"Kulgooluh/Karlkurla" - is the name for the native silky pear.
The Karlkurla Bushland Park comprises of 200 hectares of natural regrowth bushland, along with over 2,000 trees and shrubs planted by community volunteers back in 2000. ‘Karlkurla’ (pronounced gull-gurl-la), is the local Aboriginal word for the Silky Pear, one of the many native bushes, trees and small plants that can now be enjoyed while strolling along the park’s 4km walking trail.
Kalgoorlie Boulder Urban Landcare Group maintains a community nursery in Karlkurla Bushland Park, and the organisation’s Eco & Cultural Education Centre within the nursery grounds was opened in June 2017. The Community Nursery with its Eco & Cultural Education Centre represent a space for the sharing and conveying of conservation and sustainable living – focussed ideas, while fostering inclusion, skill development and personal well-being for the community and visitors.
In the days when the mines were fuelled by wood-fired steam engines, most of the extensive eucalypt woodland that surrounded Kalgoorlie Boulder was felled by wood-cutters. In the decades since wood-cutting ceased, these woodlands have regenerated, with the Karlkurla Bushland Park being an excellent example of nature’s regenerative powers. The park is cared for by the Kalgoorlie Urban Land Care Group and is one of the sites on the Golden Quest Green Trail.
Karlkurla Bushland Park is also home to many animals. If you are very quiet or visit the Park in the early morning or evening, you may see a western grey kangaroo or two. There are also a number of reptiles found here with bobtails often sited in Spring as the weather starts to warm up. If you are lucky, you may see a dragon lizard or even a mulga snake! There are a variety of birds in the Park, magpies, willy wagtails, honeyeaters and miners are common.
Take time out from the hustle and bustle of life and witness some of the most amazing Goldfields sunsets from the top of the Katunga lookout, located about 1.5km from the Park’s entrance. Located at the end of Nankiville Road, in the suburb of Hannans, the park is open year round and is popular with bushwalkers and picnickers.
A comprehensive Native Plant Guide of the Park is available from Kalgoorlie Boulder Visitor Centre. This book has been developed to provide an appreciation of the extraordinary bushland around Kalgoorlie Boulder, and in particular, the plant species found in Karlkurla Bushland Park. The book includes a range of Kalgoorlie Boulder’s flowering shrubs, trees and everlastings.
For more information, contact KBULG on 0418 935 498, or visit www.kbulg.org.au
Photo courtesy of Brad Donaldson
Photo courtesy of Cindy Shraga
Photo courtesy of Dan Roissetter