Nine black swans, one very determined two-year-old on a scooter, and not a single hill the whole way round. That was my Sunday morning at Lake Monger a few weeks back, and it reminded me why this spot gets recommended to every new parent in Perth within about a fortnight of them moving here.
The Lake Monger loop is roughly 3.5 kilometres of flat, mostly sealed path circling the lake in Wembley, and it's become the default answer whenever someone asks me where to take a pram in Perth without wanting to throw the whole thing in the water by the halfway mark. No steep bits, no loose gravel sections that eat front wheels, no surprise stairs. Just a loop, a lake, and birds doing bird things the entire way.
Why this loop works so well for prams and little legs
Most of Perth's good walking spots have a catch. Kings Park has the view but also the crowds and the odd set of stairs down to the war memorial. Hyde Park in Mount Lawley has gorgeous plane trees but gets heaps busy on weekends and the path narrows in spots where two prams can't pass comfortably. Lake Monger doesn't have that problem. The path is wide, it's flat, and because the lake sits in a shallow basin there's no real gradient to speak of anywhere on the circuit.
I'll be honest, I reckon Lake Monger is underrated next to Hyde Park. Everyone photographs the plane trees in autumn and forgets that Lake Monger gives you the same leafy, lakeside feel with about a third of the foot traffic and twice the bird life. That's my one gripe with how Perth talks about its parks. The quieter one usually wins.
Starting from the carpark path
If you're coming by car, the easiest entry point is the Lake Monger carpark path, which drops you right onto the loop near the southern end of the lake. There's decent parking along Lake Monger Drive and a few side streets off it, and the path from the carpark is sealed and wide enough for a double pram without anyone doing the awkward single-file shuffle around joggers.
This is the bit most families use as their starting point because it puts you close to the playground and the public toilets, which, if you've got a toddler, you already know matters more than any scenic lookout ever will.
The Lake Monger Drive Shared Path option
If you'd rather skip the carpark altogether and walk in from the Wembley side, the Lake Monger Drive Shared Path runs alongside the road and links straight into the main loop. It's shared with cyclists, so keep half an eye out, but the surface is smooth and it's a good option if you're staying nearby and don't want to deal with parking at all.
We used this entry a lot when my niece was small because her mum lived a few streets back and it meant no car seat wrangling before the walk even started. Small mercies.
The swans themselves
Black swans are the whole reason most people end up at Lake Monger in the first place, and fair enough. They're the state bird emblem for Western Australia, and this is one of the more reliable spots in the metro area to see a decent number of them up close without feeding them, which the local council rightly discourages under the lake's foreshore management guidelines. There's usually a breeding pair or two near the reeds on the eastern side, and in spring you might get lucky with cygnets trailing along behind.
Their always more of them near the northern end in the cooler months, from what I've noticed over the years, though I'll admit that's just a pattern I've picked up rather than anything official. The lake also pulls in pelicans, ibis and the odd heron standing dead still in the shallows like it's working something out.
Growing up with this lake
I didn't grow up near Lake Monger myself. Fremantle was home, and my family's version of this walk was usually along the river near South Terrace instead. But my aunt lived in Wembley for decades and this was her Sunday loop, rain or shine, and she still does it most weeks with a thermos and a book she never reads. Every time I visit her I end up doing the loop too, and every time I notice something I'd missed before, usually a new bit of signage about the water birds or a different bench someone's claimed as theirs.
Getting there without a car
If you're relying on public transport, Transperth services run close to the lake from both the city and surrounding suburbs, and it's a straightforward walk from the nearest stops to any of the main entry points. Worth checking current timetables before you head out, since Sunday frequencies on some routes are a bit thinner than weekdays.
Making a full day of it
Lake Monger is proper good as a standalone outing, but if you've got the whole day up your sleeve, it pairs well with a longer excursion further out. A lot of families treat it as the easy morning leg before heading out to Whiteman Park for the afternoon, since the drive isn't long and the kids get a second, bigger space to run around once they've worked the wriggles out at the lake. Others use the Lake Monger loop as a kind of warm-up walk before a bigger weekend away, the same way some of us treat a short coastal stroll before a proper road trip up to Kalbarri.
We've actually covered the loop in more detail before, including seasonal notes on when the swans are most active and which bench spots get shade longest into the afternoon, over in Lake Monger's loop: black swans and a stroller-friendly path, if you want the deeper version of this same walk.
A few practical notes before you go
Bring water, even in winter, because there's limited shade on the western stretch and prams heat up faster than you'd think under clear Perth skies. The path does flood in low-lying patches after heavy rain, so if we've had a proper downpour the night before, check the eastern section before committing the whole pram convoy to it.
- Toilets and a playground near the southern carpark entrance
- Shade is patchier on the western side of the loop, better on the east
- Dogs are allowed on lead around most of the path
- Cyclists share the Lake Monger Drive section, so keep prams to the inside where possible
I still reckon it's one of the better free mornings you can give a toddler in this city. No entry fee, no booking, just a lake, some birds that couldn't care less about you, and a path that doesn't ask much of anyone pushing a pram.