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Bald Hills Bushies

Where they meet:     Barungwarra Bushland Reserve

When do they meet: The 3rd Saturday of each month between 7am and 8am. 

Contact:                   Cr Carol Cashman, Bracken Ridge Ward Office – Ph: 3667 6000

The Bald Hills Bushies is a bushcare group founded in October 1993 by former Councillor Keith Murray.  The group meet on the third Saturday of each month with a view and a vision to beautify and restore a once-ravaged area between the northern end of Canterbury Estate and the of the Pine River.

This area had been worked for years as a sand and gravel extraction site and when the sand and gravel company moved on, it was left without a blade of grass in sight.  Rocks the size of a man’s fist covered the ground and the coarse sand left behind was so salty that nothing would grow.

The area is now parkland with bike and walking tracks, drinking fountains and an informal boat landing area.  The transformation by the Bald Hills Bushies is nothing short of amazing.

The area between the new park and the northern motorway has also benefited tremendously from the efforts of the Bald Hills Bushies.  Over 3,000 trees and shrubs supplied by the Brisbane City Council have been planted by the Bushies in co-operation with the Landcare Environment Action Program (LEAP).  A project co-funded by the Council and the Federal Government to assist unemployed youth.  Scores of trees were planted each month for the first couple of years and these are maintained and watered at the Bushies regular meetings.  This stretch of land between the Canterbury Estate, the Motorway and the Park has been named Barungwarra Bushland Reserve.  A name suggested by local wildlife expert John Bowden, a retired high school science teacher whose expertise was very helpful to the Bushies during their first years inception.

Wildlife expert Ric Natrass who visited the site and walked through the Reserve with Bushies said Bushies had created one of, if not, the most diverse bird habitats in Brisbane.  Former Councillor Keith Murray returned to celebrate the Bushies 10th Birthday in 2003 and unveiled a plaque as a commemoration.

The Bald Hills Bushies has no membership fees, committees or office bearers.  It is just a group of people dedicated to ensuring that their neighbourhood is a more attractive place.  The dozens of people who walk, cycle or run through these recreational areas daily can thank the Bald Hills Bushies for a job well done.

The Bald Hills Bushies were nominated for the 2006 Queensland Arbour Day Awards.

The former Bald Hills Lions Club were a big supporter of the Bushies – supplying refreshments and moral support each Saturday for many years.

The Bald Hills Bushies meet on the 3rd Saturday of each month between 7am and 8am.  You are welcome to come along and spend an hour assisting.

Enquiries – Cr Carol Cashman, Bracken Ridge Ward Office – Ph: 3667 6000.