What you didn’t know about Marysville

Marysville is a small town past Healesville in Victoria that is usually the last stop before going to the snow at Lake Mountain. The small town that had a population of 500 was devastated by a bush fire on the 7th of February 2009. The town had a death toll of 45 and over 90% of the town’s buildings had burnt down. This day is now remembered as Black Saturday. 11 years have passed since this tragedy, the town has rebuilt a lot and the population is rising (2016 census recorded 394 people living in Marysville). A lot of people are still not aware of the hidden gems that reside in the small town.

My morning starts at 7 am when I wake up, get ready and start the drive to Marysville. I always leave the house on an empty stomach so I can have breakfast at the Marysville bakery. Even if you are like me and don’t normally eat breakfast or like most breakfast foods, there is something for everyone. The bakery is massive and sells a big range of things. The meat pies are all hand made and taste amazing no matter what time of the day. When I went there as a kid my mum would always let me get something sweet for breakfast before we went to the snow. I would usually get a hot chocolate and some type of slice. Even now I still get hot chocolate and a slice for breakfast.

After breakfast at 9 am, we drive to Steavsons falls. You can view the waterfall from the bottom or choose to do the 45-minute hike up to the top where you can sit on the edge (just kidding it just looks like your sitting on the edge). When its quite I recommend taking a little picnic lunch with you and walking to the top and sitting on the rocks and enjoying the view. In summer watch out for snakes, I saw 3 on the hike up last time and I was definitely not wearing the correct footwear or clothing. Stick to the path, wear appropriate footwear, and if you see a snake move away and let it pass by. There’s really not more that I can say about this waterfall so I will just show you all the amazing photos.

When you finished taking in the amazing views of the waterfall and nature around it, head back down, Falls road and stop at Bruno’s Sculpture Garden. Unfortunately, the gardens and sculptures were badly damaged in the fires. Bruno has restored some sculptures and expanded his grounds to show off his beautiful artwork and the nature in Marysville. I was lucky enough to visit his garden before the fires in 2009, we even bought his book. We went back when he reopened in November 2009 and it was so sad to see everything he lost, but it was obvious that was not going to stop him, 11 years later you wouldn’t even know that a fire has destroyed the grounds and his works. Admission to see his works is adults $10, under 16 $5 and under 5 free (as of 15/8/2020 displayed on the website). Visit the website to read his story and see what your in for. http://www.brunosart.com/

When we have finished looking at Brunos, its usually time to go back to the bakery for lunch (yes twice in one day, but the food is so good and we cant taste it all in one meal!). After lunch, we head back home. The drive home takes you on the black spur which is so pretty and good for a quick photoshoot!

(All photos taken at the falls and on the black spur were taken by Jonard Managan. Definitely hit him up if you are in Melbourne, Australia. Follow him on Instagram to see his work @jmanangan_ )