Visitor Activities
ACTIVITIES IN BALRANALD SHIRE
PHOTOGRAPHY
An abundance of flora and fauna, excellent outback scenery and spectacular sunrises and sunsets provide a smorgasbord of opportunities for professional and amateur photographers.
An extensive network of roads, sealed as well as gravel all weather and dry weather only tracks, allow the visitor to travel outback in the comfort of the family car. For the 4WD enthusiast touring opportunities are much more extensive. Long stretches of the shires roads do not have stock fences and all vehicles must let stock have right of way. Driving conditions on unsealed roads can vary and can be affected by the prevailing weather conditions and some sections of ‘dry weather only’ roads will be closed after rain.
FISHING IN THE HEART OF THE RIVERLAND
With four junctions within the Shire boundaries Balranald Shire is to the recreational fisherman the Heart of the Riverland.
Junctions include:
Edwards into Wakool
Wakool into Murray
Murrumbidgee into Murray at Boundary Bend
Lachlan—Great Cumbungi Swamp Murrumbidgee near Oxley (when rivers are flooded)
The area around Kyalite enjoys a reputation for the best Murray Cod waters in Australia. The Murrumbidgee around Balranald offers within the town good size Perch, Redfin and Murray Cod have been caught off the bank. At Euston the Murray offers some great fishing off the banks and many sandbanks with access roads. The many permanent lakes and weirs in the district also offer excellent fishing. Balranald Shire Council supports the three local fishing clubs with their fish restocking efforts.
The “Ben Scott” Balranald Common Bird Trail is approximately 1km long and passes through remnant black box, red gum and lignum vegetation habitats. Boardwalks over intermittent channels and bird hides are located near the end of the 1km trail.
The trail is part of the ‘Tri Avian Corridor’ that links Balranald with Wakool and Murray Shires. The “Birds Just North of the Murray” brochure contains information about Tri Avian Corridor and copies of the brochure are available at the Balranald Visitor Centre.
Located at the south eastern end of the Lower Murrumbidgee Flood Plain the Balranald Common area was subject to regular flooding in years gone buy. In more recent times and during the last 13 year dry period, water will reach the channels in the Common when released occasionally from the Redbank Weir. When water does find its way in the local channels the trail will also provide limited access to the prolific local frog population that usually appears during these wet conditions. Listen for the frogs in these wet conditions and see if you can hear the sounds of the Southern Belle Frog also known as the Growling Grass Frog.
Bird Watching
Fishing
Touring
Photography
