Emerald Lake Park

Emerald Lake Park covers an area of about 52 hectares and features the beautiful Lake Treganowan as well as gardens and natural bushland. The park is home to both native and exotic plants, with many fern gullies and open eucalypt forests. Many animals which live in the park are nocturnal and can be harder to spot during the day, however you might see purple swamp hens, eurasian cootes, ducks, dusky moorhens, kookaburras, rosellas, echidnas, and black wallabies.

The park has 10 kilometres of walking trails, paddleboats, fishing, picnic tables and shelters, a wading pool open during summer, 2 playgrounds, an environment centre, a model railway and amphitheatres which you can book to use.

Australia's premier preserved steam train Puffing Billy stops in Emerald Lake Park at Lakeside Station, as part of its journey through the stunning Dandenong Ranges. Watch as it fills up with water before continuing its journey or join the train to Gembrook and back.

Lakeside Paddleboats can be hired from the kiosk next to the Environment Centre, opposite the wading pool. All paddleboats are 2-seaters. Children must be accompanied by an adult. Please let the paddleboat operators know if you need help getting into the paddleboat or want to hire a life jacket (available in adult and children's sizes). They are available for hire every day the park is open, weather permitting. If you are visiting the park during cooler months, please call ahead to avoid disappointment.

The Wading Pool is about 25 metres long with a varying depth of between 0.5m and 1m. It is patrolled by lifeguards, however children must be supervised by an adult at all times. The pool is open between 11.30am-6.30pm in December, January, February and March when the temperature is 26 degrees or more. The pool will close at 7.30pm when the temperature is above 28 degrees at 5pm and at least 20 people are using the pool. It will open at 12.30pm on weekdays during school terms. Pool Entry is Free.

Emerald Lake Park's Model Railway is the largest working HO scale model (1/87) in the Southern Hemisphere, taking up an area of more than 200 square metres. It features buttons for the kids to press and a fascinating miniature scene with more than 2,000m of track, 250 houses and buildings, 450 cars and trucks, 1,100 trees and 1,500 miniature people.