Belair National Park South Australia | |
---|---|
Nearest town or city | Adelaide, South Australia |
Coordinates | 35°00′47″S138°39′21″E / 35.01306°S 138.65583°E |
Established | 1891 [2] |
Area | 8.35 km2 (3.2 sq mi) [1] |
Visitation | 358,619 (in 2003) [3] |
Managing authorities | Department of Environment and Water |
Website | Belair National Park |
See also | Protected areas of South Australia |
Belair National Park (formerly known as the National Park and as Belair Recreation Park) is a protected area in Belair, South Australia, 9 kilometres (5.6 miles) southeast of Adelaide city centre; it covers an area of 835 hectares (2,060 acres). It was proclaimed in 1891 and was the first national park in South Australia, second in Australia (after Sydney's Royal National Park which was proclaimed in 1879) and the tenth in the world. [4] The national park lies within the Adelaide Hills and Mitcham council area, and forms part of a chain of protected areas located along the Adelaide Hills Face Zone. The national park is administered by the Department of Environment, Water and Natural Resources.
For most of its existence, it has been known as the 'National Park'. Between the years 1972 and 1991 it was known as the 'Belair Recreation Park'. In 1991, the Belair Recreation Park was abolished and the land that it occupied was constituted as a national park and given the name “Belair National Park”. [5] [6]
Belair was originally inhabited by the Kaurna Aboriginal people. The area was called Pradli, which means “baldness”, because the appearance of the area when looking south from the Adelaide Plains was “bald like the moon.” [7] The first Europeans to set foot in the area were crewmen from the Coromandel in 1837. [7] The first European to settle in the area was a squatter, E. Nicholas Foott, who in 1839 dug a well and built a stone cottage, spending £500 despite not holding a title to the land. [8] In 1840, South Australian governor George Gawler set the land aside for a government farm, [7] forcing Foott to leave the land, though he was paid £300 for his improvements to the land (he later became a member of the Victorian Legislative Assembly). [8]
Governor Grey arrived in May 1841, with a remit to cut Government expenditure and raise revenue, and announced in the Gazette of 15 July of the intended sale by auction of the land. This, however, did not take place, and in the depression of 1841–1842 a dozen or so unemployed men and their families were allowed to settle there temporarily. In June 1844, four sections at the western end (874, 875, 878 and 882) totalling about 400 acres (160 ha) were sold. In 1848 a cottage, long since demolished, was erected alongside the creek as a residence for the farm manager, and for occasional use by the Governor. In 1858 a residence, complete with swimming pool, was built as a "summer house" for the Governor, Sir Richard MacDonnell (served 1855–1862), and used by his successors Sir Anthony Musgrave (1873–1877), and Sir William Jervois (1877–1883), until the more imposing edifice at Marble Hill was completed in 1880. Now known as Old Government House, the building is heritage-listed.
From 1874 to 1884 the Government Farm was managed by William Cook (1815–1897), father of Edith Agnes Cook. His eldest daughter Katherine wrote an article on that period of the farm's history [9] for the South Australian Archives. [10] His predecessor was Ebenezer Jarvis (c. 1829–1897), who left to take a post as manager of Government House, Adelaide. Two great bushfires occurred during their time; in 1866/1867 and 1877, when many old trees were destroyed. [11] Proposals in 1881 to sell off parts of small portions of the land were opposed by Walter Gooch, James Page and the Australian Natives Association, which led in 1883 to an Act of Parliament prohibiting its sale. In 1888 further agitation by Gooch, Arthur Falconer Robin (1867–1906) and Samuel Dixon of the Royal Society of South Australia led to a parliamentary decision that the Government Farm be established as a public park, and after some delays the National Park Act received the Governor's assent in January 1892. [12] Another person given partial credit was William Henry Selway of the Field Naturalists' Section of the Royal Society. [13]
A nine-hole golf course was constructed in the southwest corner of the park in 1934 in an attempt by the state government to raise money for the park's maintenance during the Great Depression. [14] The course was expanded to 18 holes in 1941, redeveloped in the 1970's, and sold to a private operator in 1982. The Belair Park Country Club ran the course until it went into administration in January 2018. [15] The state government proposed to repurpose part of the golf course and build a seven-pitch soccer field for the Sturt Lions Football Club, but this proposal met with backlash from the local community during the public consultation period, with more than 8,000 people signing a petition opposing the development. [14] [16] The day after the consultation period ended, Environment Minister David Speirs announced that the plan would not go ahead, [17] and in October 2021, the government announced that high-impact development in the former golf course would be banned and that parts of the land would be re-vegetated and returned to the rest of the park. [16]
In 1985, the Belair National Park was declared as a state heritage area under the South Australian Heritage Act 1978-1980. [4] [18] In 1987, the nearby National Park railway station was closed.
