Great Sandy National Park
Encyclopedia
Great Sandy is a coastal national park and suburb in Queensland
, Australia
. The park features untouched beaches, large sand dunes, heathlands, rainforests, swamps, creeks, freshwater lakes and mangrove forests.
Great Sandy National Park is divided into two sections. The Cooloola section is situated on the coast between Noosa Heads
in the south and Rainbow Beach
in the north and covers 184,00 ha. The Fraser Island section encompasses almost all of the world's largest sand island, Fraser Island, situated north of Rainbow Beach, covering 56,000 ha.
as the Cooloola and Fraser Coast Important Bird Area
because it supports a large population of Black-breasted Button-quails as well as many Bush
and Beach Stone-curlew
s, Green Catbird
s, Regent Bowerbird
s, Mangrove Honeyeater
s and Pale-yellow Robin
s.
The Cooloola section contains the Cooloola Great Walk
, a five-day hiking trail. Boat tours and canoeing
along the Noosa River
are popular visitor activities. On Fraser Island is the 90 km long Fraser Island Great Walk
.
Whale
-watching, fishing, four-wheel driving and bushwalking are also popular. The park also features two shipwrecks; the SS Maheno and the Cherry Venture
.
The only place in the world where tall rainforest grows in sand is on Fraser Island. Fraser Island has coloured sand cliffs on its eastern beach as well as numerous walking tracks from short boardwalks to longer walks which cross sand blows.
Lake Wabby is a popular swimming and fishing spot.
areas.
population or leaving food or rubbish which may attract them.
Queensland
Queensland is a state of Australia, occupying the north-eastern section of the mainland continent. It is bordered by the Northern Territory, South Australia and New South Wales to the west, south-west and south respectively. To the east, Queensland is bordered by the Coral Sea and Pacific Ocean...
, Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
. The park features untouched beaches, large sand dunes, heathlands, rainforests, swamps, creeks, freshwater lakes and mangrove forests.
Great Sandy National Park is divided into two sections. The Cooloola section is situated on the coast between Noosa Heads
Noosa Heads, Queensland
Noosa Heads is one of the three major centres of the Noosa region on the Sunshine Coast, Queensland, Australia. It is located north of Brisbane, the state's capital. The Noosa River forms one boundary of the town, the headlands of the Noosa National Park another...
in the south and Rainbow Beach
Rainbow Beach, Queensland
Rainbow Beach is a coastal town in south-eastern Queensland, Australia, east of Gympie. At the 2006 census, Rainbow Beach had a population of 999...
in the north and covers 184,00 ha. The Fraser Island section encompasses almost all of the world's largest sand island, Fraser Island, situated north of Rainbow Beach, covering 56,000 ha.
Birds
The land within the park is classified by BirdLife InternationalBirdLife International
BirdLife International is a global Partnership of conservation organisations that strives to conserve birds, their habitats and global biodiversity, working with people towards sustainability in the use of natural resources...
as the Cooloola and Fraser Coast Important Bird Area
Important Bird Area
An Important Bird Area is an area recognized as being globally important habitat for the conservation of bird populations. Currently there are about 10,000 IBAs worldwide. The program was developed and sites are identified by BirdLife International...
because it supports a large population of Black-breasted Button-quails as well as many Bush
Bush Stone-curlew
The Bush Stone-curlew or Bush Thick-knee is a large, ground-dwelling bird endemic to Australia...
and Beach Stone-curlew
Beach Stone-curlew
The Beach Stone-curlew, Esacus giganteus also known as Beach Thick-knee is a large, ground-dwelling bird that occurs in Australasia, the islands of South-east Asia...
s, Green Catbird
Green Catbird
The Green Catbird, Ailuroedus crassirostris is a species of bowerbird found on subtropical forests along the east coast of Australia, from southeastern Queensland to southern New South Wales. Its colouring is emerald green, with faint black markings on the face and white streaks on the neck.Green...
