I acknowledge the custodians of this land and all Aboriginal people past, present and future.
As Australians, we can all be proud to be the home of one of the oldest continuous civilisations on Earth, extending back over 65,000 years. Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people's strong connection to family, land, language, and culture forms the foundation for social, economic, and individual wellbeing.
Walkabout in the Shire
We acknowledge the traditional owners and custodians of this land and pay our respects to indigenous elders, past, present and emerging. Dedicated to the Tharawal people. The Tharawal (or Dharawal) people were the Aboriginal inhabitants of southern Sydney and the Illawarra region and lived in the areas from south side of Botany Bay, around Port Hacking to north of the Shoalhaven River and inland to Campbelltown and Camden. Artwork, including rock engravings and Hand stencils, remain visible on hundreds of rock surfaces and in the many dozens of rock shelters throughout these regions. They lived mainly by the produce of local plants, fruits and vegetables and by fishing and gathering shellfish products. The men also hunted land mammals and speared fish. The women collected the vegetable foods and were well known for their fishing and canoeing prowess.
Minerva Pool + Jingga Pool - Dharawal National Park
This walk comprises of two out and back tracks totalling around 7km. Minerva Pool, in Dharawal National Park, is a sacred site on the land of the Dharawal People. This is a culturally significant sight to the Tharawal local Aboriginal Land Council. As part of the Aboriginal culture, only women and children are invited to enter these waters. Jingga Pool via Jingga Track is a short but very steep bushwalk in Dharawal National Park that leads to a beautiful natural waterhole and a small waterfall. Unlike Minerva pool, this waterhole is suitable for swimming, which makes this trip an even more enjoyable outdoor adventure on a warm summer’s day. Note. The pool I am swimming in is Jingga and not the cultural site of Minerva Pool.
Red Hand Caves
Red Hands Cave walking track in Blue Mountains National Park near Glenbrook NSW, is a 9km easy to medium rated loop track. This track has most likely been used by Aboriginal people for thousands of years and winds through remote bushland to one of the best Aboriginal stencil galleries in the Sydney Basin. The track also passes some very impressive rock carvings that date back hundreds if not thousands of years.