The Mungo National Park is an Australian National Park. It is located closer to the nearest city of Pooncarie. However, the park has covered an area of 1,109.67 kilometers square. Furthermore, the park was established on April 6, 1979. Let’s get into the article below for more amazing facts and information about the Mungo National Park.
1. Introduction To Mungo National Park
The Mungo National Park is established in the southwest of New South Wales. It’s a protected national park that lies in eastern Australia. Further, the park occupies an area of 110,967 hectares. For the indigenous Australian people, the park was the traditional meeting place. These people are Muthi Muthi, Barkinji Aboriginal Nations, and Nyiampaar.
Since strict rules are enforced, people are prohibited to climb the sand dunes. For accessing sand dunes, a tour guide should be designated for a group of visitors. The Mungo National Park is listed in the Willandra Lakes Region as a UNESCO World Heritage. This region has 17 dry lakes in the 2,400 square kilometers of area.
These 17 lakes are not known as Mungo but are announced as World Heritage. There is a creek, which initially flows into Mungo is now being conserved as a sacred site. It is located seventy-five kilometers far from Pooncarie. Meanwhile, it is one hundred and ten kilometers away from Mildura city. Moreover, it is located one hundred and forty-five kilometers to the west of Ivanhoe town.
The council closes the roads to access the park in wet weather. These are usually accessible by two wheel drives.
2. Features Of Mungo National Park
There are many amazing features in the Mungo National Park. You will find different exciting things here to view or wander around. Given below are the features of the Mungo National Park that best describe it. So, let’s have a look at it.
Lake Mungo is the primary feature of the Mungo National Park. This lake is the 2nd largest lake among the ancient dry lakes.
It is best recognizable for its archaeological remains that were discovered here.
These remains include the remains of a Mungo Man and a Mungo Lady. Mungo Man is the oldest human remains found in the country of Australia. Meanwhile, Mungo Lady is the oldest human remains considered to be cremated. These both remains were found within the Mungo National Park. They were deposited at the verge of the Mungo Lake. It was underneath the “Walls of China”.
The Walls of China is a series of fenestras, which is located on the south-east edge of the lake.
There is also a visitor center inside the park. Here, you will get more information regarding the park, and also can get a map. Also, it is located towards the entrance of the park, near the old Mungo woolshed.
Visitors can drive to take a fascinating look around Walls of China and lakes via a clued circular vehicle track. However, this track is 70 kilometers long.
You can get Shearers’ Quarters for a fee on a daily basis. Here you will get shelter with a communal kitchen.
Further, the park access fee and camping fee may need to be paid at the visitor center.
3. Amazing Facts About Mungo National Park
Given below are the facts in numbers of the Mungo National Park:
In 1979, the park was obtained for the National Reserve System. It was obtained by the Foundation for National Parks and Wildlife.
101,000 dollars were raised as funds by the organization to buy a property.
From 1979 to 1983, the fundraising foundation of the organization funded a native archaeologist to work on the new site.
In 1983, the foundation inaugurated the Mungo Visitors Center and Laboratory. Dick Smith donated funds to the foundation, by which this center and laboratory was established.
Furthermore, in 1990, the organization established a guided vehicle drive with the help of a sponsorship. This sponsorship came from BHP Group Limited. Also, the drive is known as Mungo National Park drive, which is 60 kilometers long.
Later in 2010, the organization made a prospectus for developing a new educational and research center.
Glenn Murcutt was appointed to design the structure of the building. He is an architect based in Australia. Further, he won the Pritzker Prize in 2002 and 2009 AIA Gold Medal .
4. Tours of Mungo National Park
There are many guided tours that you do not need to organize the adventure for yourself. You just need to enjoy the adventures at the Mungo National Park. Primarily, there are four popular guided tours given below.
4.1. The Guided Day Tour at Mungo
The Mungo National Park is the most precious and ancient site in the world. After taking this day tour around Mungo, you will be able to watch all the spectacular sites here. A guided day tour is the best option when you are low on time and want to explore more. However, the tour is specially designed for the visitors to spend a wonderful day out in the outbacks of Australia.
You can access many areas here either accessible or inaccessible like Mungo Man and Mungo Lady remains.
They will pick you up at the Mildura Information Center at 9 AM from March to November at Mildura Grand Hotel. From December to February, the time of picking will be 8 AM. Your coach will take you to the Mungo Lodge. Here, you can have morning tea with snacks.
The guided tour will be provided to you for Mungo Woolshed, Mungo Walls of China, and Mungo Visitors Center. Afterwards, you will be provided with the mouth-watering lunch at the Mungo restaurants. Later, you will be sent back to the location where you have been picked-up.
Also, the usual duration of this tour is 6 hours. Further, they charge approximately 170 dollars per person. It’s not sure if the above-mentioned lunch is also included in this or not.
4.2. Sunset Tour at Mungo Lodge
For the sunset tour at Mungo Lodge, your guide will be available at the Mungo Lodge reception. The professional guides will help you take you to the best places like the top of the Walls of China for getting the best view point of sunset. Here, you will see the changes in the color of the sand with the illuminating light from the sun. You will get amazing light for the best photographs.
There are many places for getting the best sunset view. Guided tours will support you to get the best places. You can also get to some restricted areas with the guides with 360-degree sunset views. It facilitates experienced local guides and guided tours towards the Walls of China. Despite all, they will pick you up and after the tour send you back later.
Also, you can enjoy the beautiful wildlife of birds and kangaroos along the way. However, the duration of the tour is 2 hours. They will pick you up one and half hours before sunset for locating the best view point. Moreover, they approximately charge 75 dollars per person and 37 dollars per child.
4.3. Morning Guide Tour of Walls of China
The morning guide tour for Walls of China departs on weekdays at 10 AM. It departs from the Mungo Lodge Reception. This will provide you with an adventurous guided tour around the World Heritage of Mungo National Park. Moving on, it includes the tours of the historic woolshed, Walls of China, visitors center, and a few restricted areas.
Here, the experienced local guides will take you to the best-renowned places in the park. The tour is applicable for 2 hours for taking the best views in the morning. Besides, they charge approx. 59 dollars per person and 29.50 dollars per child.
4.4. Zanci Homestead & Mungo Lodge Sunrise Tour
The tour departs from the Mungo Lodge reception. It takes you to the best sunrise point located across the dry lake bed. However, the Mungo Lookout also provides impressive desert views across the ancient Walls of China at Mungo. After taking the scenic and beautiful views of sunrise, they head towards the Zanci Homestead.
The Zanci Homestead is a site composed of a variety of buildings. Some of the ancient buildings are standing in their former position with some refurbishments. However, the rest are the ruins of these buildings.
Furthermore, the former homestead had two rooms built with flattened kerosene tins and iron. It also had a small kitchen. Also, it is a brilliant historic site where you can also capture the ruins and original buildings as well. Moreover, the tour is designed for 2 hours. They charge around 75 dollars for an adult and 37.50 dollars per child.
Conclusion
The Mungo National Park is an ancient renowned world heritage site. It has amazing features and places to wander around. You can do various different things and activities here. This is a spectacular place to visit. You can get an awesome experience here. Furthermore, it also facilitates many guided tours for visitors. So, the visitors can just enjoy themselves at ease without thinking of finding the best locations.
There are many best sunrise and sunset points for taking a look around in the morning and evening. Exploring the remains of Mungo Man and Mungo Lady is another exciting activity to do here.
Meanwhile, you can approach this park with your family and friends and also with kids. Lastly, it is an impressive place to visit in the outback of Australia.
