide enough for multiple horses to wander along.
Heading north, and despite the trail having a couple of hills, this section is relatively easy. This is a good thing given the uphill sections that will await you.
As it is a mountain of sorts, getting to the top involves three relatively steep sections. I have done the Mount Dandenong Trail multiple times and these three sections still leave me out of breath.
But, I must admit, they are getting easier each time I do this trail.
All three sections are rocky and contain plenty of protruding logs and tree roots, so plenty of caution needs to be taken as you can easily trip over and might find yourself back down at the bottom before you’ve reached the top.
Once you’re finished completing these three steep sections, you follow a similar path as the one at the beginning which then brings you out onto a short road.
This then leads you to the top of the Mount Dandenong Trail where you can stop for a break and look out over the eastern suburbs and into the city.
Not far from here is Burkes Lookout which is a great little spot to stop and get views of the eastern suburbs below. On a clear day, you can see the city of Melbourne.
Following a small section of the Kyeema Track, we found ourselves back at a junction and then back on the trail that we ascended.
I would recommend this hike to any experienced hiker or anyone who was looking to train themselves for a multi-day trek.
Those three steep sections can really test you, so be warned that it is a somewhat difficult hike and not for those who hike on the odd occasion.
Furthermore, I’d also recommend it for anyone who wanted a challenge but wanted to avoid the large crowds that the 1000 Steps tends to attract.
For those of you who wish to download the recorded trail of this hike, you can do this via my WikiLoc account.
The Stats – Mount Dandenong Trail, Dandenong Ranges National Park
Length (km): 9.2km (according to WikiLoc)
Time: 2hr 33 mins (2hr 22 mins moving time)
Average Speed: 3.61 km/h
Difficulty: Difficult
Maximum Elevation: 619m
Accum. elev. uphill: 456m
Accum. elev. downhill: 456m
Return/Circuit/One Way: Return
Location: The Basin/Kilsyth South
