Insider Guide: Lincoln National Park

Elly Schultz – Ranger Eyre Peninsula

How would you describe your job to some­one at a BBQ?

I work most­ly in the Lin­coln and Cof­fin Bay nation­al parks but also across the whole of the Eyre Penin­su­la with a small team of rangers doing a vari­ety of envi­ron­men­tal works and programs.

In the space of a day I could be doing wildlife sur­veys, fer­al ani­mal con­trol, week­ends patrols of the parks, fire response and help­ing peo­ple out in the parks.

I real­ly enjoy the diver­si­ty of my work, hav­ing the mix of being out in the field and office-based work. 

How did you get into this line of work?

I grew up on the Eyre Penin­su­la and spent a lot of my child­hood out­side, camp­ing, trav­el­ling and fish­ing so it has been bred into me.

I have always been pas­sion­ate about our local envi­ron­ment and want­ed to help pro­tect it.

I had a go at uni­ver­si­ty study­ing marine biol­o­gy straight out of school but was too home­sick so had anoth­er go a cou­ple of years lat­er and com­plet­ed a Bach­e­lor of Sci­ence in Ecol­o­gy at the Ade­laide Uni­ver­si­ty and here I am today – a ranger in my own backyard. 

What do you encounter in a ​‘nor­mal’ day on the job?

I would say there’s no ​‘nor­mal’ day in my job – things can vary depend­ing on the time of year.

I might be work­ing in the office answer­ing queries from mem­bers of the pub­lic, tak­ing out school groups doing marine debris clean ups, con­duct­ing shore­bird sur­veys or chop­ping up meat for fox baits ready to dis­perse across our parks. 

What’s the most amaz­ing thing you’ve seen at Lin­coln Nation­al Park?

There are lots of amaz­ing things I have seen over time. Wildlife sight­ings can be quite unique, it’s all about being in the right place at the right time.

Some high­lights include see­ing a sea eagle dive down from Wan­na Sleaford Dunes, catch a fish then fly off with its catch, and see­ing a pair of hood­ed plovers with chicks at their feet on a beach near Wanna.

I would like to think the threat abate­ment pro­grams we under­take, like fox con­trol, helps these species suc­cess­ful­ly breed.

What are your insid­er tips about Lin­coln Nation­al Park?

Take the bumpy lime­stone tracks to Maclaren Point and vis­it the gor­geous beach. It’ll be worth the bumps, and don’t for­get it’s only acces­si­ble by four-wheel drive.

Try the Stam­ford Hill Hike and take in the mag­nif­i­cent views at the top when you reach the Flinders Monument.

This sto­ry was orig­i­nal­ly post­ed in April 2016