Best Kept Secrets
Sea ACRES W I T H
L I N D A
H A L L
Linda Hall, Team Leader Northern Zone - Customer Experience Division, NSW National Parks and Wildlife Service (NPWS) shares some of the history behind iconic local attraction Sea Acres, which also offers an array of facilities to its many vistors ...
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hen was Sea Acres declared to be a National Park? Sea Acres was dedicated as a Nature Reserve in 1987 and became a National Park in 2011, mainly due to the recreational uses identified in the Park. Sea Acres was also the first coastal landscape to attract a Heritage Listing for the preservation of an area containing an outstanding remnant of coastal rainforest. How large an area does Sea Acres encompass, and what are some of the most common flora and fauna species on site? Sea Acres Rainforest Centre is located 4 km south of the Port Macquarie CBD. The reserve is 72 ha, the second largest coastal rainforest left in NSW. It is home to at least 275 different plants and 140 animal species, including the Australian Brush Turkey, the Lace Monitor, Green Cat Birds, Bangalow Palms, Strangler Figs and the prehistoric Bolwarra tree. Describe the education centre at Sea Acres ... The outdoor classroom was constructed in 2010 in memory of Bryce Laut, who was killed while firefighting in 2008. His family donated towards the construction in his memory. It is a beautiful place for storytelling, meditation and children’s activities, or just sitting enjoying the tranquillity of the rainforest. Other functions, facilities and tours at the Centre include: two additional rooms for hire offering a tranquil, accessible place to hold meetings, training workshops and small conferences; fully guided tours included in the boardwalk entry fee; Yun Yi Barragay (walk with me) - Aboriginal Eco-cultural Experiences; School Rainforest Tours from 6 to 12 years; WilderQuest interactive area - WilderQuest is a NPWS children’s programme designed to nurture a love of nature. Children can experience nature by visiting the WilderQuest
42 greater port macquarie focus.
Greg Croft, former Regional Manager for the Mid North Coast NPWS and now Volunteer Guide at Sea Acres Rainforest Centre, showing some visitors the sights.
website, playing the award-winning educational is also located along Sea Acres Rainforest app or having a WilderQuest experience at NPWS Boardwalk and is a fun self-guided interactive visitor centres like Sea Acres; Tours for TAFE and experience designed specifically for families university students; Coach tours are also catered with primary-aged children. It links into the for. award-winning WilderQuest digital programme. There’s also a special eatery on site. Tell The interpretation has been specially developed us more about this venue … The Rainforest for guiding and stimulating children to explore Café is a delightful place for a delicious lunch or the walk themselves. It also tests their powers morning and afternoon tea. Relax and unwind, of observation on a quest for rainforest animals. while French chef Jean-Louis prepares delicious At the end of the trail, children receive a special fresh food, all with a local influence. A French code card that unlocks content they can access influence can also be seen in the daily specials at home on the educational WilderQuest interacand homemade cakes and desserts. Open 7 days tive website: www.wilderquest.nsw.gov.au from 9am - 4pm, public holidays Boardwalk entry fees: $8 adult, $4 school 10am - 4pm and age child, $16 per family (two adults, closed Christmas Day. two children), $7 pension/seniors Sea Acres Describe the boardwalk card, companion card/carer free st Rainfore that winds its way of charge. d te ca Centre is lo e through Sea Acres. What is known about Sea th of h ut 4 km so D. CB ie The Sea Acres Acres’ significance to local ar qu ac M Port ha , 72 is e Rainforest Boardwalk indigenous people? Sea Acres rv se re e Th est is best experienced on National Park is the traditional the second larg st left a guided tour. Many country of the Birpai people. The co astal rainfore wonders of the rainforest park’s landscape has provided a in NSW. ” reside above ground level, rich source of food, medicines and so getting up into the canopy is shelter for thousands of years. Evidence the best way to explore it properly. An of Aboriginal inhabitants has been found in easy 1.3 km walk through the rainforest Sea Acres National Park, and it is likely the Birpai canopy, rising 7 metres through the forest used the area for fishing, hunting and gathering. understory to the canopy above, Sea Acres RainIf you are looking for an educational experience forest boardwalk provides the perfect platform within Sea Acres National Park, then take some from which to experience this busy habitat. Built time out to have a look at The Spirit of the in 1987 and completed in 1989, the boardwalk Land exhibition located downstairs at Sea Acres is 1.5 metres wide with a maximum gradient of Rainforest Centre. This multimedia interactive 2.5 degrees. The boardwalk was built to allow exhibition takes you on a virtual tour of Birpai people to enjoy a walk through the rainforest Country and introduces you to key Birpai stories. without disturbing the vegetation. The boardThe exhibition showcases local national parks walk ranges from 30 cm to 7 metres above the through a range of audio visual, interactive meground and winds its way between the trees, dia and visual arts displays. Visitors to the exhiallowing visitors to see all levels of the rainforest bition will learn about the rich Aboriginal culture and is suitable for wheelchairs and prams. of the Port Macquarie region and be captivated The WilderQuest rainforest discovery trail by the use of digital sand performances of two
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Birpai Aboriginal stories: The Legend of the Three Brothers and Birpai Dreaming - and create their own “sand story” in the sand play light box. What have been some of the major changes experienced at Sea Acres since it first opened? Sea Acres Rainforest centre was refurbished in 2011; a strong focus on Aboriginal programmes and connection to Country e.g. Spirit of the Land exhibition (2012), Yun Yi Barragay Cultural tours (2007); growth in volunteer participation and in turn increasing guides and tour numbers; Community programmes, including education seminars, talks and open days. Sea Acres Rainforest Centre is one of 16 Visitor Centres throughout the state that sits under a relatively new division of NPWS, called the Customer Experience Division (CED). This Division is responsible for delivering customer strategies and services, including digital and voice channels, marketing, education and volunteering, to all of OEH and its cluster agencies. CED is also responsible for the on-ground delivery of core National Parks and Wildlife Service (NPWS) customer service functions, including face to face services, experience development and tourism partnerships. In November 2015, Sea Acres Rainforest Centre won the Silver Award for Specialised Tourism Services at the NSW Tourism Awards. This award is testament to the diverse and passionate work conducted by the team at Sea Acres Rainforest centre 364 days of the year in the area of environmental education, conservation, and visitor experiences. Opening days/hours? 9am - 4:30pm daily (closed Christmas Day). More info? Phone the Centre during business hours on 6582 3355, visit our website at http:// www.nationalparks.nsw.gov.au or follow us on Facebook: NSW National Parks and Wildlife Service. Thanks Linda. Interview by Jo Atkins.