Heritage Trail and Conservation Walk with RDHS Students

Friday 12^th September saw grades 6 & 7 from Ravensthorpe District High School took part in a Conservation and Heritage walk along a small section of the Heritage Railway Trail in Kundip.

They were led by Ainsley Foulds (RRAC), Jessica Wright (RAIN) Sue Leighton (Garden Gossip) Teacher: Miss Nagu

The walk has been organized and supported by the Ravensthorpe Regional Arts Council, RAIN and the Heritage Trail committee.

Jessica from RAIN led the charge with a discussion on the Coastal Corridor and how we as walkers are responsible in keeping the area die back free. All participants cleaned their shoes prior to starting the trek.

After a discussion about the Coastal Corridor and how important it is to preserve it for future generations of flora and fauna we set off to walk the 4kms along the railway trail in a loop back to the Kundip Town site.

Along the way students got a real feel of how hard the pioneers had to work and the difficulties they may have faced during the construction stage of the railway from Ravensthorpe to Hopetoun in 1800s

With Sue Leighton leading the trek through the waters of the Steere River and along the way found where the Halfway Pub was located they crossed railway bridge ruins and mastered the art identifying some of the plants on the trail, checking out animal droppings and basically listening to the bush.

On arrival back to the historic Kundip Town site the students set off with maps of the old own and went exploring, discovering where buildings and houses once were, finding relics of a past era. As conservationist we all picked rubbish keeping in mind the rubbish left by past inhabitants is considered historic in value.

Ravensthorpe Regional Arts Council is now overseeing the restoration upgrade and continued maintenance of the Heritage Railway Trail. If you wish to be part of the maintaining of the trail contact Ainsley Foulds on 0427 383 078

This trek was made possible through the support of RAIN, South Coast Natural Resource Management and Ravensthorpe Regional Arts Council.