page_title: Warrandyte State Park
section_title: Geography
hierarchical_section_title: Warrandyte State Park / Geography
caption_attribution_description: The cairn marking the site of the first recognised discovery of gold in Victoria, Australia in 1854, on the banks of Andersons Creek. Photo taken by myself in December 2008.
context_page_description: Warrandyte State Park is a state park, located in Warrandyte, east of Melbourne, Victoria on the banks of the Yarra River and surroundings. The park comprises 586 hectares of remnant bushland in various locations throughout Warrandyte and Wonga Park around Pound Bend, Fourth Hill, Black Flat, Yarra Brae and various other locations in the area. It hosts many significant geographical, environmental, archaeological and historical sites, such as the site of the first gold discovery in Victoria in 1851 and preserves the sites of former gold mines and tunnels. It is a popular destination for school and community groups and is frequented by local bush walkers and hikers.
  Land now occupied by the park was initially occupied by Indigenous Australians of the Wurundjeri nation. After European settlement, gold was discovered in Warrandyte, and the area was mined for a number of years. Frequent clearing had at one stage removed all the vegetation in the area, and bushfires have erased much of the recent human architectural history of the area.
context_section_description: The park is located around 175 km upstream of the mouth of the Yarra River in Warrandyte, 24 km east of Melbourne. The park in its entirety comprises several detached areas of land adjoining the Yarra River from Pound Bend in the west, through Warrandyte to Wonga Park through the Warrandyte Gorge to Mount Lofty in the east. Other areas of land are situated throughout the hills immediately south of Warrandyte. The various areas include (roughly from west to east);
  Pound Bend - Includes the area around Pound Bend in the Yarra River, the westernmost section of the state park.
  Norman Reserve - a small reserve where Pound Bend begins upstream.
  Fourth Hill - one of the highest points in Warrandyte, intensively mined.
  Whipstick Gully - a gully to the north of Fourth Hill, intensively mined.
  Timber Reserve
  The Common
  Black Flat - an area of flat riverbank just south of Blue Tongue Bend near Jumping Creek.
  Jumping Creek - the area where Jumping Creek flows into the Yarra River.
  Yarra Brae - an area in the east of Warrandyte gorge on the southern banks of the river.
  Mount Lofty - the easternmost section of the state park.
  Other smaller areas and reserves within the state park include:
  Scotchman's Hill - another hill in central Warrandyte, northeast of Fourth Hill
  The Island - an island/billabong in the river, heavily polluted by introduced species.
  Koornong - an area of land to the east of Blue Tongue Bend.
  Blue Tongue Bend - a bend in the river upstream from Jumping Creek.
  Gravel Reserve - a small reserve on Jumping Creek
  Stane Brae
  Bend of Isles - area to the north of Mount Lofty around a series of bends in the river.
caption: The cairn marking the site of the first recognised discovery of gold in Victoria in 1851 at Andersons Creek.
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