1000 Steps Dandenong Ranges walk reopens 15 months after storm

A change to the way walkers tackle the 1000 Steps, introduced during the height of the pandemic, has been made permanent.

The 1000 Steps will continue to be a one-way walk, with fitness fans who conquer the route to return via the nearby Lyrebird Track when they make their descent.

The steps were made a one-way walk in April 2020 to comply with Covid physical distancing requirements.

Walkers now go up the steps and return via the Lyrebird Track fitness steps. Lyrebird Track is still a two-way track that had purpose-built fitness steps installed in 2013.

Parks Victoria area chief ranger Matthew Hoogland said since the steps were made one-way, there had been a lot of positive feedback that the track was safer.

“The 1000 Steps are very steep and narrow – mostly less than one metre wide – and they see more than 1.3 million visitors a year. Before they were made one-way there were several injuries from trips, slips and falls,” he said.

“We’ve also installed 11 passing bays to allow people to pull over and let faster walkers or runners past.”

The 1000 Steps finally reopened last week, more than a year after devastating storms ripped through the Dandenong Ranges.

The 1.4km Kokoda Track Memorial Walk in Upper Ferntree Gully welcomed back walkers and runners on Tuesday, 15 months after it was forced to close due to storm damage.

About 150 trees fell across the steep track in the June 2021 storms, dislodging many concrete steps and causing extensive damage to the safety hand rails and support posts.

Parks Victoria said because of its location and the steepness of the track, the clean-up had been a challenge.

Repair and recovery works have replaced damaged steps and handrailing along the track, with materials carried in by hand due to the challenging terrain.

Damage at the 1000 Steps after the June 2021 storms.

Many of the steps were ripped up.

According to Parks Victoria, the track was created in the early 1900s, and the 1000 Steps walk was originally made from tree fern trunks laid along the wetter areas of the track to make the climb easier.

These were eventually replaced by wooden palings, and more permanent concrete steps have since been installed.

The 1000 Steps are reminiscent of the first 100m of the Kokoda Track in Papua New Guinea and have been dedicated to the Australian Military Forces who fought and died there.

Thousands of Victorians tackle the Steps each year, and they are never far from the headlines.

A couple not wearing masks were fined while visiting the Steps in 2020, while illegal parking around the site has been labelled “an accident waiting to happen.”

A man with a toddler strapped to his chest also ignored lockdown rules to visit the Steps in 2021, boasting on social media about defying a park closure.

Storm recovery works at the Steps have been supported by part of the $76.5m of state-wide funding by the state government.

Energy, Environment and Climate Action Minister Lily D’Ambrosio said:

“(The) 1000 Steps are an important and popular destination within Victoria, Australia and internationally.

“This funding has given our well-loved 1000 Steps a new lease on life, so all visitors can enjoy them for generations to come.”