s, Regent Bowerbird
Regent Bowerbird
The Regent Bowerbird, Sericulus chrysocephalus is a medium-sized, up to 25 cm long, sexually dimorphic bowerbird. The male bird is black with a golden orange-yellow crown, mantle and black-tipped wing feathers. It has yellow bill, black feet and yellow iris...
s, Mangrove Honeyeater
Mangrove Honeyeater
The Mangrove Honeyeater is a species of bird in the honeyeater family Meliphagidae. The species was once considered to be conspecific with the Varied Honeyeater, but it is now treated as a separate species...
s and Pale-yellow Robin
Pale-yellow Robin
The Pale-yellow Robin is a species of passerine bird in the Petroicidae family. It is endemic to eastern Australia. Its natural habitat is subtropical or tropical moist lowland forests. It is a non-descript bird with grey head and olive upperparts, white throat and yellow underparts. The sexes are...
s.
Features
Cooloola Great Walk
The Cooloola Great Walk is a coastal bushwalking route in the Great Sandy National Park of South East Queensland, Australia. Opened in 2010, it runs from Noosa North Shore to Rainbow Beach, and is planned as a five-day trek...
, a five-day hiking trail. Boat tours and canoeing
Canoeing
Canoeing is an outdoor activity that involves a special kind of canoe.Open canoes may be 'poled' , sailed, 'lined and tracked' or even 'gunnel-bobbed'....
along the Noosa River
Noosa River
The Noosa River is a river situated in South East Queensland. The catchment starts in Wahpoonga Range near Mount Elliot in the coastal Great Sandy National Park and meanders south through a lakes district around Tewantin....
are popular visitor activities. On Fraser Island is the 90 km long Fraser Island Great Walk
Fraser Island Great Walk
The Fraser Island Great Walk is a long-distance trail in Queensland, Australia. Hikers must be fully self-sufficient and carry water. The walk is rated easy to moderate on a difficulty scale being mostly at sea level and is traversed in one direction....
.
Whale
Humpback Whale
The humpback whale is a species of baleen whale. One of the larger rorqual species, adults range in length from and weigh approximately . The humpback has a distinctive body shape, with unusually long pectoral fins and a knobbly head. It is an acrobatic animal, often breaching and slapping the...
-watching, fishing, four-wheel driving and bushwalking are also popular. The park also features two shipwrecks; the SS Maheno and the Cherry Venture
Cherry Venture
Cherry Venture was a 1600 ton cargo ship of Scandinavian origin. It ran aground on Teewah Beach in South East Queensland, Australia on the 6 July 1973 and remained on the beach for 34 years until its removal in early 2007.-Cause of the wreck:...
.
The only place in the world where tall rainforest grows in sand is on Fraser Island. Fraser Island has coloured sand cliffs on its eastern beach as well as numerous walking tracks from short boardwalks to longer walks which cross sand blows.
Lake Wabby is a popular swimming and fishing spot.
Access
Access to both sections of the park requires a 4WD vehicle. 4WD vehicles on Fraser Island need to obtain a vehicle permit. Both sections have numerous campingCamping
Camping is an outdoor recreational activity. The participants leave urban areas, their home region, or civilization and enjoy nature while spending one or several nights outdoors, usually at a campsite. Camping may involve the use of a tent, caravan, motorhome, cabin, a primitive structure, or no...
areas.
Camping
Permits are required to camp in the park. In the Cooloola section there are about 15 camp sites. Only electric motors and non-motorised vessels are permitted past Campsite 3.Fines
There are fines for feeding Fraser Island's dingoDingo
The Australian Dingo or Warrigal is a free-roaming wild dog unique to the continent of Australia, mainly found in the outback. Its original ancestors are thought to have arrived with humans from southeast Asia thousands of years ago, when dogs were still relatively undomesticated and closer to...
population or leaving food or rubbish which may attract them.
See also
- Protected areas of Queensland