Circuit
Town Walks
Grade 1
1.3 km
30 minutes
Grade 1: No bushwalking experience required. Flat even surface with no steps or steep sections. Suitable for wheelchair users who have someone to assist them. Walks no greater than 5km.
Grade 2: No bushwalking experience required. The track is hardened or compacted surface and may have a gentle hill section or sections and occasional steps. Walks no greater than 10km.
Grade 3: Suitable for most ages and fitness levels. Some bushwalking experience recommended. Tracks may have short steep hill sections a rough surface and many steps. Walks up to 20km.
Grade 4: Bushwalking experience recommended. Tracks may be long, rough and very steep. Directional signage may be limited.
Grade 5: Very experienced bushwalkers with specialised skills, including navigation and emergency first aid. Tracks are likely to be very rough, very steep and unmarked. Walks may be more than 20km.
The original garden was designed by a patient, Robert Coates.
The gardens were extended and improved over the years by Mr Hugh Linaker in 1912, by Dr Farren Ridge in 1930 and again in the 1980s. One of the distinctive features was the use of a ha-ha wall around the patients' courtyards. The ha-ha wall consisted of a trench, one side of which was vertical and faced with stone or bricks, the other side sloped and turfed. From the inside, the walls presented a tall face to patients, preventing them from escaping, while from outside, the walls looked low so as not to suggest imprisonment.
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