After leaving Clinton Conservation Park, Marija drove a short distance down the Yorke Highway to our next park for the day (Sunday 5th February 2023), the Wills Creek Conservation Park VKFF-0819.

Above:- Map showing the location of the Wills Creek Conservation Park. Image c/o Location SA Map Viewer.

To get to the park we had to drive through the little town of Price.

The town was named by Governor William Jervois (b. 1821. d. 1897) after Florence Annie Price who married the governor’s eldest son. Florence was the daughter of Henry Strong Price, a pioneer pastoralist of the Flinders Ranges.

Above:- Governor WIlliam Jervois. Image c/o Wikipedia.

The town was proclaimed on the 3rd day of August 1882.

Above:- Proclamation of the town of Price. c/o The SA Govt Gazette, 3rd Aug 1882.

In that same year, a small wharf was erected on Wills Creek which is a sheltered anchorage for boats. In the early days of Price, it was from here that bagged salt and grain were loaded onto ketches for export.  By 1964 the port was virtually closed and the wharf has now been demolished. In 1911 the Adelaide Advertiser newspaper (see below) reported that most of the ketches visiting Price via Wills Creek had at various times been stuck in the creek at low tide. In 1885 the Price school was opened.

Above:- Article from The Advertiser, Thu 12 Oct 1911. Image c/o Trove.

Price is a small town with a population of about 256 people. In the town, you can find the Wheatsheaf Hotel built in 1886, and a caravan park.

On the southern side of the town of Price, you will find Cheetham Salt Limited. It is the largest salt refinery in the southern hemisphere, with an average of 150,000 tonnes of salt harvested each year.

The Wills Creek Conservation Park is located on the eastern side of the Yorke Peninsula. It runs from south of the town of Clinton, along the coastline to south of the town of Price. The park is about 2,298 hectares in size.

Above:- An aerial view of the park looking south. Image c/o Google maps.

The park was proclaimed on the 14th day of December 2006.

The park is a significant coastal wetland and estuary area which supports mangroves and intertidal habitats. There are three major flora habitats in the park: Mangrove woodland, Low (Samphire) shrubland, and Low woodland.

Birds SA have recorded about 103 bird species in the park including Common Greenshank, White-faced Heron, Singing Honeyeater, White-browned Scrubwren, Chestnut Teal, Grey Teal, and Willie Wagtail.

Numerous reptiles can be found in the park including the Southern Grass skink, the Four-toed Earless skink, and the Dwarf skink.

Marija and I drove to the end of the Causeway Road to the car park at the boat ramp. We set up just to the north of the shelter shed.

Above:- Map showing our operating spot. Map c/o Location SA Map Viewer.

Between the two of us, we logged a total of 86 stations including some DX on 15m and 10m.

Marija worked the following stations on 40m SSB:-

1. VK3ZPF/p (Bunyip State Park VKFF-0753 & SOTA VK3/ VC-037)
2. VK5HS
3. VK3AT/p (SOTA ?)
4. VK5FANA
5. VK5WU
6. VK3PF/p (Mount Warrenheip Flora Reserve VKFF-2402 & SOTA VK3/ VC-019)
7. VK3MDC/m
8. VK3GJG
9. VK2EXA
10. VK3WMF

Marija worked the following stations on 20m SSB:-

1. VK2IO/p (Dural Nature Reserve VKFF-1926)
2. VK3ZPF/p (Bunyip State Park VKFF-0753 & SOTA VK3/ VC-037)

I worked the following stations on 40m SSB:-

1. VK3ZPF/p (Bunyip State Park VKFF-0753 & SOTA VK3/ VC-037)
2. VK5HS
3. VK3AT/p (SOTA ?)
4. VK5FANA
5. VK5WU
6. VK3PF/p (Mount Warrenheip Flora Reserve VKFF-2402 & SOTA VK3/ VC-019)
7. VK3MDC/m
8. VK3WMF/m
9. VK3GJG
10. VK3SX
11. VK2EXA
12. VK5ADB

I worked the following stations on 20m SSB:-

1. VK4SMA
2. VK2IO/p (Dural Nature Reserve VKFF-1926)
3. VK2LEE
4. VK4TJ
5. VK4HAT
6. VK3GJG
7. VK2NP
8. VK5HS
9. VK7XX
10. VK3UH
11. VK3SX
12. VK4KC
13. VK4MAD
14. VK4DOG
15. VK4FW
16. VK8MM
17. VK3CWF
18. VK3ZPF/p (Bunyip State Park VKFF-073 & SOTA VK3/ VC-037)
19. VK2EXA
20. VK5CZ
21. VK3ZSC
22. VK4SYD
23. VK3SQ
24. VK2MI
25. AC1NY

I worked the following stations on 15m SSB:-

1. VK3SQ
   VK2DA
2. VK2NP
3. VK4FW
4. VK8MM
5. VK2FADV
6. VK6ANC
7. ZL4NVW
8. VK1CHW
9. VK7XX
10. VK3ZSC
11. VK1AO
12. VK2MET
13. VK4SMA
14. VK2LEE
15. VK4SYD
16. VK7HBR
17. VK4HAT
18. VK3CWF
19. VK4FDJL
20. VK4WAB

I worked the following stations on 10m SSB:-

1. VK7XX
2. VK7HBR
3. VK2FADV
4. VK1AO
5. VK2MET
6. VK2NP
7. VK4FW
8. VK8MM
9. VK4SYD
10. VK7IAN
11. VK4TJ
12. VK3CWF
13. WH6LU
14. VK3GJG
15. VK1CHW
16. KB6EGA
17. VK2MTZ

References.

1. A Compendium of the Place Names of South Australia, 2023, <https://published.collections.slsa.sa.gov.au/placenamesofsouthaustralia/>, viewed 22nd February 2023.
2. Birds SA, 2023, <https://birdssa.asn.au/location/wills-creek-conservation-park/>, viewed 22nd February 2023.
3. Mainland Conservation Parks of Yorke Peninsula, 2006, Dept for Environment & Heritage
4. Wikipedia, 2023, <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/William_Jervois>, viewed 22nd February 2023.
5. Wikipedia, 2023, <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Price,_South_Australia>, viewed 22nd February 2023.
6. Yorke Peninsula Visitor Information, 2023, <https://www.visityorkepeninsula.com.au/price>, viewed 22nd February 2023.