Dandenong Ranges

The Dandenongs rise to just over six hundred metres east of Melbourne, high enough to catch cloud and rain that support forests of mountain ash, the world's tallest flowering plant, above understories of tree ferns. Villages along the ridge, Sassafras, Olinda, Kallista and Sherbrooke, hold tea rooms, nurseries and craft shops, and gardens such as the Rhododendron Garden and Alfred Nicholas Gardens are planted for spring and autumn colour. The Thousand Steps at Ferntree Gully, a steep track up the Kokoda Memorial Walk, is used daily by hundreds of people training. Lyrebirds live in Sherbrooke Forest and are often heard mimicking. The ranges are also the home of the Puffing Billy railway.

What you actually see

• The mountain ash forest - tall eucalypts above tree fern gullies.
• The Thousand Steps - the steep Kokoda memorial climb at Ferntree Gully.
• The hill villages - tea rooms, nurseries and shops along the ridge.
• The gardens - rhododendrons and deciduous plantings for spring and autumn.

When to go

March to November; autumn colour in the gardens peaks in April and May, and rhododendrons flower in spring. Summer brings fire risk and closures. The ranges are consistently cooler and wetter than Melbourne, often by five degrees or more.

Honest expectations

Weekend traffic on the narrow ridge roads is heavy and parking at popular spots fills early. The Thousand Steps is steeper and busier than expected. Leeches appear in the gullies after rain, and the area is a high fire risk zone in summer.

Nearby

Puffing Billy runs from Belgrave; the Yarra Valley lies north.