8 activities to try in SA’s national parks

If you think there’s noth­ing to do in a nation­al park apart from walk­ing, think again. Here’s eight ideas to get you started:

1. Trail running

Do you love being out­doors but crave some­thing faster than bush­walk­ing? Why not try trail run­ning instead, for a high-adren­a­line work­out. Depend­ing on your lev­el of fit­ness, you can run near­ly any trail you can walk – so long as you keep an eye out for peo­ple who are enjoy­ing a gen­tler pace. Cle­land, Hal­lett Cove and Anstey Hill con­ser­va­tion parks are all ide­al places to try trail running.

2. Moun­tain biking

Moun­tain bik­ing is an increas­ing­ly pop­u­lar sport and parks like Sturt Gorge and Anstey Hill have shared-use trail net­works that are great for rid­ing as well as walk­ing. Oth­er parks, like Cob­bler Creek and Shep­herds Hill, have ded­i­cat­ed trails for moun­tain bik­ing, includ­ing pump tracks and great down­hill runs. Check our web­site for a full list of parks you can ride in right now.

3. Horse riding

Some of the same shared trails used by moun­tain bikes and walk­ers are also great for hors­es too. Belair Nation­al Park, Para Wirra Con­ser­va­tion Park and Black­wood For­est Recre­ation Park are all great places with­in an hour of the city to enjoy some qual­i­ty time in the sad­dle. More infor­ma­tion on hors­es in parks is avail­able on the Nation­al Parks web­site.

4. Rock climbing

Mori­al­ta Con­ser­va­tion Park is the most pop­u­lar place for rock climb­ing and abseil­ing, with a range of climbs of vary­ing dif­fi­cul­ties to choose from. Onka­paringa Riv­er Nation­al Park, in Adelaide’s south­ern sub­urbs, is anoth­er amaz­ing spot for climbers, with 50-metre cliffs and per­ma­nent rock pools. Be aware though, rock climb­ing can be haz­ardous and these sites should only be attempt­ed by expe­ri­enced climbers with appro­pri­ate safe­ty equipment.

5. Four-wheel driving

Four-wheel dri­ves are a great way to get to places you can’t reach in an ordi­nary car, and you’ll have lots of fun get­ting there as you bump over rough or sandy tracks. The Bor­der Track in Ngarkat, as well as Lin­coln Nation­al Park, Canun­da Con­ser­va­tion Park, Kati Than­da-Lake Eyre Nation­al Park, Ikara-Flinders Ranges Nation­al Park, the Simp­son Desert Con­ser­va­tion Park and Region­al Reserve and Gawler Ranges Nation­al Park are all pop­u­lar with four-wheel dri­ve enthu­si­asts, and have clear­ly marked tracks to pre­vent dam­age to the envi­ron­ment. Be sure to check the nation­al parks web­site to see if any of these parks are closed at this time of year.

6. Cav­ing

Nara­coorte Caves in the South East is home to South Australia’s best known cave sys­tem. It is also the state’s only World Her­itage Area and fea­tures megafau­na fos­sils and a colony of south­ern bent-wing bats, as well as stun­ning lime­stone for­ma­tions. On Kan­ga­roo Island, Kel­ly Hill Caves also deliv­ers the goods in the lime­stone depart­ment, with beau­ti­ful sta­lag­mites and sta­lac­tites. Both Nara­coorte and Kel­ly Hill offers gen­er­al cave tours, as well as adven­ture tours for peo­ple who want to explore fur­ther – and don’t mind get­ting a bit dusty.

7. Div­ing

Whether you pre­fer snorkelling, scu­ba div­ing or free div­ing on just a sin­gle breath of air, Pic­canin­nie Ponds in the South East is for you. You can choose from a 10m-deep pool, the 100m-deep sink­hole known as The Chasm, or The Cathe­dral – an under­wa­ter cave. And the best thing is the water is crys­tal clear, allow­ing for up to 40m vis­i­bil­i­ty. Book your per­mit for snorkelling or div­ing at Pic­can­nin­nie Ponds online.

8. Per­son­al relaxation

You’ve seen the Insta­gram pho­tos of peo­ple doing yoga pos­es in the bush, so why not join the trend? Just being in nat­ur­al places has been proven to be good for our men­tal health, help­ing us relax and destress. Nation­al parks offer fresh air and a peace­ful atmos­phere that are per­fect for yoga, med­i­ta­tion, tai chi or just qui­et con­tem­pla­tion. Pick your favourite park – whichev­er you choose will be perfect.

Want more? Check out our oth­er ​‘see and do’ sto­ries for ideas of how to make the most of SA’s nation­al parks and spe­cial places.

This sto­ry was orig­i­nal­ly post­ed in April 2017.

Main image: Pic­canin­nie Ponds (image cour­tesy of SATC/​Stuart Hutchinson)