The first European people traversed the Belair area in 1837. In 1840, Governor Gawler raised a government farm on which sick horses and bullocks from government departments could be agisted. In 1881, a proposal was put forward for small agricultural holdings and also, the national park was dedicated, making it the first National Park in South Australia. Many exotic and non-indigenous plants were introduced and are now found in the park as weeds. Numerous native plants, such as Cootamundra wattle, have become environmental weeds after being introduced into areas outside their natural range.
The Belair National Park has suffered major disturbance to its natural ecosystems and natural vegetation communities through the accidental invasion of non-indigenous plants as well as the deliberate introduction of exotic and non-indigenous plants to certain zones within the park. In spite of these problems, several remnant stands of rare native plant species endemic to the Mt Lofty Ranges can be found there in season, mostly along tracks in less visited areas of the park's walking trail system. Both Donkey Orchids and Spider Orchids are among several diminutive flowers usually seen late winter each year.
Belair National Park is situated 13 km south east of Adelaide city centre in South Australia, in the suburb of Belair, and is one of the few remaining areas of relatively undisturbed native vegetation in the Adelaide Hills. [7] [19]
A short circuit around Playford Lake.
A 3 km circuit walk from the main car park to the Adventure Playground.
A 3 km circuit walk to Long Gully.
A 4 km circuit departing from near Playford Lake.
A 6.5 km circuit that visits the park's waterfalls and travels to the higher areas away from the recreation areas.
The first 5 km of the Yurrebilla Trail is in the national park. It begins at the Belair railway station and continues toward the Lower Waterfall before departing the park at the Sheoak Road boundary.
Belairs national park signifies South Australia's commitment to preserving the natural areas for both conservation and recreation.
Protected areas of South Australia consists of protected areas located within South Australia and its immediate onshore waters and which are managed by South Australian Government agencies. As of March 2018, South Australia contains 359 separate protected areas declared under the National Parks and Wildlife Act 1972, the Crown Land Management Act 2009 and the Wilderness Protection Act 1992 which have a total land area of 211,387.48 km2 (81,617.16 sq mi) or 21.5% of the state's area.
Onkaparinga River National Park is a protected area in the Australian state of South Australia located about 32 kilometres (20 mi) south of Adelaide city centre. It extends over the floodplain of the Onkaparinga River east of Main South Road.
Onkaparinga River Recreation Park is a protected area occupying land in the estuary of the Onkaparinga River in South Australia. The recreation park which was established in 1985 is approximately 32 km (20 mi) from Adelaide city centre. It is the venue for recreational activities such as walking, canoeing, kayaking, recreational fishing and picnics.
Belair is a suburb in the south eastern foothills of Adelaide, South Australia at the base of the Mount Lofty Ranges.
Cleland National Park, formerly Cleland Conservation Park, is a protected area located in the Adelaide Hills, South Australia about 22 kilometres (14 mi) south-east of the Adelaide city centre. It conserves a significant area of natural bushland on the Adelaide Hills face, including Mount Lofty Summit and Waterfall Gully.
Regency Park is an inner-northern suburb of Adelaide, 6 km from the City Centre, in the state of South Australia, Australia. It is located in the City of Port Adelaide Enfield, and is adjacent to Wingfield, Angle Park, Ferryden Park, Kilburn, Prospect, Dudley Park and Croydon Park. It is bounded to the north by Grand Junction Road, east by the Gawler railway line, south by Regency Road and to the west by Days and South Roads. The postcode for Regency Park is 5010.
Totness Recreation Park is a protected area in the Australian state of South Australia located within the localities of Mount Barker and Totness in the central Mount Lofty Ranges. Covering 41 hectares of land, the park is divided by the South Eastern Freeway and features a large dam. It was declared as a reserve in 1970 and re-designated as a recreation park in 1972. The park has no visitor facilities except for access tracks. It is the only park in the district, managed by the Department of Environment and Water, that is solely designated for recreation.
