3.1Visitor activities

3.1 Visitor activities

Our aims

• Visitors enjoy and appreciate the experience of visiting the park and botanic garden.
• Visitor use of the park and botanic garden is managed in ways that do not impact upon park and botanic garden values.

Background

The types of recreational opportunities appropriate to the Mount Pitt Section of the park are very different from those for Phillip Island and the botanic garden. Furthermore,

the range of recreational experiences sought by Norfolk Island residents is often very different from those sought by visitors to Norfolk Island.

Touring by vehicle, walking, horse riding and cycling are popular leisure activities in the Mount Pitt section of the park. The multi-purpose use of roads and walking tracks has safety implications and requires careful management. Visitors are advised to wear sensible footwear and to take water and food supplies on the longer walks. In extreme wet weather tracks may become slippery and extreme caution is advised. Dog walking is not allowed in the Botanic Gardens nor Phillip Island sections of the park. The Mount Pitt section of the park (see Maps 1 and 4) is the only part of the park exempt from the general prohibition on dog-walking.

Access to Phillip Island is by boat and from the boat landing place, people ascend a cliff using fixed ropes and a ladder system.

The main uses of the Phillip Island section of the park by Norfolk Island residents and visitors are fishing, camping, birdwatching and general recreation. All activities on Phillip Island have associated risks concerning access, weather and surface conditions, and rescue capacity should an accident occur. Visitors to Phillip Island are advised to ensure that they have adequate clothing and supplies, and are advised that they should only attempt to visit the island accompanied by a professional permitted guide or an experienced Norfolk Island resident.

The park boundary extends to the high water mark where it meets the coastline. The shore and marine waters below the high water mark fall within the Norfolk Marine Park, also managed by the Director of National Parks as part of the Temperate East Commonwealth Marine Reserves Network. There may be opportunities during the life of the plan for activities to occur that incorporate use of the both the park and the marine reserve, such as scuba diving and snorkelling tours or establishment of visitor infrastructure in the park that support activities undertaken in the marine reserve.