Choppers In The Sky

Recent visitors to Lamington National Park may have wondered if an extreme Australia air force exercise was occurring, with a helicopter making a number of trips over the park. In fact, it was not the military but rangers transporting materials and equipment for track repairs to remote sites in the park.

Loads were heli-lifted to sections of the Coomera Circuit and Nagarigoon on the Binna Burra side of the park, while at Green Mountains the action was centred at Bithongabel and the Albert River circuit. The flight path of the lifts was carefully controlled to avoid walking tracks. Where necessary, tracks were temporarily closed to ensure public safety.

Rangers will use the materials and equipment to carry out major repairs to tracks that were damaged in the storms that lashed the park in early 2008.

Since the damage occurred, rangers have removed large numbers of fallen trees, cleared landslips and repaired damage to tracks. Temporary rangers and specialist walking track contractors have recently been employed to increase the capacity of the team and tackle the areas with large-scale damage.