Community
21 November, 2025
Mt Elephant’s special milestone
MOUNT Elephant will be marking 25 years of community ownership at the end of the month, with the Mount Elephant Community Management committee inviting residents to celebrate with a special open day.
The celebration will be held on Sunday, November 30 from 11am-4pm, with the mount opened for residents to see how far it has come since it was purchased from private owners by the Derrinallum community in 2000.
“The community decided they’d like to keep it for the community and not let it go into private ownership again, so they got together to purchase it,” Mount Elephant Community Management treasurer Lesley Brown said.
“The purchase price was $200,000, and the community raised $100,000 in five months – Trust for Nature then became our partners and put in $100,000 as well.
“We raised that money through donations so quickly because people were so heartfelt about wanting to keep the mount for the community and the future.
“We’re hoping lots of people come along and go for a walk and see what’s been done in the last 25 years.”
Residents can enjoy a cup of coffee and a baked potato throughout the day, with a special guided walking tour of the mountain set to begin at 12noon.
Mrs Brown said an official ceremony to mark the milestone will be held at 2pm on the day.
“There will be a couple of talks held during the day as well – talking about the different types of volcanic rocks and plants that are there,” she said.
“We will also be hosting a talk about how the mountain has changed since the community bought it – there were no trees on the mount when it was purchased.
“There were also lots of rabbits, pests and weeds around.
“In the 25 years, we’ve planted thousands of trees, put in walking tracks and the built the visitor centre.”
Mrs Brown encouraged residents to come along to 1191 Hamilton Highway, Derrinallum and celebrate the day.
“We hope people feel a sense of achievement when they see what volunteers and the community can do,” she said.
“Mount Elephant is a very special place for everybody.
“None of it would have been achievable without the help of all the volunteers we’ve had along the way.”
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