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Channel 9
The Coorong
Tour Guide
The Coorong National Park is located on the South-East coast of South Australia. Take a look at the map below.
The Coorong National Park
South Australia
South Australia if the fourth largest state in Australia.
It has a population of 1.7 million people with most of those people living in the capital city Adelaide.
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What is a built feature?
The built features of a place or the built environment includes everything that has been built by humans. It is the places humans have built to be able to live, learn and work. The built environment ranges in scale from buildings to parks.
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The local people
The Coorong National Park is a beautiful natural environment with many local people looking after it.
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Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people who lived along the Coorong were the Ngarrindjeri People. The Ngarrindjeri people were the Traditional Owners of the Coorong area.
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The local people who live along the Coorong use it for all the amazing things it has to offer. The locals enjoy going bushwalking, mountain biking, river cruises, bird watching, kayaking, canoeing, fishing and 4 wheel driving. There many activities that can be done in the Coorong area. Many visitors enjoy camping in the surrounding areas to be able to take in all that it has to offer.
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These activities have resulted in many tourists coming to visit the Coorong National Park. The number of people visiting the area has been increasing every year. This means humans need to build and create features that will help manage the large amounts of people visiting.
Luckily the locals and the Traditional Owners care for the Coorong National Park and have built these features in a way that will care and protect the environment.
Built Features
The Coorong National Park is a beautiful natural environment, for humans to enjoy it there have been items added to make it easier.
Continue reading to read more about them.
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BOATS
The Coorong National Park consists of over 150km of lagoon and coastline waters to explore. This area is ideal for going out and exploring on a boat. Boats have been a human made feature that make it easier to be able to explore and enjoy the Coorong.
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There are two separate areas of water in the Coorong, the Northern Lagoon and the Southern Lagoon. There is lots to explore in these waters. There are areas for small boats and large boats. There are areas that are great to fish off the side of the boat, areas that are great to spot dolphins and areas that are great for relaxing on the boat.
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JETTY
A jetty is a wooden structure that reaches from land out to the water. They are a walkway that is similar to a path that allows you to get to the deeper parts of the water. The purpose of getting to the deeper waters is to be able to tie boats up to the jetty and remove anyone or anything onboard. A jetty is also used to protect the shoreline of an environment by acting as a barrier against the currents and waves of the water.
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The jetties in the Coorong National Park are used for boats, fishing and leisure activities. Humans built the jetty in the Coorong in order to allow human access to the deeper water and to protect the environment from the damages that water can create.
BUSHWALKING TRACKS
Bush walking tracks and bush tracks have been formed to allow tourists and locals to be able to admire the national park at closer level. These tracks allow you to walk on foot and witness the national park, the flora and the fauna with your own senses. The tracks aim to promote growth in the areas around the paths and keeping all foot damage to the area where the path is.
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By creating these walking paths, it has allowed the Traditional Owners to keep their sacred sites off the tracks, keep the plants growth strong and protect the area.
GOOLWA BARRAGE
A barrage is a man made barrier that goes across a large body of water to prevent flooding of the area. The Goolwa Barrages are five barrage structures within the Coorong. Humans originally created these barrages to reduce the salt levels within the water and maintain the freshness. By maintaining the freshness of the water it encourages the productivity of the surrounding areas such as allowing plants to grow better.
The barrages took 5 years to build between 1935 and 1940. Each of the five barrages was designed to suit the particular area it was built. The main barrage is 632 metres long and controls 70% of the river flow. The main Goolwa barrage is the deepest of all.
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These man made features were made to reduce the salt in the water in order to promote the growth of plants around the area. They were also made to protect the Coorong currents and tides from beginning to damage the surrounding areas. By creating these, the Coorong barrages also allow water to be pumped to surrounding areas including Adelaide for their general water use.
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Accommodation
To visit the Coorong National Park you can have many options of where to stay. Many people choose to go camping along the Coorong but their are options of houses as well.
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To go camping around the Cooorong you can stay at the 42 Mile Crossing Campground for $15 a night per person. In this campground there are no built facilities such as toilets, fire pits, barbecues or anything similar. The area is a beautiful, completely natural area that you can enjoy the environment including sleeping right next to the water. This camp spot is perfect for fishing, canoeing and kayaking.
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For those not wanting to stay in a tent you can book a room at the Coorong Hotel and Motel. For a room in this hotel for two people it will cost approximately $75 for the night. These rooms will include a television, fridge, air-conditioner and WiFi.
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Choosing between the camp ground and the hotel is a personal preference and depends what each person feels more comfortable staying in.
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For more fun facts and photos
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