The wharf to wharf opening ceremony was graced with a beautiful warm winters day as members of the community celebrated the occasion at Tathra on Saturday.
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Project co-coordinator Mark Darby from Tathra Lions kicked it off with a speech of thanks to all the community groups involved in the project, inviting Aunty Colleen Dixon to open with a Welcome to Country.
Shortly after Nathan Lygon began a smoking ceremony, using leaves he had gathered from a previous Indigenous cultural dance.
Mr Lygon said the event was "all about journeys" - the journey of the walk, his life's journey, that of those around him and of the mother land.
Member for Eden Kristy McBain joined Bega Valley Shire Council Mayor Russell Fitzpatrick and the presidents of both the Merimbula and Pambula Lions Club to share a few words at the opening.
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Ms McBain especially acknowledged the countless hours of work from volunteers in the community, explaining that the core groups involved in this project are volunteer based and it could not have gone ahead without their efforts.
"It's very easy to talk about a project but it takes great dedication and commitments to make them happen," Ms McBain said.
Once the ceremony was closed people were invited to morning tea at the Tathra Wharf café, which laid out a beautiful display of cakes, tea and coffee for guests.
Tourism manager of Merimbula Tourism centre, Chris Nicholl, said the walk has significant importance to the area for tourism as it connects two important tourism points in an activity heavily sought out by visitors since the pandemic outbreak.
"One of the first things people ask when visiting our area is 'where can I walk? Where can I go to get out into nature?'," he said.
"Particularly since the pandemic because people are trying to get away from the city and be outdoors."
President of the Tathra business chamber, Carmen Risby said she's excited about the walk and that it will bring nature seekers, bushwalkers, and people from all walks of life to the area.
Mr Nicholls and Ms Risby agree one of the prominent features of the walk is that it is raw and rugged, rather than being mostly man made.
"The coastline changes as you go along, there's different features, different landforms and geography, "Mr Nicholls said.
"Then you've got the indigenous history on top of that which is thousands of years old, so it's really significant."
What to expect on the Wharf to Wharf walk
The walk passes through public coastal reserves, flora reserves, beaches and Bournda National Park, with dedicated new signage that will be added along the way to guide the walkers.
Signage along the way will be subtle and will not replace any pre-existing signs from other existing trails.
Project co-coordinator Mark Darby encourages people to download the comprehensive track notes available on their Wharf to Wharf website that will help navigate walkers.
"There will be signage throughout but it will be worth having the track notes to map your journey and make more sense of how they all connect together," Mr Darby said.
"We're working with wild walks as well [a renowned national bush walking app] they've mapped it all on their site with GPS connections."
Expert local guides, Tess and Cam to offer guided packages for the walk in future
Local guides, Tess Miller and Cam Read from Sapphire Coast Guiding Company, are excited to announce they will soon be releasing guided packages for the walk.
Mr Read said they will be providing packages that are fully guided, catered and include accommodation, working in conjunction with local businesses.
"It offers that experience of having everything organised for you essentially from picking you up to dropping you off, in the end we take care of everything," Mr Read said.
"You're really experiencing not just the landscape but all the local produce and hospitality."
Tess and Cam said they will also be providing self-guided walk packages, which will include information packages as well as options for food packages sourced from local food producers.
People are encouraged to keep an eye on their social pages for the launch of the new packages.
"We're excited to have something that is so close to the towns, walkers don't have to get in their cars and drive an hour and a half to get to the trail head, it's super accessible," Ms Miller said.
"The guided tour offers history, geology and information on flora and fauna as well as points of interest along the way," Mr Read added.
Ms Miller added the walk brings a feeling of remoteness as you walk along the rugged paths.
"It doesn't take long to walk out of Tathra or Merimbula before you feel immersed in the wilderness," she said.
The pair then left to take guests on a 45 minute introductory guided tour of the first leg of the walk.