Murray River National Park
Template:Distinguish Template:Use dmy dates Template:Use Australian English Template:Infobox Australian place Murray River National Park is a protected area in South Australia located between Template:Convert and Template:Convert north east of the Adelaide city centre, lying along the Murray River. The national park is classified as an IUCN Category VI protected area.<ref name=CAPAD2020SASum/> Template:As of the national park comprises more than Template:Cvt, and includes a vast network of Murray River wetlands and floodplains.<ref name=about>Template:Cite web File:CC-BY icon.svg Text may have been copied from this source, which is available under a Attribution 3.0 Australia (CC BY 3.0 AU) licence.</ref>
The national park was proclaimed on 20 June 1991 under the National Parks and Wildlife Act 1972,<ref name=manplan1994>Template:Cite web</ref> "to conserve a significant proportion of South Australia’s floodplain environments which are not represented widely in other reserve systems".<ref name=manamend2010>Template:Cite web</ref>
The national park originally consisted of the first three sections listed below,<ref name=manplan1994/> with the following three in existence (six in total) Template:As of. All of the sections adjoin the Murray River, extending from near Loxton in the south west to near Renmark in the north-east.<ref>Template:Cite map</ref><ref name=about/>
- Katarapko (Template:Cvt), on the north side of the river between Loxton in the south and Berri in the north
- Lyrup Flats (Template:Cvt), on the north side of the river midway between Berri and Loxton
- Bulyong, or Bulyong Island, on the west side of the river upstream from Renmark, accessible only by boat
- Paringa Paddock (Template:Cvt), including Goat Island, between Renmark and Paringa
- Gurra Gurra (Template:Cvt), just across the river south of Berri, directly opposite Katarapko
- Kingston-on-Murray (Template:Cvt), next to the township of Kingston-on-Murray
Katarapko section includes the Ngak Indau Wetland trail, with a bird hide;and the Rilli Island, Media Island, and Kapunda Island Conservation Parks are also part of Katarapko.<ref name=about/>
The protected areas provide for a number recreational activities such as walking, bike riding, canoeing, bird-watching and bush camping. There are parking facilities, designated camping areas with some toilets, walking trails, and a self-guided drive trail.<ref name=about/>
In 2021, a group of people in the Riverland region started a campaign to rename Goat Island to Ruby Hunter Island to honour the legacy of singer-songwriter Ruby Hunter. As Goat Island is part of the Murray River National Park, the Department for Environment and Water has the final say.<ref name=goat>Template:Cite web</ref>
See also
[edit]- Katarapko Game Reserve, historical game reserve on Katarapko Island
- List of islands within the Murray River in South Australia
- Protected areas of South Australia
- Riverland Biosphere Reserve
- Riverland Mallee Important Bird Area