Warrandyte State Park is a lovely little state park to the east of Melbourne. It's still close enough to the city to have sort of a suburban-rural feel (housing developments interspersed with farms). It's the site of the first gold discovery in 1851, which ushered in a massive population boom that put Melbourne squarely on the map. Nowadays, it's just a tranquil green space with some nice walking tracks along the Yarra River.
I went as part of a large hiking group, and we did about a 5k walk. It was a bit rushed, and the sound of car engines and lawnmowers kind of ruined the otherwise nature-y ambiance, but it was still enjoyable. I especially liked all the kangaroos hanging out in the park. Sometimes you forget you're living in Australia until you go out to one of these nearby parks and you see kangaroos chilling.
Here are some pics. Sorry if the image quality is crap -- I took these photos with my point-and-shoot waterproof Nikon, which is kind of a useless camera.
