Puckeys Estate Reserve facts for kids

Puckey's Estate Reserve is a special nature area in North Wollongong, New South Wales, Australia. It's mostly a forest of she-oak trees. You can also find sand dunes and wet areas, including parts along Para Creek. This reserve is located in the suburb of Fairy Meadow. It has Fairy Meadow Beach to its east and Fairy Lagoon to its south.

The land of Puckey's Estate was first used by the Wadi Wadi people. They are the Aboriginal tribe from the Wollongong area. Later, a man named Mr. Courtney Puckey owned it. He used it to try and make salt. You can still see old parts of his saltworks, like his graduation tower and house. There's also a jetty he built. Plaques in the area tell stories about how both Aboriginal people and Europeans used this land.

Many local people and visitors enjoy Puckey's Estate for fun activities. Schools and community groups also use it for learning. Sometimes, on days like Australia Day, there are runs through the reserve on its main path. At the south end of the main path, there's a wooden boardwalk. From here, you can see Fairy Lagoon, Mount Keira, Stuart Park, and parts of North Wollongong. If you're on a bike, you'll usually use the paved Squires Way road.

This reserve is also famous for its birds. Over 120 different types of birds have been seen here! It's very important for local plants and animals. However, some unwanted plants, like bitou bush, Lantana, and prickly pear, grow here. Local volunteer groups work hard to remove these. Puckey's Estate is managed as a part of the Wollongong Botanic Garden.

A Look Back in Time

Courtney Puckey bought this land, now called Puckey's Estate, by 1905. He then started building his saltworks. Puckey's graduation tower was about 9.15 meters (30 feet) tall. It used a very old method to get salt from seawater. A pump powered by wind at the lagoon entrance would send salty water to the top of the tower. The water would then slowly drip down through a wooden structure filled with tightly packed tea tree branches. After this, the water went into several basins to be heated. This final step helped to get the salt out.

You can still see parts of these basins today. You can also find what's left of Puckey's house, a wall, his jetty, and the concrete base of the tower. Before this, Puckey had tried similar salt-making experiments at North Wollongong Beach in the mid-1890s.

Exploring the Reserve

There are several paths to explore Puckey's Estate.

The Main Track

The Main Track starts at the southern end. You'll find a boardwalk near the bridge over Fairy Creek, which is part of Squire's Way. This path follows the side of the lagoon for about a hundred meters. Along this part, there are wooden seats where you can relax. People often go fishing from the boardwalk here. From this spot, you can see the southern part of the reserve, the lagoon entrance, and North Wollongong.

The track then crosses the creek on a small wooden bridge. Be aware that this small part might flood during high tide or heavy rain. After the bridge, the path turns left (north). It follows the east side of the creek through she-oak trees and other coastal plants. Then, it goes towards the coast through coastal banksia and acacia plants. It returns to the creek until it splits into two paths. Both paths lead to the Fairy Meadow Beach picnic area.

The left path goes along the creek to a bridge. This bridge leads to a small island in the creek with a picnic area. The second path goes up a small hill, about five meters high. It then continues through coastal bush. You'll find benches along the path where you can watch birds and enjoy nature. The right-hand track to the picnic ground offers amazing 360-degree views of the plain, the sea, and the mountains.

Other Paths

From the main entrance sign, another path begins. This one goes east towards the beach. Several smaller paths branch off from it. These lead to history plaques, picnic areas, and seats. One special seat is under a large pine tree at the lagoon's edge. From here, you can see views of Wollongong. These paths also lead to the sites of Puckey's old buildings and the remains of his house and saltworks. This area has two tall pine trees that you can easily spot from North Wollongong.

From the old saltworks, a path goes just west of the sand dunes. It's a bit overgrown with bitou bush but easy to follow. This path joins the main track about halfway up the reserve. Several short paths connect the main track to the beach. These are marked by posts. Many parts of the sand dunes are protected with signs. These signs explain that efforts are being made to help the dunes become stable again.

Amazing Wildlife

Puckey's Estate is a fantastic place for animals!

Birds

Birds are very common here. More than 136 different types of birds have been seen! You might spot large pelicans, ibises, spoonbills, herons, and ravens, among many others.

Other Animals

Lizards are also common. You can see different kinds of skinks and bluetongues. Unfortunately, rabbits, which are not native to Australia, are also found here in large numbers. Possums also live in the reserve. Many types of insects and spiders make their homes here too.

Cool Plants

Puckey's Estate has several different types of natural environments, called ecosystems.

Dune Plants

On the eastern side, next to Fairy Meadow Beach, there are sand dunes. Here, you'll find the invasive Bitou Bush and native plants like Banksia. There are also succulents like Pigface and other native plants. At the very southern end, there are two large pine trees. Another tall tree stands out from the usual height of the bush in the southern end. You can clearly see it from Stuart Park, across the lagoon.

Wetland Plants

Along the creek and right next to it, there's a wetland area. This wet environment attracts birds like spoonbills, herons, and sometimes ibises. This area is mostly covered by Casuarina (She-Oak) trees and reed grasses. You can also find plants like deadly nightshade and other grasses. Ground-dwelling plants like warrigal greens also grow here.

Bushland Plants

In the western part and the middle eastern part of the reserve, the bushland has a mix of native and non-native plants. Native plants include casuarina, banksia, and native bean plants. There are also many acacias, which are also known as wattles. You can find some smooth-barked eucalypt trees too, but they are not as common.

Helping the Environment

Bushcare groups are working hard to remove unwanted plants, called weeds.

Problem Weeds

Weeds that have become a big problem include bitou bush, Lantana, prickly pear, and a lot of groundsel bush. Other weeds, like Deadly Nightshade, are less of a problem. Signs were put up along the boardwalk at the southern entrance in 2007. These signs explain how important the plants in the reserve are. They also show the active work by Bushcare groups to remove weeds and litter.

Litter Problem

Littering has become a major issue here. When the tide is high or during floods, litter collects along the shore, showing how big the problem is. The local council is currently making a plan to stop this. They want to use "litter stoppers" to help keep the reserve clean.

Images for kids

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  Map of Puckeys Estate

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  View from bridge across creek

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  Main track

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  Lagoon and boardwalk seen from Squires Way bridge