Urban Forest Reserve - Malvern East (VIC)

4 /5 Kaz Bar: A lovely little walking trail that links the Boyd Park Trail and Gardiners Creek Trails. Whilst wandering through this reserve you can almost forget you are smack dab in the middle of an urban setting. The houses hidden along the perimeter and the traffic noise from Dandenong Road at one end and Waverley Road at the other end are the only hints. Birds and frogs abound - adding a beautiful cacophony of natural sound to drown those other sounds out. Australian native trees and shrubs with 2 ponds that are linked by streams during wet times. A couple of bridges on the paths are a pleasant place to stop and listen to the frog song. Hidden in the Forrest you will find a couple of treats for kids to explore. The first is "Gnomeville". A lovely little collection of Garden gnomes hidden beneath the trees creating a gnome village. The second little hidden gem is a large twig and log shelter surrounding a tree - which is a very cool little natural Aussie fort. Large enough to hide inside, explore and let the imagination wander. Whilst it is not a huge Parkland it does offer a lovely place to walk and escape the urban drudgery. Pros: well tended paths. Lovely place to walk. Cons: no toilets or any other facilities.

4 /5 John G: Great place for a walk lots of birds, sometimes ducks in the 2 ponds

4 /5 peter oht: This is not a big park but it great to see space allocated for a reserve to preserve remnants of what this area used to look like. This park is part of the Linear Park Network and runs along the Old Railway course - a bit of history. This is a typical australian park with native grass and local gum trees. While there were signs of animals within the park, I only managed to spot an Australian Egret. The stroll was nice and there were plenty of different flora varieties to intrigue me. Nice place to get lost for an hour or so and be with nature.

5 /5 Pat R: Melbournians dont have to go far to enjoy the beautiful Australian bush. Malvern Urban Forest is one of the many Urban Design projects around ponds and wetlands, which help improve the quality of our urban stormwater. This particular little park with wetlands at one end and abundance of colour and birdlife, enjoy a picturesque picnic. So get off the couch and enjoy our parks and outdoor activities.

5 /5 George from In Focus healing and wellness clinic: Thanks to this city council for having the intelligence to maintain such a precious space for urban forest bathing!