Casper and Dianne Combrink and
neighbours Sharlene and Tony Smith.
Camera IconCasper and Dianne Combrink and neighbours Sharlene and Tony Smith. Credit: Supplied/Supplied

Residents see Yanchep National Park in new light

Lucy JarvisNorth Coast Times

The “Night Stalk” event was organised as part of ongoing community activities by the park and Peet Limited’s Yanchep Golf Estate to give residents a chance to get to know their neighbours and learn more about the park.

“We often go in summer, but we’ve never been at night before; it’s amazing,” resident Dianne Combrink said.

“We saw the Carnabys cockatoos coming in to roost at sunset and we were able to watch them settle as darkness fell.”

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She said the guides gave plenty of information and she saw and learnt a lot about the park that she didn’t know from her summer visits.

“It was pitch black by the time we left and we’d been to places I’ve never seen before,” she said.

“We stood by the lake and listened to the night sounds, the crickets, the ducks, the birdlife.”

About 60 residents, their family and friends were taken on guided tours in the first Night Stalk of the park in years.

“The park is very different by night,” park manager Julia Coggins said.

“We find people get a real kick out of seeing the animals and birds after dark.”

Some of the nocturnal activities included watching koalas waking from their day’s slumber, kangaroos emerging from the bush and orb-weaver spiders spinning their delicate web in the darkness, all to the soundtrack of the park’s night “music”.

The large party was split into five groups, each with a tour guide, to visit various areas.

“Staff were given wonderful feedback and through this we will continue to provide visitors with the opportunity to do guided night stalks in the near future,” Ms Coggins said.

Earlier, there was live entertainment from local musician Ji Deeg and a buffet meal on the Memorial Lawn at the park.