Dwellingup Trails and Visitor Centre officially open Thursday 10 September.

The Dwellingup National Trails Centre Project has transformed Dwellingup as to be positioned to become one of Western Australia’s key trail towns.

View to Visitor Centre from amenities block. 

Rear awning of Visitor Centre

Front entrance of Visitor Centre.

Trails WA were lucky enough to get a sneak peek at the progress recently, before the grand opening this week.

The original Dwellingup History and Visitor Centre, located on Marinup Street has been extended and developed into the Dwellingup Trails and Visitor Centre located adjacent to the Hotham Valley Tourist Railway. The extension is impressive in itself – a huge open space extending from the original visitor centre and leading through to the “back” area which is a timber lined protective awning stretching out over the back patio area. The main entry which has the impressive bright orange, perfectly preserved 1938 Mack Truck Fire Tender opposite the massive 166cm cross cut saw blade suspended in glass that leads through to the visitor servicing area.

Cross cut saw blade suspended in glass. 

The visitor servicing area is backdropped by an alarmingly huge big screen, promising to showcase the best of Dwellingup’s surround to the visiting tourists. Features include an interactive map table screen and interactive wall screens that will be a delight for tourists to use as they explore trails, sights, maps, local history, culture and conservation information. There are virtual reality headsets (upon request) that feature kayaking at Lane Poole Reserve, flying over the Murray Valley Trails and Mountain Bike Trails ‘Boom Boom’ and ‘Busted Nuts’ (both blue trails).

Past the visitor servicing space are plans for a café and a trails hire and maintenance/repairs shop of the outdoor-oriented variety, which will be fantastic for visiting and local trail users requiring parts or accessories for their adventure.

Proposed cafe area.

Outside of the Visitor Centre is a roomy amenities block that has been installed, including hot showers, toilet facilities, a laundry soon to be developed and huge open wash basins. Space has been left with the intention of installing hooks for gear and lockers for storage. A high-pressure hose has also been installed for washing down mountain bikes, trail bikes and any other trail-filthy apparatus.

Amenities block.

This project has been made possible through funding from the Australian Governments Building Better Regions Fund, the State government and Department of Local Government, Sport and Cultural Industries (DLGSC), Lotterywest, Alcoa, Hotham Valley Tourist Railway and Dwellingup Community Association Inc.

The Visitor Centre is due to open on the 10^th September 2020, for the most up to date information on the Dwellingup region check out the website visitdwellingup.com.au