MILLSTREAM

HEMA Map Reference 78/F5

21° 35' 31" S 117° 04' 24" E

Park area: 200,000 Ha.

This park is located 1707 kilometres north of Perth and 150 kilometres south of Roebourne.

'It is an oasis in a harsh land. Ferns, palms and tropical plants surround permanent pools on the Fortescue River.'

At least that’s what the tourist brochures will tell you. Since CALM poisoned and chopped down all the date palms the area has lost a lot of its original charm.

It is part of the Millstream-Chichester National Park which covers an area of 2000 square kilometres. The river was discovered by F.T. Gregory in 1861. In his notes he states that ‘the stream is strong enough to supply a large mill’ hence the name Millstream.

The station was originally a pastoral lease taken up in 1865. By the 1930s there were some 55,000 sheep run on the property. Between 1975 and 1986 the homestead operated as a tavern and then was taken over by CALM when it became a National park.

There are four deep pools in the river; Crossing Pool, Millstream Pool, Palm Pool and Deep Reach. Campsites are available in the park.

The Fortescue River does not dry out completely like other northern rivers as it is fed by an underground aquifer. This water and that collected at Harding Dam near Roebourne supplies most of the towns of the north west coast. A sealed road now extends from Karratha to within 25km of the main Millstream attractions. The old unsealed road (starting just east of Roebourne) is still in use and it is possible to go one way and return the other in order not to miss attractions like Python Pool and Pyramid Hill.

There are a number of walks in the park which include: