Landcare Illawarra will host the 2024 Picnic for Nature at Bombo Headland on October 19, aiming to educate the community about their vital restoration efforts in this local hotspot.

The day will include a beautiful picnic lunch, an optional swim or snorkel at Boneyard and a guided walk from Bombo Headland Landcare group member, and horticulturist, Carl Glaister with founding member Bob King.

“We’ll share the history of our sites, showcase various paintings created by high school students over the years, and discuss the 38 years of work we’ve dedicated to restoring Bombo Headland,” says Glaister.

Participants in the walk will also be invited to take part in the famous Aussie Bird Count. Glaister highlights the resurgence of birdlife and other wildlife at the headland since restoration began.

“It’s incredible how many birds have started to use and live on the headland since we started restoring. On top of this, just yesterday we saw a long neck turtle on site which is amazing. There are also swamp wallabies and sea eagles and ospreys that regularly hunt and perch in the trees on site, not to mention all the reptiles,” says Glaister.

“We want people to enjoy the sight and to see how you can transform a barren quarried headland into something that is really rich in life again.”

Glaister emphasises the importance of community engagement with the land’s history. “It is first of all First Nations land. Europeans came along and really degraded the headland to extract the basalt and blue metal,” says Glaister.

“To realise the history of that is important - how we’ve changed and degraded the landscape and how in more recent times we’ve really been trying to restore it. And if you don’t know the history of a place, then you won’t know how important it is to get involved in doing things like land and bush care.”

The event is open to all, you can register on the website, with the walk starting at 12pm from Boneyard Beach and lasting until 4pm.

“It’s one of the most beautiful places we have in Kiama. It’s a public space where you’ve got the most beautiful ocean bay and forest coming right to the edge of the water.

There’s really no other headland like it. So, it’s just going to be a lovely day,” says Glaister.

If you can’t make it, but want to get involved, reach out to Kiama Council or Landcare Illawarra.