Yarran Dheran Nature Reserve

Yarran Dheran Nature Reserve sits on Ashburton Drive at Mitcham, in Melbourne's leafy eastern suburbs. A lovely bushland nature reserve, it's a much-loved local escape — combining bushland, walking tracks and a creek with native flora and fauna, offering a genuine pocket of nature and a peaceful, scenic spot for a walk in the suburbs.

The appeal is that combination of natural bushland beauty and a rewarding walk: the trails wind through the reserve's bushland and along the creek, with the chance to spot native birds and wildlife and enjoy the peaceful, natural surrounds. It's a wonderful, accessible escape into nature, popular with walkers, families and nature lovers in Melbourne's east.

With a 4.8 rating from more than 300 reviews, it's a much-loved spot. The reserve and its trails are free and open, but conditions vary with the weather and the bushland tracks involve natural terrain, so it's worth checking before you go — and wearing decent footwear and taking water — while enjoying the bushland, the creek and the wildlife at Yarran Dheran Nature Reserve.