Brewarrina

Brewarrina, a short 8 hr drive northwest of Newcastle 

Was our home for two nights 

Located on the banks of the Barwon river , Brewarrina , home of the aboriginal fish traps is a lovely little town, founded in 1863. 

Brewarrina was once the highest point for paddle steamers travelling up the Darling river. 

The Brewarrina Barwon bridge was built in 1889 and was designed so the centre could lift allowing the paddle steamers to pass underneath. Originally four of these bridges existed  along the Darling ,only two now survive. 

We were very fortunate to see the Barwon river full 

However it did impead our view of the aboriginal fish traps, see above

I borrowed the image below from the guardian so you can better see how the fish traps are designed.  We were extremely fortunate to undergo a tour with a local , whom provided us with an understanding of how the traps worked 

It is believed that the fish traps date back over 30000 years and were  a site of gathering and celebration for 8 aboriginal tribes. 

Our guide explained that the fish would swim into the u shaped enclosures where they would be caught by hand and tossed into the arched shaped enclosures which are fully enclosed , thus trapping the fish for the locals to collect at a later time when needed or released if not required, it is really a very ingenious design that sadly has undergone some damage over the years, to make way for paddle steamers and the creation of a weir in the 70’s that changed the flow and ecology of the river. However our guide assured us that the traps are still in use today with some photos to prove their effectiveness.  The fish traps continue to be maintained today by the local aboriginal people.

I really enjoyed the short tour and would definitely recommend it to anyone passing through.

We have now moved on to  Bourke where we hope to continue on with our planned trip , at this stage it appears the roads are open and we are right to follow the darling river as planned 🤞

I hope to continue this journal of our trip , but am unsure what internet acces will be available so will post when I can.

Catch you later 

Googy girl