pdf of habitat - Australian Conservation Foundation

FeatureSonglinesAngela RutterI lie flat with my back warmed by the yellow earth,the heat of the day’s faded sun radiating into my body.The sky is blanketed by the dazzling beauty of the stars,nature’s crown to the majesty of the country we havewandered the last nine days.Swags and tents temporarily inhabit Mangal (bush) alongBindingankun (Yellow River) and conversations thread throughthe trees. Some have chosen to spend the evening camped amongthe sand dunes, listening to the rolling waves which have becomea familiar chorus. Bindingankun, Jabirr Jabirr country, isour final camp before we bus back to Broome in the morning.We have walked Lurujarri Trail, the ancient songline of theGoolarabooloo’s traditional song cycle. This song cycle protectsother song cycles travelling from the west coast through Uluru tosunrise country, the east coast. We have walked from Broome toBindingankun, a mere 90 kilometres. But this isnot a hike. It is an experience of living country,tradition, culture and an ancient, beautiful home.It is 25 years since Paddy Roe OAM, senior lawman, initiated the Lurujarri Trail. His vision wasto encourage the Goolarabooloo community towalk their country and non-Aboriginal peopleto connect to country, beauty and tradition. Thisyear’s anniversary brought together the biggestgroup to walk as one mob. Paddy’s vision for‘people of all colours to come together.’Quick calculations determine the walk to bea rough ‘10k’s a day’. It’s soon clear that postulationsare best left behind, nothing about this walk is linear orpredictable. The first to go is the 10k a day notion, quickly followedby questions of how far to the lunch point or night camp.Big walk days, small walk days, rest days. Tapping sticks beforedawn breaks wake us for walk days. A short gust of windblows in the light of day, a feature of Barrgana, winter. Bowlsof porridge and mugs of tea are consumed, tents and swags puton the luggage truck; we head off under the watch of the fadingmoon and arriving morning sun.Richard Hunter, Goolarabooloo senior lawman and storyteller on trail, with his countryin the distance. | Photo: Liz VaggWe make our way across diverse country. Lurujarri meanscoastal dunes and we walk many. We move through wetlandswith reeds shoulder height, lunch in Garnboor (paperbark) forestswith butterflies dancing between trees, pass vivid red Yanniyarri(red pindan cliffs), navigate tufted grasslands and wade knee deepin freshwater creeks, with the ocean ever present from where thespirit beings come. The sand is white, black, red and yellow.Richard Hunter, senior law man and grandson of Paddy Roe,is our storyteller. Frans Hoogland, Dutch-born initiate into Aboriginallaw, keeps us on track. The connection between the men isclear. Just out of Broome we gather among thedunes, looking over the country, to hear Richardtalk of the spirit beings of Bugarregarre, theDreamtime. He shares with us ceremonial andcamping grounds, pointing out spear tips andshells devoured of their contents.We learn hunting and survival tips, and discoverfood forests. I begin to understand howthis country has sustained life for millennia.On rest days Richard teaches us to huntfor bush food. We listen to the tree trunk forsounds of bees to find bush honey, dig Yarrinyarri(bush onion) and forage black Gungkara(conkerberry) fruits, all of which we would usually pass-by,oblivious to their sustaining qualities. We collect wood and carvetapping sticks and boomerangs. Some brave the knee-deep mudof mangrove estuaries in search of crabs.As the sun starts its inevitable descent the colours of the countrylight up, transforming the muted greens, reds, yellows andlilacs into a vibrant palette. The evening avian opera begins.A number of small fires are lit and bush TV works its magic,drawing people together to share in the day’s experiences and8 habitat