Avon Valley is a national park in

Western Australia Western Australia (commonly abbreviated as WA) is a state of Australia occupying the western percent of the land area of Australia excluding external territories. It is bounded by the Indian Ocean to the north and west, the Southern Ocean to th ...

, 47 kilometres northeast of

Perth Perth is the capital and largest city of the Australian state of Western Australia. It is the fourth most populous city in Australia and Oceania, with a population of 2.1 million (80% of the state) living in Greater Perth in 2020. Perth i ...

. It was named after the Avon River, which flows through it. The area is an undulating plateau with the sides of the valley steeply sloping back to the river approximately below. The area contains

granite Granite () is a coarse-grained ( phaneritic) intrusive igneous rock composed mostly of quartz, alkali feldspar, and plagioclase. It forms from magma with a high content of silica and alkali metal oxides that slowly cools and solidifies under ...

outcrops and a mix of soil types including loams, gravels and

lateritic Laterite is both a soil and a rock type rich in iron and aluminium and is commonly considered to have formed in hot and wet tropical areas. Nearly all laterites are of rusty-red coloration, because of high iron oxide content. They develop by ...

sands. It was officially named on 15 October 1971.

Jarrah ''Eucalyptus marginata'', commonly known as jarrah, djarraly in Noongar language and historically as Swan River mahogany, is a plant in the myrtle family, Myrtaceae and is endemic to the south-west of Western Australia. It is a tree with rou ...

, marri and wandoo trees are found in the park along with 90 different species of birds, making it an ideal place for

bird watching Birdwatching, or birding, is the observing of birds, either as a recreational activity or as a form of citizen science. A birdwatcher may observe by using their naked eye, by using a visual enhancement device like binoculars or a telescope, by ...

. Christmas trees and grasstrees are interspersed through the woodlands. In the springtime the park is visited by wildflower enthusiasts to view the diverse range of flowers, including dryandras, donkey

orchid Orchids are plants that belong to the family Orchidaceae (), a diverse and widespread group of flowering plants with blooms that are often colourful and fragrant. Along with the Asteraceae, they are one of the two largest families of flowerin ...

s and

lechenaultia ''Lechenaultia'' is a genus of flowering plants in the family Goodeniaceae, the species native to Australia with one species ('' L. filiformis'') also occurring in New Guinea. Plants in the genus ''Lechenaultia'' are glabrous shrubs or herbs wit ...

s. Other plants found in the area are Conostylis, and the rare fringed lily is also found within the park. The bushranger Moondyne Joe used the area as a hide-out with his cave and corral situated within the park boundaries. Both have since been damaged by a series of

bushfires A wildfire, forest fire, bushfire, wildland fire or rural fire is an unplanned, uncontrolled and unpredictable fire in an area of combustible vegetation. Depending on the type of vegetation present, a wildfire may be more specifically identif ...

within the park. The area was subsequently designated as a reserve within the National Park in the Moondyne Nature Reserve in 1981. The third route of the Eastern Railway is in parts the southern border of the park, on the southern side of the Avon River, and provides - at times of bushfires and other emergencies - a track and point of access.

Facilities

Entry and camping fees apply for visitors to the park. Toilets, water, shaded areas and wood barbecues are available for use. Trail signage and an information shelter are located within the park and a dedicated

ranger A Ranger is typically someone in a military/paramilitary or law enforcement role specializing in patrolling a given territory, called “ranging”. The term most often refers to: * Park ranger or forest ranger, a person charged with protecting and ...

is on site ( No longer on site).

References

{{authority control National parks of Western Australia Protected areas established in 1970 Darling Range Avon River (Western Australia) Jarrah Forest Wandoo Forest