HANGING ROCK

Nearby our new home for the next 12 months while our house is being built is "Hanging Rock". It's infamous reputation comes from the book, Picnic at Hanging Rock by Joan Lindsay and published in 1967. In 1975, Peter Weir directed the film of the same name.

Victoria's hot summer has turned the grass to chaff but gives a strong contrast to craggy greys of the stump in the foreground and the volcanic rocks of Mt Diogenes (Hanging Rock) - Green Gum trees separate the grey. (from my iPhone)

As a child when my father owned a race horse, I have vague memories of attending the Hanging Rock horse races that are now held on both New Year's Day and Australia Day. My memories are of chasing grasshoppers all over the picnic ground and climbing the Rock. Horse racing has been run at Hanging Rock for over 100 years and its popularity continues to this day.

Hanging Rock is 718 metres above sea level and was named Mt Diogenes by Melbourne Surveyor Robert Hoddle in 1844. It is because of Hoddle that Melbourne's streets have been designed on a grid with wide streets. It's ironic that the street named after him (Hoddle Street) is one of the most traffic jammed street in Melbourne. Another source (other than Wikipedia)  tells me that it was Major Mitchell that named it. Maybe someone out there could inform me of the correct source.

The public reserve is heritage listed and all sorts of flora and fauna can be seen. Wildlife include koalas, wallabies, wedge tail eagles, kookaburras, possums among the many Australian native animals.

Today the reserve is also used for international outdoor concerts with Leonard Cohen, Rod Stewart, Bruce Springstreen and the Eagles delighting us Victorians. I'm sure once we actually settle in at our temporary house at Kyneton, we will have many more stories to tell of the local area.

I think we might enjoy having Hanging Rock on our doorstep.