On Country Tour with Yabbie Lunch
Join Grant and Anne Riley on an experience at Lake Dumbleyung in the Golden Outback region of Western Australia to learn about the Aboriginal history and the significance of this water body. Lake Dumbleyung was once a significant food and water source for the Wilman people of the region, attracting birdlife, wildlife, fish and yabbies. Now a saltwater lake due to land clearing, the lake is no less spectacular when full, attracting black swans and a multitude of birdlife. As you will discover on this tour, the spiritual and cultural connections that the region’s first people share with this place are still very much alive.
Visit an emu farm and see these majestic birds up close, learn about how emu oil is used today in pharmaceuticals and cosmetics. Another important food source to the Wilman people was the ‘Djilgi’ (yabbie). Enjoy a tour of the yabbie farm before being treated to a gourmet yabbie lunch.
Location
Lake Dumbleyung and surrounding venues.
What to expect
Join Grant and Anne Riley on an experience at Lake Dumbleyung to learn about the Aboriginal history and the significance of this water body that was once a significant food and water source for the Wilman people of the Region.
Your tour commences in the sunken bush food garden surrounded by native bush foods. Your guide Grant will welcome you in language and share his history, traditional artefacts, storytelling and cultural heritage of the area and its first people.
Travel in air-conditioned comfort on our 12 seater tour bus and visit gnamma holes (secret water holes), tribal corroboree grounds and ancient hunting grounds including Lake Dumbleyung, a place with a rich Aboriginal history. This body of water was once a significant source of food and water for the Wilman people of the region, attracting birdlife, wildlife, fish and yabbies. Now a saltwater lake due to land clearing, the lake is no less spectacular when full, attracting black swans and a multitude of birdlife. As you will discover on this tour, the spiritual and cultural connections that the region’s first people share with this place are still very much alive.
Visit the lookout tower at Pussy Cat Hill. Here you will be rewarded with a spectacular view of this expanse of water, which is the largest body of inland water in Western Australia.
Visit an Aboriginal reserve and learn about the hardships of life and how they hunted. Grant will share the medicinal use for some of the flora and bush food samples of plants in season.
Next stop is the locally operated Emu Farm producing natural skin care products containing emu oil and are one of Australia’s biggest manufacturers and exporters. See the majestic birds up close, learn about how emu oil is used today in pharmaceuticals and cosmetics and have the opportunity to purchase products direct from the farm, followed by a cup of tea and delicious sponge cake.
It is then on to the local yabbie farm to see the operations, purchase local gourmet products and sample these freshwater delicacies and enjoy a gourmet lunch before heading back to Wuddi Cultural Centre.
What is included
This tour runs on Thursdays, Fridays and Saturdays from 10:00am - 3:00pm.
Tours start and finish at Wuddi Cultural Centre. Some of the drives between locations are one hour long. No toilets are on the bus. We encourage guests to use public toilets at locations and venues visited.
This tour operates with a minimum of 4 guests and a maximum of 12 guests.
Tour includes:
- Aboriginal Guide
- Bush food experience at Wuddi Cultural Centre
- Air conditioned tour bus
- Morning tea, lunch and drinks (non-alcoholic)
- On Country experience at Lake Dumbleyung
- Entry to the Emu and Yabbie farms
Group bookings can be arranged outside of usual tour times.
Please note the Yabbie Farm and Emu Farm experiences are not Aboriginal owned. These two businesses work in partnership with Wuddi Aboriginal Cultural Tours to deliver this experience.
Meeting point
Dumbleyung Cultural Centre, 22 Harvey Street, Dumbleyung, Western Australia.
What to bring
- Camera
- Hat
- Sneakers
- Sunglasses
- Sunscreen
- Water bottle
YOUR EXPERIENCE PROVIDER
Wuddi Aboriginal Cultural Tours
Three hours south east of Perth is the wheatbelt town of Dumbleyung. The name Dumbleyung is derived from the Aboriginal word ‘dambling’ meaning large lake or inland sea. The Wuddi Cultural Centre celebrates the area’s ancient Aboriginal history, keeping it alive by sharing local cultural traditions, bushfoods, stories, artworks and artefacts. Visitors can purchase authentic Aboriginal items from all over Western Australia, with many locally crafted right here in Dumbleyung including; tapping sticks, boomerangs, didgeridoos, artworks, bush jewellery, bush foods and jams. The Cultural Centre also operates culturally themed tours that range from bush food tastings and walking tours of the region’s important Aboriginal sites. Wuddi Cultural Centre is a place that offers a warm welcome and a surprising insight into the Aboriginal history of the region.
Grant and Anne Riley run Wuddi Aboriginal Cultural Tours in Dumbleyung. Grant is a Wilman man and is passionate about sharing his culture with visitors and guests. He was born and grew up in Dumbleyung. Grant is the third youngest of 14 children for Henry and Ruby Riley. Grant would follow his father Henry Riley out bush where he learnt heaps of knowledge about his people of this area, the tools, foods, etc. Anne is a Balladong woman from Quairading. She looks after the cultural centre, gift store and prepares bush tucker inspired food for the tour guests and visitors.
On Country Tour with Yabbie Lunch
