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Hawker
South Australia
Hawker Hotel-Motel.JPG
Hawker Hotel-Motel
Hawker is located in South Australia
Hawker
Hawker
Location in South Australia
Population
Established 1 July 1880 (town)
25 November 1999 (locality)
Postcode(s) 5434
Elevation 315 m (1,033 ft)
Location 365 km (227 mi) N of Adelaide
LGA(s) Flinders Ranges Council
Region Far North
County Blachford
Hanson
State electorate(s) Stuart
Federal Division(s) Grey
Mean max temp Mean min temp Annual rainfall
25.2 °C
77 °F		 10.6 °C
51 °F		 308.6 mm
12.1 in
Localities around Hawker:
Flinders Ranges Flinders Ranges Flinders Ranges
Barndioota Hawker Shaggy Ridge
Worumba
Kanyaka Kanyaka
Cradock		 Cradock
Footnotes Adjoining localities

Hawker is a town and a locality in the Flinders Ranges area of South Australia, 365 kilometres (227 mi) north of Adelaide. It is in the Flinders Ranges Council, the state Electoral district of Stuart and the federal Division of Grey. At the 2016 census, the locality had a population of 341 of which 237 lived in its town centre.

History

Hawker was a thriving railway town from the 1880s until 1956 as it was on the famous Ghan railway line, until the route was moved further west when the line was upgraded.

Heritage listings

Hawker has a number of heritage-listed sites, including:

  • 20 Cradock Road: St Philip and St James Catholic Church
  • Hawker-Wilpena Road: Mount Desire Dyke
  • Wonoka-Hawker Road: Hawker railway station
  • 1885 Hawker Dam

Tourism

Hawker Racing Club holds a once a year Thoroughbred horse racing meeting which includes the Hawker Cup in late May which attracts many people from around the area.

Climate

Hawker has a semi-arid climate with hot summers and cool winters. Rainfall is very sparse throughout the year, but more reliable in the winter months.

Climate data for Hawker
Month Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec Year
Record high °C (°F) 46.0
(114.8)		 44.5
(112.1)		 41.5
(106.7)		 37.0
(98.6)		 29.4
(84.9)		 25.3
(77.5)		 26.9
(80.4)		 30.0
(86)		 36.3
(97.3)		 39.2
(102.6)		 44.0
(111.2)		 44.5
(112.1)		 46.0
(114.8)
Average high °C (°F) 34.3
(93.7)		 33.4
(92.1)		 30.1
(86.2)		 25.5
(77.9)		 20.0
(68)		 16.4
(61.5)		 15.9
(60.6)		 17.8
(64)		 21.7
(71.1)		 25.7
(78.3)		 29.3
(84.7)		 31.8
(89.2)		 25.2
(77.4)
Average low °C (°F) 18.0
(64.4)		 18.0
(64.4)		 14.9
(58.8)		 11.0
(51.8)		 7.1
(44.8)		 4.4
(39.9)		 3.7
(38.7)		 4.3
(39.7)		 6.8
(44.2)		 9.8
(49.6)		 13.6
(56.5)		 15.8
(60.4)		 10.6
(51.1)
Record low °C (°F) 5.6
(42.1)		 9.4
(48.9)		 5.1
(41.2)		 0.9
(33.6)		 -2.7
(27.1)		 -3.7
(25.3)		 -4.7
(23.5)		 -2.8
(27)		 -3.0
(26.6)		 -0.2
(31.6)		 2.0
(35.6)		 6.2
(43.2)		 -4.7
(23.5)
Precipitation mm (inches) 19.9
(0.783)		 21.0
(0.827)		 16.7
(0.657)		 19.4
(0.764)		 30.6
(1.205)		 38.2
(1.504)		 33.9
(1.335)		 31.7
(1.248)		 27.6
(1.087)		 24.6
(0.969)		 23.0
(0.906)		 22.0
(0.866)		 308.6
(12.15)
Avg. precipitation days 2.7 2.7 2.6 3.4 5.5 7.2 7.8 7.2 5.6 5.1 4.0 3.6 57.4

Economy

The main economic activities in the area are tourism and pastoral runs of sheep and increasingly cattle. Due to the arid environment, the stocking rates are low, at about one sheep per three to four hectares. Hawker is 55 kilometres (34 mi) south of Wilpena Pound, a unique natural dish-shaped range of hills popular with tourists, as well as the spectacular scenery of the Flinders Ranges.

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