A Bidjigal Reserve Bushland History
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The bushland of Bidjigal Reserve and adjoining reserves Bidjigal is the new name for Excelsior Reserve and Darling Mills State Forest: part of a 300 hectare corridor of protected public bushland along Darling Mills Creek and its tributaries. One of Sydney's bushland treasures; it's home to 370 native plants and over 140 native animals, with a network of tracks providing many days of interesting exploration. This booklet, with colour photographs throughout, tells the story of the area's natural and cultural heritage, and provides a detailed map of walking tracks and features. We hope it will help local residents and visitors to the area enjoy and appreciate this wonderful, wild landscape. Wild Red Frog Design 02 9954 9094 The bushland of Bidjigal Reserve and adjoining reserves 1 place of rugged natural beauty, full of hidden treasures; a time capsule of ancient eco systems, aboriginal shelters, and colonial history: Bidjigal Reserve has much to offer us - from those who walk Aits tracks every day, to those who enjoy a view of its green expanse while driving by. With sheer cliffs, towering eucalypt forest, sparkling creeks and sheltered rainforest gullies, it’s an island of natural habitat in the middle of urban Sydney. Big enough to support a wide range of wildlife; the reserve is alive with noise, colour, and movement from birds, mammals, reptiles and insects. Most of the reserve has been public land since the earliest days of European settlement, and it’s now entering a new era with a new name, some changes in boundary and its own management trust. This booklet is about Bidjigal Reserve and the adjoining, Council managed, lands. It has been produced to help people understand and enjoy this wonderful patch of bush, and to find their way along its tracks. For practical purposes we have used the name Bidjigal to refer to the entire Darling Mills Creek bushland corridor. Rugged, rocky hillsides are typical of Bidjigal's sandstone country. 2 Place in the landscape Sydney is part of one of the world’s most amazing natural landscapes. We are fortunate to still have an abundance of wildlife, and people in the suburbs don’t always need to visit the bush to enjoy it because it comes to them in the form of colourful parrots, friendly possums - even our fascinating flying foxes. But this is only because we have retained wild places like Bidjigal Reserve. It’s part of a network of habitats across the region, including medium sized patches of bush at Pennant Hills Park, and Berowra Valley, and smaller pockets in parks and on Aboriginal connections private land. Large areas of National Park and The first Aboriginal people probably arrived uncleared private bush to the north, south in the Sydney region over 40,000 years ago. and west of Sydney complete the picture. The earliest record of people in Bidjigal The creeks and drains of Bidjigal Reserve Reserve is from a rock shelter where – and its surrounding catchment flow into starting 10,000 years ago – they left many Darling Mills Creek, then join with stone artefacts, along with animal bones Toongabbie Creek (behind Westmead including Dingo, Eastern Grey Kangaroo, Hospital) to form the Parramatta River, Brush-tailed Rock Wallaby, Swamp Wallaby, flowing east into Sydney Harbour. and Echidna.1 Sandstone cliffs and outcrops provide many interesting vantage points, such as this one near Sanctuary Point Road. The bushland of Bidjigal Reserve and adjoining reserves 3 Left: Many plants had multiple indigenous uses, such as the versatile Grass Tree Xanthorrhoea which provided spear shafts (flower stems), glue (resin), flavouring for sweet drinks (nectar), nourishing snacks (leaf bases), and drills for starting fires (dry flower stems). Right: One of Bidgigal’s many rock shelters. Bidjigal Reserve had a lot to offer the the clan, and many of their neighbours. aboriginal people for a short stopover or Although the survivors continued many extended stay: aspects of traditional life, within about 30 • a choice of rock overhangs for shelter, years the ongoing expansion of European • permanent fresh water for fishing and settlement made this impossible. Despite swimming, such great changes, descendants continued • a wide range of plants and animals to preserve and celebrate their culture right useful for food, medicine, fibre for up to the present day. weaving baskets and bags, and wood for Most of the landscapes of Darug country, weapons, tools and containers, including the tall forests of the ridgetops, the • sandstone for tool sharpening (although open woodland of the Cumberland Plain, the basalt, silcrete and quartz suitable for and the highly productive river flats have making axes and sharp edged tools would almost disappeared, but the reserve is one have been acquired elsewhere), slice of ancient Sydney that has remained • easy access (1 or 2 hour walk) to tall relatively unchanged. forests of the shale ridges, and the open forests of