Muogamarra Nature Reserve will once again celebrate ‘Muogamarra Open Season’ by welcoming visitors over a six-week period to experience all the reserve has to offer, including species of native plants and animals as well as the area's rich Aboriginal history.
The reserve, which is situated just north of Sydney, is closed for much of the year to protect its significant Aboriginal cultural heritage and fragile ecosystem except for a brief period during August and September when visitors can visit the sanctuary.
Visitors will experience over 900 native plants, including glorious wildflowers coming into bloom such as waratahs, majestic angophoras, old-man banksias, pink boronias and delicate native orchids.
The nature reserve is also home to 14 species of native mammals, including the swamp wallaby, brush tail possum and echidnas, while birdwatchers might glimpse a soaring wedge-tail eagle or an iconic lyrebird.
Walking tracks around the nature reserve offer stunning views of the Hawkesbury River and Berowra Creek, as well as expansive views of Bar, Milson and Spectacle islands.
This year, Muogamarra Nature Reserve commemorates 90 years since the reserve was established by railway engineer and conservationist John Duncan Tipper in 1934, who named the sanctuary Muogamarra, after what he believed was an Awabakal word meaning ‘preserve for the future’.
Driven by a passion to safeguard the area’s native flora and fauna from development, Mr. Tipper secured a lease for the land in 1933.
Tipper worked tirelessly to protect native flora and set up essential infrastructure, like a volunteer bushfire brigade and museum.
Due to the immense popularity of these events in recent years, NSW National Parks and Wildlife Service (NPWS) has added several more tours to this year’s program.
Four different types of guided tours are on offer for visitors, with each tour covering a different section of the park and ranging from around three to ten kilometres of walking.
There is also the option for visitors to take part in a self-guided tour if they want to experience the reserve in their own time.
The reserve will be open from 17 August to 22 September, with tickets available now via the NPWS website.
NPWS encourages those keen to experience this unique area to get in early and book a limited guided or self-guided tour, which are essential to gain access to the reserve.
NSW National Parks annual passes are not valid for entry to Muogamarra Nature Reserve.
Quotes attributable to Executive Director Park Operations Coastal Naomi Stephens:
“Every year Muogamarra Nature Reserve is opened to the public for a short time, and I implore the public to take advantage of this unique opportunity to view breathtaking flora and fauna which we are lucky enough to have in our backyard.
“For 90 years workers, volunteers and stakeholders have ensured Muogamarra is a one-of-a-kind reserve, offering experiences that cannot be found anywhere else in the world.
“I would like to thank each and every one of them for their hard work and dedication to this beautiful land.”
ENDS