currawinya national park

A beautiful rugged place to visit, but not for the faint hearted, as it is very isolated and beyond the limited options at the nearby border town of Hungerford, there are almost no facilities . I first visited in 2002 for the opening of the Bilby enclosure and camped in council caravan park at Hungerford. The second time I stayed at the only other accommodation option the Royal Mail Hotel in Hungerford, just a short unsealed drive from the entrance to the park. Once fully operational cattle properties the ancient countryside at Currawinya is very seductive, with abundant birds and reptiles, fascinating inland lakes, rich red inland soils and rocky outcrops. Probably best to research the area before visiting though, as although the local publican and some limited information boards available give a great picture of the secrets of this area, it is hard to get the full story once you have arrived. This is hot, arid/semi-arid land and best not visited at the height of summer.

A gorgeous outback national park full of emus, kangaroos and birds, plus a number of feral animals including goats and cattle. Apparently there are wild boar here too but we didnt spot them on our visit. In early spring the salt lakes were mostly empty (you cannot access these as they are delicate ecosystems, but you can see them from walking tracks and the car park). We watched two Brolga picking ther way across. Lovely! Lake Numalla is the freshwater lake and an absolute haven for birds and wildlife. Take your time here and see flocks of budgerigars, spoonbills, pelicans, pacific black ducks and numerous other birdlife around the water. Its lined by white sand beaches and if it was less windy than on our visit, would be a great spot for a kayak.The signposts could be improved. The road to the lakes is found by following the sign to The Granites, realising you are on the wrong road and turning around seeing the sign! The information could also be better - more information on what birds to look out for at different times of year and so on. The Granites are worth a visit. Loccated 10km down a rather boring straight road they are a spiritual group of granite marbles on a hillside. Climb up for a great view of the plains below. It smells of hospitals up there - something to do with the goat herd that makes them their home.We called into the Rangers Station which was unmanned. We were somewhat disappointed by the lack of information there - just some mud maps of the area. It would have been nice to be able to read boards about the history and wildlife and what they are doing about the feral animals. We learned most of what we know from an old Australian Geographic article (worth looking up before you visit!).

Beautiful, quiet, peaceful spot by this permanent waterhole. Lots of bird life and resident emus and goats. Access road from eulo pretty good, some corregated sections. Toilets at the old woolshed which is about 0.5-1km from the river camping spots. Bush showers also provided.