September–October 2015 85L
ONG BEFORE EUROPEANS arrived, Wilpena Pound, or
Ikara (meeting place), had profound cultural and spiritual
significance to the Adnyamathanha people, who have
inhabited the region for at least 15,000 years. The serpent of
their Dreamtime stories, Akurra, is creator and guardian of all
permanent waterholes in the Flinders and is said to form part
of the Pound’s walls.
In 2011 the SA government entered into partnership with the
Adnyamathanha (pronounced ad-na-mut-na) traditional own-
ers for the co-management of Flinders Ranges NP. It’s a priority
for their stories to be told alongside pastoral and natural histories.Senior cultural ranger Arthur Coulthard was born under a
Flinders river red gum and has worked in the park since the 1980s.
Four years on, he believes the co-management is paying off.
“People have a better understanding now and I thank my
people for doing that, otherwise we would be back in the dark
ages,” says Arthur. “Visitors to Wilpena have opened their eyes
and are really taking on the Aboriginal perspective. This area
is a significant place for Adnyamathanha because it’s a Dream-
ing story. We don’t just see the beauty of it, it is a part of us.”
Wilpena’s modern story began when stockman William
Chace ‘discovered’ it in 1850, while prospecting for pastoral
land on behalf of doctors W. J. and J.H. Browne. The pioneering
pastoralists took up a number of leases the following year, and,
while they enjoyed great success running sheep, later attempts
to grow wheat in the area fell foul of the boom-and-bust cycles
that define the lands north of Goyder’s famous line (AG 96).
In 1920 the leases expired and the government bought back
the Pound and registered it as forest reserve. Remnants of two
farms are now part of the national park here. Picturesque Old
Wilpena Station is close to the airstrip and contains restored
farm buildings, including an 1864 pug-and-pine blacksmith’s
cottage. The Hills family homestead lies inside the Pound and
is reached via Wilpena Creek.
This watercourse pierces the encircling walls of the Pound
and drains two-thirds of the basin, which acts as a gigantic
rainwater collector. Huge, uprooted river red gums lining the
creek provide a clue to past deluges, but mostly it just babbles
peacefully along.Deep within. Viewed from the air,
the basin-like structure of Wilpena
Pound comes clearly into focus.Rock record. Stories of
the Adnyamathanha
are recorded on Arkaroo
Rock, a massive boulder
at the Pound’s base.MAIN: JULIE FLETCHER; MIKE LANGFORD (ML) Continued page 89