It was a fine first walk to the challenging summit of Blackhill with a record number of walkers up to the task with 35 in attendance. We all adjourned to the Social Foundry for coffee afterwards.

Parking: Ample and easy parking adjacent to Velodrome off Mollison St., Kyneton.

Participants: 19 participants from an original cast of 29 enjoyed a very easy walk along a flat path through the Kyneton Botanical Gardens and along Campaspe River track. After the 8km walk, twelve enjoyed a cuppa and conversation at Malmsbury Bakery.

The Path:

• We started the walk in Franklin Place, Kyneton and walking east we joined the Campaspe River path adjacent to the Scout Hall.

• The walk took us under the historic Mollison St. Bridge, through the fern gully (Hellebore Garden), up the historical steps and into the formal part of the Kyneton Botanic gardens.

• Our walk took us through the formal part of the gardens observing the drinking fountain, wrought iron front gates, circular herb garden, the restored gardeners’ cottage, brass sculpture, the recently constructed community park/children’s play area and finally the historic pig shed.

• We picked up the river track near the pig shed, passed through St Agnes Place then on to the Barry Doyle rotunda for a rest/snack stop.

• We followed the river track to Kyneton racecourse gates then walked along Lennox St. into Jeffrey St. and west along Beauchamp St re-joining the river track for our return walk under the Mollison St. Bridge and back to the car park adjacent to velodrome.

Historical Information

The Mollison Street Bridge – reconstructed in 1884. It is significant because it is the most substantial original and finely detailed metal bridge in the Kyneton region. The stone abutments, believed to have been from an earlier 1861 timber beam bridge, reflect the immediate post gold rush prosperity of the district. It was also built to connect the newly constructed railway (opened in 1862) with the town on the opposite side of the river.

The Kyneton Botanic Gardens – dating back to 1858. The main landscaping of the Gardens appears to have been carried out in 1866 under the supervision of the then town surveyor, a Mr Farquahar. On the 5th of August 1867 the Kyneton Botanic Gardens were permanently reserved as a public garden. The original Murray Plan (winner of a local competition to design the gardens) for the site has been lost and reports that Ferdinand von Mueller or Latrobe Bateman designed the Gardens are unsubstantiated and unlikely.

The Fern Gully and Historical Bluestone steps- first constructed in 1900. The gully contains original features such as the path layout, early tree plantings, rock work and the bluestone stairs to McKenna Memorial Drive.

The Drinking Fountain- installed in 1902. It was a 60 pounds bequest for that purpose from a Spring Hill farmer, Mr Isaac Smith, who owned and worked the Radnor Flour Mills. The fountain was installed near the swings (recently removed) where Mr Smith used to watch children play. The marble shield on the front of the fountain bears the inscription “A bequest of the late Isaac Smith to the Citizens of Kyneton”. The fountain was extensively vandalised in 1972 and its original decorative capping was never replaced. It is still operative but some of the jets need repairing.

The Wrought Iron Memorial Gates – Installed in 1936. The memorial wrought iron gates were donated by the Elliot family in memory of their parents.

The Restored Gardeners’ Cottage – The age and history of the gardeners’ office is unknown, but its architectural style is thought to have belonged in the period sometime between 1880 and 1910. A successful grant application by The Friends of Kyneton Botanic Gardens to Heritage Victoria facilitated restoration of the cottage in 2006.

Brass Sculpture – “Fetching Them In” 1982. The bronze sculpture depicting a sheep dog and two sheep, resulted from a community art project.

Kyneton Community Park – Constructed in 2017. After several years of community led activity the contemporary community park and playground was completed in June 2017. Designed by Laidlaw and Laidlaw Design (Landscape Architects) the park reflects local history and current town features. It fits within the Kyneton Botanic Gardens Master Plan, also written by Laidlaw and Laidlaw Design and adopted by MRSC in July 2011.

The Pig Shed – relocated to gardens in 1972. The old pig shed from the Kyneton Sale Yards was moved to the gardens to act as a shelter shed/picnic shelter. The shed features a timber and galvanised tin roof (red in colour) and timber uprights. Many of the original pen markers can be seen on the uprights and beams.

A suggested list of films

Samson and Delilah (2009) Drama/Romance

A Night at the Opera (1935) Comedy/musical

A Day at the Races (1937) Comedy/musical

The Day of the Triffids (1962) Science fiction

Jedda (1955) Drama

Atlantic City (1980) Crime/drama

Lacombe, Lucien (1974) War/Drama

F for Fake (1973) Docudrama

Falling down (1993) Action/Crime

A Clockwork Orange (1971) Drama/Crime

Last of the Mohicans (1992) War/Adventure

The Passenger (1975) Drama/Romance

The Lavender Hill Mob (1951) Comedy/Crime

Once upon a time in the West (1968) Western/Drama

Don’s Party (1976) Drama/Comedy