The land was originally settled in the 1830s, for cattle grazing, logging, farming and apple orchards.
In the early 1940s, the Australian Government acquired 100 acres of this land, and used it for Army military training.
It has also been used for car rallies.
In 1978, after strong campaigns from the community, the land was declared to be a site of significant cultural, ecological and historical significance, originally having a strong Aboriginal presence.
It was listed in 1980 in the National Estate Register, Australia's National inventory of natural and cultural heritage places deemed of importance to our future heritage.
It forms part of the wildlife corridor along Anderson's Creek to the Yarra.
Residential development in the reserve was banned.
It is now managed by the Manningham City Council, with the direct continuing support and involvement by the "Friends of 1200 Acres" community group.
The Forest has an extensive network of walking trails (nearly 9 km), some of which are joint-use fire management tracks, and a perimeter track shared between horseriders and walkers.
Many interpretative signs along the main Trails provide useful and informative background of the history, fauna and flora in the Reserve.
The Nature Trail should not be missed!
We are told that most of the forest is regrowth, and that this is what the eastern suburbs would have looked like prior to European settlement.
The main access to the reserve is off Knees Rd. Other access points are around the perimeter.
The photos were taken on May 7,2013, on a 4 km hike.
See all of the Photos of my visit!
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