Jells Park and Nortons Park Loop

Jells Park is the green heart of the Dandenong Valley Parklands, a lake, a stand of bushland and a lot of open lawn in Melbourne's south-east. Link it to Nortons Park next door and you get a long, varied loop of about 10.6 kilometres. The reason people pair the two is simple: Jells Park has no off-leash area anywhere in it, and Nortons Park does.

The walk. The full Jells and Nortons circuit runs 10.6 kilometres and rates moderate, roughly two and a quarter hours at a steady pace. It is not hard walking, just long. The surfaces are good throughout, sealed and compacted gravel shared with cyclists, and the Dandenong Creek Trail runs through the middle of it, so you can cut the loop short at half a dozen points and still get back to a car park. The lake circuit at Jells is the pretty bit, wide paths and open water with bird hides where darters, pelicans, herons and cormorants turn up. The bushland sections are quieter and shadier.

The rules. Parks Victoria allows up to four dogs per person at Jells Park, on lead, at all times, across the whole park. Dogs are not allowed within the playgrounds or the conservation areas, and those exclusions are signposted on the ground. There are no dog off-lead areas at Jells Park at all: the nearest is at Nortons Park, adjoining, where dogs must be under effective voice control. Take all your rubbish home. Horses are not permitted, and fishing is banned outright inside the conservation area.

Water. Jells Lake is scenery, not a swimming hole. Parks Victoria treats the lake and creek as natural water bodies with the usual hazards, and there is no designated dog swimming here, so bring water rather than planning on a paddle. T House sits by the lake with tables looking over it.

Hazards. The shared trail carries a lot of bikes, particularly on weekend mornings, and the Dandenong Creek Trail runs 49 kilometres so some of that traffic is moving at speed. Sections of the park close for works from time to time, including the Koomba Boardwalk, so it is worth a glance at the Parks Victoria page before a long drive.

Getting there. Jells Park has entrances off Waverley Road at the northern end, near the visitor centre and the cafe, and off Ferntree Gully Road at the southern end for the Oaks and Ashes picnic grounds. Nortons Park is entered from Nortons Lane, off High Street Road. Parking is free at all of them and fills by mid-morning on a sunny weekend. Buses run along Ferntree Gully Road and Waverley Road, but driving is far easier with a dog. A Changing Places facility and an accessible toilet are at the visitor centre, and the BlindSquare navigation app is set up across the park.

Nearby with the dogs. For an off-leash run closer to home there is Jells Road Reserve just west of the park, plus Lum Reserve and Columbia Park in Wheelers Hill, and the fenced Wantirna Reserve Fenced Dog Park. The Dandenong Creek Loop at Wantirna picks up the same creek corridor further north. Afterwards, Code Five on View Mount Road and Spade 9 both take dogs outside, and Punthill Knox is the nearest pet-friendly bed.

When to go. Weekday mornings, or the last two hours of daylight. Weekends between 10am and 3pm are busy enough that parking becomes the main event. Spring brings the birdlife and the mosquitoes together, so pack accordingly. Good for big runners who want distance without a climb.

Sources

• Jells Park - Parks Victoria · www.parks.vic.gov.au
• Jells Park Visitor Guide - Parks Victoria · www.parks.vic.gov.au
• Jells Road Reserve | City of Monash · www.monash.vic.gov.au
• Jells Park and Nortons Park Loop - AllTrails · www.alltrails.com

Compiled from public sources and verified listings. Always confirm current rules with the venue or council before you travel.