Cumberland Plain to the west, • proximity to major regional travel routes Coo-ee! How Many Darug generally along ridgetops, such as Old words do you know? Northern Road between Parramatta and the Hawkesbury. Wallaby, Wombat, Potoroo, Koala, When Europeans arrived the area was Bettong, Waratah, Corroboree, and part of the territory of the Bidjigal clan of the boomerang are some of the more Darug people. But their use of the reserve common words adopted from the came to a sudden and tragic end in 1790 Darug language. when the smallpox epidemic killed most of 1000m A a v h a e r t Pl a r l O P et Lorike r D ird ll b Contour interval = 2m B eT hornbill Wy r l D P f Rd v a ie n l A e l l l 0 s e be w l r P ik Richard Webb so o ce Cr I l e n l l i l A e W E Sp l a r Reservey P r a l r d u Emerald S P t h G o b a g e l n i a l C o li P y e s d t L k n w sa ne Bru o e o P u n l a l t g r p D n o Ta e Ne Ma r l D K Bron r R y Cl l o xwel e k a WEST P d W m n d d n a l e e n lP o en Gr h a y e D o Pl e P k l l er Pl e d P n i rw m y h cks e o A t a r Feath o C Ge L e r y b o w e C l Pl m n C e d a PENNANTn a e Av g r K h n B B to l u s a HILLSy di P d Candleb r l a r i r l G a e d R D C H R t c yla C nda C y l e o k n C e g e TheHer s K a mi g t i tage P n c i s i M n r R l l n o r t e d g a P s Moola H s y e Rd a l R a r l r D W e r s R l v l ton a C w r y A a t e ood e g th Pl l o n r E r lle C l t e i i u n n r o v i m C r eCr D o r c u a e li ad e e S M Fa w M y o P a N l t l r H M A K l x C C P o Murra c a v n g i m E h t am t h e k k s k a h a e c n e e n r e y w r a W e Pl r D Frankish k Ba Fa C r a o t i M r Cambewarra Av Greenvale Pl C l C m e o P d nR l e e Pl v R p A e a i d a d d r i Rd l i Tambar ooraPl r g n k e i r r r a a l 1 n v rgi i h e c e G P l a h t Vi h P Excelsior Av s l n a l C G r emo e i C Ridg o C D r W n h Highs n G v ris T r ov e C A te v e ford A d B r ush f s l P m B e A n JacanaPl r n v Gle a n i a l u i v k *P s H k b v l d G i i Eric Mobbs l P A nAv e T l a Reserve h l o CASTLE Clarissa Pl c e l n d k y a C i t R r C e s e u r d a e l n o B a e u l C HILL Fergu r O P v l e Cynthia A m B P Blue C y I Bya r mb i r e onDrayt A a k v C 2 G i Eaglehawk P l u o r e s t s d ell D c a R M i l e G w l r el Av e n s S r tt a r st e b a ri n orth l w Pl S o h u b C r e e C B r o d k C a h M eP h a e tt C g p or e i e u n l G M nro o St e An g m Y s i a n le e K P Bomba A C rdiere Pl r l a Rd Cooinda Pl C yPl cks r a bil Cres rle Ro t A th P owe or ar e P l Pl n l P N yS i aine le de l r l a a ra A lso w R A urn D B weena Av p Avee o k v b d e p R Ca n e e a r H d Merinda Av C C Pl G i rra long A h Cr lenda v s ra G u r v v a A l A B L Pl s n n a a o t m l derson A RD s aP da s l v n rra ana Pl i P A n r r a e o Pater r r t h a d l e l C v b Lut C R Car Ti C A r m d l i r a l Kimba e Cross St R u h i B t l a M M E k S e r g r dra P o e In Pa G t S arclay Rd Bak McG P B s er ee Cr AvW Darrambal l Cros i tonga Cr Aminya P l Reppan Av l P NORTH St y la BAULKHAMHILLS T a ry Pl o k P w j r a rjo o R ROCKS t t Coo o Ma R eTed Horwood M l eSt n Reserve P Brodi Juniper Pl o 2 w n t M d r n 3 o hGr R c R h d s T Cypress C Bir m W i l low D r r ia l C il W Rd y e e n c e p h s n t o a S n H C r e e k F ore s t R d r C a n i tr Pe ton St nyon Rd Lin a C P W NORTH Pl rn ey Rd o North R nc h oc ristel Av H a T ROCKS ks R Ch r t d C S t l S r y C a ll d ia rr e ph n s S o a e s RH P u t ackett P R S l A ay W 4 v ny v i A Ebo n le t a o emed d n n Dr R w Ota A A a Rd v g v n L s Av o P i d r k ysdown A l f e w Pl c Le d l e d o n R R R a iPl a A l k ks ng v n t c rth di o d S o Yal R ana R g R No e ry h a t w Tar r k u P r e e v u C r b ano o r So Ve t Ne a D n A k v d v la o N Ba Le A S o r r A nto aSt g l n n tt d W i n Pl i e l e l R e r Kira Av l i t A t a r g S v r C o e s h t d Richar u n i R W dC ent Rd r l T Range Rd fle Ri Lo yaltyR d Bidjigal Reserve and Surrounding Bushland v A v n A 5 o t a l P r Parking 1 l BBQ Loch Bruce u e B d n Bridge 2 W a Picnic Facilities Bald Hill Pl Playground Powerlines 3 Bidjiwong Nursery K m l S E T 4 e Shops d Toilets Rifle Range Stairs W i nde R r e m er s v e Av k r c A t 5 o Flood Retarding Basin h R t C r h o t 6 r s w The Convict Road t o M l a n r y N St l e lliam S 7 i W i Rocky Hall Dam W t S NORTHMEAD M t v e A r a Burraga Track Vegetation Communities e g g r Wats on Pl r r C m Pl a Elizab e a eth n l i m l il s P i W sDo r a rse e l Sydney Sandstone Gully Open Forest r t A l t v a r A nd G W a e r son Rd Edith Pl D Sydney Sandstone Ridgetop Woodland C T Platypus Track um hir dD b lm R o ria ere l i n e A v k rs Pl n A d e r et Leven C v Sydney Sandstone Scrub/ Heath a a A l M v m s i B Caprera Rd Sydney Turpentine Ironbark Forest L o l d P Murri-yanna Track o r r a Blue Gum Riverflat Forest e Pl g l The Carr a iage v way f a A r Py e T Closed Forest Other tracks Blue Gum High Forest Sp ee 6 rs 7 Rd Speers Rd Bidjigal Reserve, as gazetted in 2004, is outlined with the rest of the land is managed by Council.