Wonga Wetlands

Hi!
How is everyone?
I got a chance to dip into the photos I took when I went back to my hometown a couple of months back!

Mum and Dad took me for a walk down at the Wonga Wetlands…
Its an area not far from where we grew up – and I used to ride my horse close by this area. (I grew up in West Albury, NSW which is right on the Murray River – which marks the border between the two states NSW and Victoria (for those unfamiliar with Australian geography))

The history of Wonga Wetlands stretches back to the Yorta Yorta and Wiradjuri people for whom the area provided an important source of food such as fish, mussels, turtles, crayfish, snails and birds (the word ‘Wonga’ means black cormorant) (Info taken from the internet)

At the car park you are greeted with some very cool metallic sculptures of local wildlife

I’ll do a little cutting and pasting of information from the Albury Local Council site

A wetland is an area of land covered with temporary water (year-round, seasonally, or sporadically), long enough for its plants and animals to rely on those wet conditions for survival.

Our wetland sits on the Murray River floodplain and incorporates seven lagoons across 80 hectares. Wonga is home to spectacular ancient red gums and a variety of wildlife, including 176 bird species, all relying on the wetland for survival.

There are lots of walks in among this area, all quite easy and flat, so accessible to pretty much everyone

Shelters and work area examples of what would have been built by early settlers and the Aboriginal People

Was great to see some kangaroos! I’ve gotten used to the tiny fat little Pademelons!

He is checking us out!!

It was a bit of a grey day and we got rained on a little bit but not too bad!

I liked the occasional random sculpture or art piece littered through the area

And the scope for some artistic photography!

and

You can see the pathways are quite wide and flat

Better line Mum and Dad up for a proper shot
(Ten shots later after they’ve stopped talking and mucking about I get a nice shot!! You’d think after having me point cameras at them for a couple of decades they’d know how to behave haha)

Whats around the next corner?

How cool is this lagoon?

Some of the water birds were having a bit of a skirmish!

Since the Hume Dam was built in 1919, the Murray River has been used for irrigation, which has changed the natural flow of our river. This change has reduced flooding, and altered the time of year that floods can occur. As a result of that change, many of our floodplain wetlands and billabongs dried out, destroying the breeding habitats of local birds and fish. The Wonga Wetlands development which commenced in 2000, has helped re-create the natural flow of water into these floodplains, and as a result our birds and other wildlife are coming back. (From Council site)

I like the unkempt natural nature of this place

Swans – quite a lot of them in this area!

How does it all work?

The water bringing new life to this beautiful area isn’t from the river – it’s from the city’s reclaimed water treatment systems. Wonga Wetlands is an innovative and ecologically sustainable way for us to manage and re-use Albury’s reclaimed water.

During drier months Albury’s reclaimed water is used for irrigation and in the wetter months it’s redirected to these wetlands. The wetting and drying cycle recreated by this system replicates what would be happening in an uncontrolled river floodplain – flooding in winter and drying out over summer. Our treatment process uses biological nutrient removal and chemical processes to produce high quality water, which meets the most stringent standards available.

A bit of rain makes the water surface look interesting!

Stunning old tree (River Red Gum)

(From council site)

Before European settlement the original inhabitants and traditional owners of the Murray River area near Albury and Wodonga were the Wiradjuri, Wavereoo and Dhudhuroa people. The river was considered the giver of life, not a divider of communities.

These people moved up and down the river, using bark canoes cut from the majestic red river gums. The river, billabongs and wetlands were a rich and valuable food source. There were fish, mussels, turtles, crayfish, snails and birds and other animals to eat, and mussel shells to use as knives, spoons and scrapers

In recognition of the Wiradjuri people and the assistance they provided in establishing the Wonga Wetlands, particularly the construction of the replica Indigenous campsite (see Wiradjuri Campsite), Council named them ‘Wonga’, which is Wiradjuri for the Little Black Cormorant – still one of the most abundant bird species in this area.

Other Wiradjuri words include:
gunyuck – Black Swan
bringen – Red Kangaroo
munjar – Murray Cod
coleen – water
wangarang – Turtle
wargan – Crow
womboyne – Grey Kangaroo

This is a really amazing area – very peaceful and extremely valuable in all senses of the word!

What Kangaroo I wonder?

Cute little tracks. I can’t tell who made them though!

A lovely seat in case you want to sit and enjoy the views! (Not for us that day since the rain started to set in!)

It was a really lovely morning out, hanging out with my parents and enjoying the gorgeous landscape! I hope you enjoyed it too!
Cheers