John Forrest National Park is rich in history, natural beauty and wildflowers. It is Western Australia’s first (and Australia’s second) national park. It was declared as National Park back in 1900 by WA’s first Premier Sir John Forrest and renamed as John Forrest National Park in 1947 to honour the great politician and explorer. The park is located in the Perth Hills, approximately 30km east from the city centre.
The State’s main railway passed through the park until its closure in 1966. Now it is a Heritage Trail where you can see famous Swan View Tunnel. It is a 2.2km from the picnic area.
The park has a number of hiking trails, ranging from easy 300m Promenade loop around a small nature based playground to 16km loop trail.
There are two natural waterfalls within the park, bbq and picnic facilities.
The park is rich in flora and has about 490 species of plants. Late winter and spring are particularly good times to view spectacular display of wildflowers.
We enjoyed our visit to John Forrest National Park. It is a great place to visit over the weekend to learn about history, hike, relax and admire the views.
Looking for more places to visit with wildflowers or waterfalls around Perth? Check out our blogs.