Western Australia’s stunning Fitzgerald River National Park has been given a massive upgrade that is expected to attract even more grey nomads and other travellers.
An injection of $40 million in joint state and federal government funding has seen 40 kilometres of roads reconstructed and sealed, with a further 40 kilometres of gravel roads upgraded. There are also major improvements to camping grounds, signs, picnic areas, lookouts, car parks and walking tracks.
The decision to upgrade the national park was reached after BHP Biliton closed the Ravensthorpe mine back in 2009, with the loss of more than 600 jobs in Ravensthrope and Hopetoun.
Shire president Ian Goldfinch said the mine closure plunged the area into its ‘darkest hour’. And he says that, although the nickel mine is now operating again after being bought by Canadian company First Quantum, the opening of the upgraded national park still represents the beginning of a new era.
He described Fitzgerald River, some 600 kilometres southeast of Perth, as the jewel in the area’s crown.
“The project was instigated in 2009 and although the region’s fortunes have changed for the better with the reopening of the mine, the new roads and facilities will serve the community and the state well into the future,” he said.
Fitzgerald River National Park is the fifth largest national park in WA and has more than 2000 species of flowers, 200 species of birds, and southern right whales can be spotted from the park in migration season. It also boasts stunning coastal views, superb mountains, gorgeous river gorges … and the opportunity to catch Australian Salmon.
Since the Improvement Project started in 2010, visitor figures numbers to Fitzgerald River National Park have risen by more than 25%. In 2009-10, there were 37,789 visitors, increasing to 48,203 people in 2012/13. A total 48,957 people were recorded visiting the park in 2013-14 from July 1 to March 30 only.
