Despite gloomy weather, an impressive 40-plus brave souls faced the elements on Sunday, July 17 for Nature Conservation Margaret River Region’s busy bee at Injidup Natural Spa to help rehabilitate vegetation and prevent erosion on the overused trails.
From young to old, the volunteers banded together to form a human chain passing brushing down the line to close excess trails and help formalise a single trail to the natural rock pool that’s become a tourist sensation. “It’s so great to see the community coming together to protect this iconic spot,” says NCMRR’s coastal officer Mandy Edwards. “This important work has helped protect native vegetation and make a clear trail for people to access the spa. It also helps vegetation to grow back in areas that have already been destroyed by foot traffic.”
“We were blessed by a pod of migrating humpback whales entertaining everyone and reminding us why this coastline is so precious and needs to be conserved”, Ms Edwards said. “There was a great atmosphere with lots of smiles and laughter, I also loved to see the cooperation between people that come from different backgrounds and generations.”
Spirits were also buoyed by a delicious morning tea donated by Margaret River Hampers director Lisa Johnston.
Injidup Natural Spa is a rock pool made famous on Instagram where swimmers can frolic in crystal-clear water and enjoy a foamy bath as waves cascade over the granite. But it’s also been suffering from erosion and vegetation loss, which has increased over the last couple of years due to the area’s growing popularity.
“This has led to impacts to the area’s biodiversity and unique natural beauty, which is the very thing that draws so many visitors and locals to the spa,” said Ms Edwards. “In peak times like summer holidays, there’s a lot of foot traffic with people scrambling down the rock face and on natural vegetation, causing significant damage. This spot is enjoyed by so many people for different activities like surfing, swimming and walking the Cape to Cape track – it would be a shame to see it ruined by neglect.”
The hard work by volunteers to help rehabilitate the granite coastline around Wyadup Rocks in the picturesque Leeuwin-Naturaliste National Park at the weekend builds on community planting and brushing days that have already been held by NCMRR this season at Redgate Beach, Gas Point at Gnarabup, the Margaret Rivermouth, and North Point in Cowaramup Bay this year, with hundreds of volunteers planting more than 1000 native plants and laying down several tonnes of brush on fragile dunes.
NCMRR’s Caring for Coast program is funded by the Line In The Sand philanthropic group, and this weekend brushing event was supported by the Yallingup Land Conservation District Committee and the Department of Biodiversity, Conservation and Attractions.