Herdsman Lake Regional Park
Reed-choked wetland shaped by a failed nineteen-twenties drainage and soldier-settlement scheme.
Location
About this audio guide
This guide to Herdsman Lake Regional Park in Perth traces a nineteen-twenties scheme that tried to drain the lake dry and hand its bed to returning World War One soldiers as farmland. It follows the government engineers, the Catholic Church land they built on, and the soldiers who ended up knee-deep in mud instead of crops. You'll hear how that failed scheme reshaped the wetland you're standing beside today, and what still grows across four-fifths of it. Best heard from the boardwalk rail, looking out over the reeds.
This audio guide was created using AI.
Similar places
Perth Cultural Centre
Reclaimed lakebed turned arts precinct, with galleries, theatres and a recreated Noongar wetland.
Subiaco
Leafy suburb built atop a failed nineteenth-century monastery, now lined with cafes and boutiques.
Lake Monger
Wetland lake ringed by a paved path, once a swimming and boating hub now given over to black swans.
Mundaring Weir
Stone dam and reservoir that once pumped drinking water across the desert to a gold rush.
Elizabeth Quay
Waterfront promenade around a reflooded river inlet, ringed by restaurants, bars and a rooftop lookout.
Hyde Park
Landscaped colonial-era garden of twin lakes, its historic canopy now fighting an invasive beetle.