Black Hill Conservation Park, formerly the Black Hill National Park, is a protected area in the Australian state of South Australia located approximately 10 kilometres (6.2 mi) northeast of the state capital of Adelaide. The conservation park is in a rugged bush environment, with a prominent peak, bounded by steep ridges on the southern slopes.
Old Government House is an historic building located in Belair National Park, South Australia, and was South Australia's first official vice-regal summer residence of the Governor of South Australia from 1860 to 1880, and was used by governors Richard Graves MacDonnell (1855–62), Dominick Daly (1862-68) and William Jervois (1877–80). It was constructed from local sandstone, with the red-brick for the quoins sourced from the Blackwood brickworks, and a native timber shingle roof. The residence's indoor plunge-pool was reportedly the first in the colony.
Brownhill Creek Recreation Park is a protected area located about 8 kilometres south of the Adelaide city centre in City of Mitcham along part of the course of the Brown Hill Creek. The recreation park was proclaimed under the National Parks and Wildlife Act 1972 in 1972 to "provide recreation opportunities for the Adelaide and eastern metropolitan region and to conserve remnant aged river red gums and the riparian zone habitat". The land previously subject to protected area status as a "National Pleasure Resort" since 1915. The recreation park is classified as an IUCN Category III protected area.
Cobbler Creek Recreation Park is a 266-hectare (657-acre) protected area located in South Australia about 19 kilometres (12 mi) north of the Adelaide city centre in the suburb of Salisbury East. Originally part of the lands of the Kaurna aboriginal people, it was farmed from European settlement of South Australia until the declaration of the park in 1989.
Hawthorndene is a south-eastern suburb located in the Foothills of the Mount Lofty Ranges of Adelaide, South Australia.
The Sturt Gorge Recreation Park is a protected area in the Australian state of South Australia located in the suburbs of Bellevue Heights, Craigburn Farm and Flagstaff Hill within the Adelaide metropolitan area about 13 kilometres (8.1 mi) south of the Adelaide central business district.
Anstey Hill Recreation Park is a 362-hectare (890-acre) protected area established in 1989 and located approximately 19 kilometres (12 mi) northeast of Adelaide, South Australia. The park is a significant reserve of bushland in the foothills of the Mount Lofty Ranges and is home to rare or vulnerable native plants and animals, and problematic invasive species. It is managed by the City of Tea Tree Gully, the Department of Environment, Water and Natural Resources and a volunteer group—The Friends of Anstey Hill. The park is designed for recreational walking and has no visitor facilities. It is managed in association with the regional planning initiative known as of Yurrebilla, the Greater Mount Lofty Parklands.
Giles Conservation Park is a protected area in the Australian state of South Australia located approximately 10 km (6.2 mi) east of the state capital of Adelaide. It was declared in 2007 and has an area of 109 ha. Previously, the land was the eastern portion of the Horsnell Gully Conservation Park. It was named after the family of Charles Giles who is reported as being a pioneer in the fields of horticulture and floriculture in South Australia.
Blackwood Forest Recreation Park is a protected area located about 12 kilometres south of the Adelaide city centre in the suburb of Hawthorndene. The recreation park was proclaimed under the National Parks and Wildlife Act 1972 in 2001 to retain land purchased in 1908 by the Government of South Australia for use as open space for recreational purposes. The recreation park is classified as an IUCN Category III protected area.
O'Halloran Hill Recreation Park is a protected area located about 16 kilometres south of the Adelaide city centre in the suburbs of Seaview Downs and O’Halloran Hill. As of December 2021 it is in the process of becoming part of the new Glenthorne National Park–Ityamaiitpinna Yarta.
Ferguson Conservation Park, formerly Ferguson National Pleasure Resort and Ferguson Recreation Park, is a protected area in the Australian state of South Australia located within the Adelaide metropolitan area in the suburb of Stonyfell, about 6.5 kilometres east of the Adelaide city centre.
Greenhill Creek Recreation Park is a protected area located in the Australian state of South Australia about 7 kilometres east of the Adelaide city centre in the suburb of Greenhill.
All that land being sections 599, 675, and 1037 in the hundred of Adelaide as shown in the plan as a State Heritage Area.