My happy place (Corinna Clark)

Corinna Clark

Pilungah Reserve Manager (far western Queensland)

When the sun sets down beyond the sand dunes at Pilungah Reserve on Wangkamadla country in far western Queensland the light takes on all these blueish, purplish hues that seem almost at odds with the desert’s harsh colours by day.

My partner and fellow Reserve Manager Ingo Schomacker and I like to go and sit on a sand dune near the homestead dubbed Little Red.

As day falls to night, we quietly take in the rich red colour of the sand and in the distance, all the communities that call this landscape home; flocks of Emu dads and their chicks running along by the scrubby Gidgee trees and swirling flocks made up of thousands of green and gold Budgerigars.

It’s especially beautiful after a long day’s work weeding, which we’ve had to do a lot lately after 20mm of rainfall caused the Buffel Grass to spring up seemingly overnight.

It’s a good place for relaxing and reflecting on the day that’s been.

Some of the Traditional Owners of Pilungah, the Wangkamadla people, recently came here for a culture camp. During their stay they took us to a culturally significant site and we felt so welcomed by the way they took us in and shared their knowledge with us.

We’ve only been Reserve Managers since August 2021, so seeing these sacred places which have been here for thousands of years made us feel a deeper sense of connection to this place.