Ranger tips: Coffin Bay National Park

Cof­fin Bay Nation­al Park is home to a diverse coastal wilder­ness of windswept dunes, pris­tine beach­es and tran­quil bays.

While it’s a reg­u­lar favourite for four-wheel dri­ve adven­tur­ers, there’s plen­ty to see for two-wheel dri­ve trav­ellers too – on land and on water.

It’s here you can enjoy activ­i­ties includ­ing kayak­ing, wind surf­ing, snorkelling, swim­ming, fish­ing as well as bush­walk­ing, bird-watch­ing and camping.

With so much to see and do, we’ve asked ranger Sam Ever­ing­ham to share some of his best tips and secrets. Here’s what he had to say:

How many days should vis­i­tors spend in the park?

If time is lim­it­ed and you only have a 2WD vehi­cle, the park is a great day-trip from Port Lin­coln or the near­by town­ship of Cof­fin Bay.

But if you have a 4WD and a bit more time, I would rec­om­mend stay­ing a few days – that way you can go camp­ing on the Cof­fin Bay Penin­su­la, where there are even more great sites to explore. 

Do I need a four-wheel drive? 

You can vis­it Cof­fin Bay Nation­al Park in a con­ven­tion­al 2WD, as some of the best beach­es in the park are accessed via bitu­men roads includ­ing the icon­ic Almonta Beach just beyond the Gold­en Island Lookout. 

A 4WD is required beyond Yang­ie Bay though, as the 4WD Cof­fin Track pro­vides some chal­leng­ing soft sand and slow rocky sections.

What is your favourite campground?

The Pool Camp­ground is my favourite. It’s locat­ed beside a shel­tered bay called Smooth Pools, a beau­ti­ful sec­tion of the coast toward the north­ern end of the Cof­fin Bay Peninsula.

Smooth Pools, with its sandy beach, is per­fect for swim­ming or try­ing your luck at fishing.

You’ll need a 4WD to get to The Pool Camp­ground, so if you only have a 2WD, Yang­ie Bay Camp­ground is your best bet as it’s acces­si­ble to all vehicles.

Top tip: Mobile phone cov­er­age in the park is very lim­it­ed. Make sure you book your vehi­cle entry and camp­ing fees online before travel.

What’s your favourite walk­ing trail in the park?

The Yang­ie Look­out Walk (20 min­utes, 1km) is my favourite. Although it is one of our short­er walks, it trav­els through dif­fer­ent veg­e­ta­tion types and has a fan­tas­tic view at the top of the look­out where you can see all the way to the mouth of Yang­ie Bay itself.

When is the best time to vis­it the park?

There’s some­thing for every­one at any time of year, but I real­ly enjoy the beach and get­ting into the water so sum­mer is my favourite.

I gen­er­al­ly rec­om­mend vis­it­ing the park ear­ly in the day when the winds are gentle.

I often go to Long Beach in the after­noon – it’s a nice relax­ing spot to take the fam­i­ly and watch the sun set­ting over the nation­al park.

What’s the park’s best kept secret?

Sen­sa­tion Beach, with its white sands and aqua waters, is well worth the long trip. It’s the per­fect spot to spend the day.

This beach is very remote and dri­ving on – and espe­cial­ly off – the beach is dif­fi­cult, so be care­ful. If you’re not con­fi­dent in your beach dri­ving skills, park just before the sand dune and take the short walk over the dune to get to the beach. 

Fun fact: Despite its beau­ty, the beach is actu­al­ly named after a tuna fish­ing boat named ​‘Sen­sa­tion’ that ran ashore in 1969.

Park of the Month

Through­out Decem­ber, Cof­fin Bay Nation­al Park is being cel­e­brat­ed as Nation­al Parks and Wildlife Ser­vice South Australia’s Park of the Month. There’s lots of events and activ­i­ties to get involved in – check the web­site for all the details.

Main image: Cof­fin Bay Ranger Sam Everingham