A collection of around 60 attendees met under bursting skies at the Moolort Silos on the morning of Sunday 16 March, to attend the ‘Walk the Line’ event which commenced at 9.30 am. The walk was arranged by Castlemaine to Maryborough Rail Trail (CMRT) and Central Goldfields Bushwalking and Hiking Club, offering the chance to ponder the past and the future of the Moolort Plains.
Walkers gathered first to hear an introduction by CMRT’s Janice Simpson, with a reminder of the vast history of the Dja Dja Warrung people in the area. Geoff Park then spoke with deep knowledge about the region, having spent significant time walking and observing the plains and wetlands.
“If you ever get an aerial view, you’ll get an idea of the diversity,” Geoff explained, saying that it was very difficult to tell from ground level. He described the formation of the landscape through volcanic eruptions that led to lava flowing onto sedimentary rock, which was then “clothed by mostly natural grasses, not trees.” Geoff said that there were some pockets of forest, including banksia and buloke/bull-oak trees and that the Dja Dja Warrung subtly managed and carefully cultivated the area. The Moolort Landcare group has also been planting trees for over forty years.
Geoff (whose Natural Newstead column features in the Tarrangower Times each week) spoke of birds such as brolgas and rails from the wetlands; golden headed cisticolas and quails; as well as endangered species like the black falcon. He described mammals that are no longer seen such as quolls and dunnarts. He said that the landscape is very dynamic; many animals only visit every couple of years when the wetlands fill. Geoff painted a picture for attendees of a varied landscape before mining, deforestation, and canola. “This really is a very special landscape, it’s had a long history of Aboriginal management and I think it’s our challenge to protect it,” Geoff concluded.
Photos: Tarrangower Times
Just as the walkers set off, the rain began in earnest. Their route followed the section of the proposed (CMRT) from the Grain Silos at the old Moolort Station to Bald Hill Road and included a section of the line that goes through the Environmental Exclusion Zone of one of two proposed broiler farms, with corflutes placed along the walk to indicate the area in question. The Central Goldfields Shire Council has indicated that it will make a decision on the broiler farm planning applications in the next few months; the CMRT urged walkers to consider the likely impact this development would have on the trail. When asked what she hopes the walk will provide to attendees, Janice replied: “Just a chance to look and think.”
This article appeared in Tarrangower Times, 21 March 2025.
