12 May 2019
Day 2 of road trip started with an easy 120 km drive to the Dandenong Range National Park from Phillip Island.
Sassafras and Miss Maple’s Tearoom
Our first stop was the small village of Sassafras in the Dandenong Range National Park.
Autumn foliage in forest at Sassafras, Dandenong Range.
While the drive to the village was easy, finding a space to park on a Sunday morning was not. Especially on the Mother’s Day weekend. To add to the misery, there was a slight drizzle on this overcast day. After circling the village a couple of times, we managed to find a space.
Sassafras has a few cafes and many antique, art, craft and speciality shops. One of the most popular cafes is the Miss Marple’s Tearoom, famous for the scones.
We had planned to arrive just before opening time, to avoid the queue. This cafe usually opened at 11 AM, but being the Mother’s Day weekend, it opened earlier at 10 AM.
Miss Marple’s Tearoom at Sassafras, Mount Dandenong.
A crowd of waiting customers was already outside as we went in to get a queue number. We got a queue number and was informed that we would probably have to wait about 45 minutes.
The best thing to do next was to explore the small quaint shops along the main street while waiting for our turn. Especially interesting was Geppetto's Workshop with its puppets and toys and Tea Leaves with tea from all over the world and beautiful sets of teapot and cups.
Tea Leaves – shop in Sassafras selling tea from all over the whole and beautiful sets of teapot and cups.
We were also invited into the Cream at Sassafras by the friendly owner who showed us his gourmet organic products and natural remedies that was sourced from all over Australia.
We finally got our table in Miss Marple’s Tearoom ahead of schedule. The deco is English and inspired by the character in Agatha Christie’s novels. Miss Marple memorabilia and teapots line the walls of the restaurant. This tearoom definitely reminded me of the cafes we visited during our road trip through the Cotswolds in England.
Square shaped scones, beef cottage pie ad tea at Miss Marple’s Tearoom.
We ordered 2 of the famous scones (AUD12.50), a beef cottage pie (AUD17.50) and a pot of tea (AUD 5 per person). The scones were served with one of freshest home-made raspberry jam I ever tasted and very light whipped cream. Yum. However, the beef pie with peas, carrot and topped with mash potato tasted a little bland after eating the scones with the sweet raspberry jam and cream.
William Ricketts Sanctuary
The William Ricketts Sanctuary is a short drive from Sassafras, along the winding Mount Dandenong Tourist Road. Unlike Sassafras, there is ample parking at the free public car park just across the road from the entrance.
Entry to the garden is free too. The creator of this garden was William Ricketts, a potter and sculptor of the arts and crafts who had spent much time in 1949 to 1960 living with aboriginal communities in central Australia. He believed that all Australians should adopt Aboriginal philosophies, respecting the spirituality of the mother earth and all things in the natural world.
Along a paved 500m forest trail, there are 92 clay sculptures. These sculptures are made in the on-site kiln and placed in the forest scene.
Upon entry, the first thing that struck me was the lush greenery, peace and tranquillity of this amazing place.
Equally amazing and interesting were the clay sculptures that seemed to merge with the natural trees and forest landscape. We took many photos of the sculptures.
Mountain Ash trees provide a canopy above us. Many species of native ferns lined the forest trail.
We went to the original log cabin residence watch the video “Forest of Love”, a short documentary of William.
William Ricketts died in 1993, aged 94. He left a wonderful legacy of the sanctuary with its clay sculptures.
Dandenong Ranges Botanical Garden at Olinda
There are a few notable gardens within Dandenong such as the Alfred Nicholas Gardens, George Tindale Memorial Gardens and the Dandenong Ranges Botanical Garden. We only had time to visit one, so we chose to go to the Dandenong Ranges Botanical Garden at Olinda.
Red Rhododendron flowers.
Formerly known as The National Rhododendron Gardens, this garden is a Dandenong Ranges landmark.
May is a good time to visit. We could see the autumn foliage on some of the trees. There are also plenty of rhododendrons, azaleas, camellias blooms to enjoy.
Rhododendron Rarilepidotum flowers.
The first Kookaburra we saw on this trip.
This amazing beautiful flower is the Protea.
Red maple leaves.
Yellow leaves of the gingko tree.
Kid dressed as Superman. Faster than a speeding bullet!
Romantic moment for a couple.
Where we stayed
Nightcap at Ferntree Gully Hotel Motel, located along Burwood Highway, is a 2-minutes drive from the Dandenong Ranges National Park. This is a convenient place for an overnight stay for visitors to the park. There are eateries onsite and within 5-minutes drive from the hotel.
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