Commences at 7pm for 7:30pm start, Tables of 8 required $15 per ticket. Nibbles suppied, drinks at bar prices. Heaps of Give aways and two of Lakes best Chefs are up for auction to cater for your own! Tables are limited so get your tickets soon! Contact Monica for more details and tickets.
Traditional inhabitants of the Gippsland region were the Gunai/Kurnai people. Swan Reach was the central corroboree point for the five clans of the Kurnai. Today, our regions history is rich in their culture and heritage.
As you tour through East Gippsland you will be following the well worn routes that the Koorie people of our region have been travelling for thousands of years. For Aboriginal people, land is central to their identities, heritage and their spiritual existence. The significance of land is intimately bound in the spirituality surrounding the origins of landscapes and the animals, plants and people that inhabit them.
Similarly, Indigenous culture looks at art from a different viewpoint. It is not just about artistic release. Art is the representation of identity for one or many, an expression of knowledge, cultural heritage and a deep association and linking to the land.
The Bataluk Cultural Trail is a wonderful insight into the culture and heritage of the traditional inhabitants of East Gippsland. It is a story of where they came from and what they encountered. It is rich in meaning and sometimes harsh in reality. With explanations of indigenous heritage sites and information on a variety of cultural aspects, this guide is a must.
The local Koorie people welcome the opportunity to tell visitors about their traditional lands and culture but ask that you respect their land and culture in your behaviour. Enjoy your experience.
Krowathunkooloong (Keeping Place) East Gippsland Aboriginal Co-operative
The Krowathunkooloong Cultural Museum provides an in-depth look at the indigenous history of the Gunai-Kurnai people from pre-European settlement through to the present day. History, heritage and culture of the Koorie people of East Gippsland unfold through imaginative displays of items like shields with traditional markings, boomerangs, bark canoes and baskets. The living cultural side is reflected in an exhibition area housing contemporary Koorie art and staff are on hand to give additional insights. A visit is highly recommended!
East Gippsland Aboriginal Arts Corporation
The desire to develop and continue to nurture the Aboriginal Arts Community led to the establishment of the East Gippsland Aboriginal Arts Corporation. The advancement of visual and performing arts and crafts is their major goal.
Through this organisation the sale of local artworks, accessibility of visual and performing artists and information on community events can all be availed.
Contact 222 Nicholson Street, Bairnsdale 3875 Phone: 03 5153 1002 Hours: Monday - Friday 9am-5pm, Saturday 10am-2pm (September-April). Other times by appointment.
Australia’s Coastal Wilderness National Landscape was launched by the Federal Minister for Tourism, the Hon Martin Ferguson AM MP last Friday 1 August in Torquay in association with the launch of the Great Ocean Road National Landscape.
The Launch was attended by a number of East Gippslanders including Chair of the Australia’s Coastal Wilderness Steering Committee Phil Rickards who is also the Tourism Coordinator for the East Gippsland Shire.
In his address, Minister Ferguson acknowledged that whilst he would have liked very much to have launched each of the eight individual landscapes in each region, due to time constraints that had not been possible. However, he said he hoped to be able to visit the Australia’s Coastal Wilderness region at some stage in the future.
The Minister acknowledged the work of the Steering Committees in getting their respective landscapes accepted into the program.
“I would particularly like to welcome members of the landscapes steering committees who I know are passionately enthused about this project. Enthusiasm in a service-oriented industry such as tourism is critical. So is innovation and I believe the National Landscapes Program will provide the impetus for Australia as a nation to view the relationship between tourism and our natural landscapes in an innovative light.
“Much like the members of the Steering Committees, I am passionately enthused by the natural beauty of Australia. I do believe the landscapes which surround us are unparalleled in their beauty. In the fiercely competitive world of tourism they present us with enormous opportunity and point of difference.
Who would not want to visit those National Landscapes already launched, they being The Australian Alps, Australia’s Red Centre, The Flinders Ranges, Australia’s Green Cauldron and the Greater Blue Mountains? I am pleased today to add the Great Ocean Road and Australia’s Coastal Wilderness to the list of regions included in the National Landscapes Program
“To qualify as a National Landscape the location must be a world-class landscape of natural, cultural and spiritual assets, distinctive to Australia.
“Australia’s Coastal Wilderness has a significance which has long been internationally recognized. It is a site of more than national significance and includes Croajingolong National Park which was in 1977 proclaimed a World Biosphere Region by UNESCO.”
“The landscapes I am announcing today have been included in this unique program because they are more than just a group of appealing destinations. They are regions, which as a whole, are much greater than just the sum of their parts. They are distinctively Australian natural and cultural environments. And they will appeal to Tourism Australia’s target market, experience seekers; travelers of all ages who wish to experience new adventures and destinations which enable them to engage with a local culture.
“I congratulate the steering committees for the Great Ocean Road and Australia’s Coastal Wilderness on achieving National Landscape status for these wonderful regions”, concluded Minister Ferguson.
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