Introduction
National park in Western Australia
Leeuwin-Naturaliste National ParkIUCN category II (national park)A location in the Leeuwin-Naturaliste National ParkLeeuwin-Naturaliste National ParkLocationWestern AustraliaNearest cityBusseltonCoordinates34°14′19″S 115°02′50″E / 34.23861°S 115.04722°E / -34.23861; 115.04722Area190.92 km2 (73.71 sq mi)Established1957Governing bodyParks and Wildlife Service of the Department of Biodiversity, Conservation and AttractionsWebsiteOfficial website
Leeuwin-Naturaliste National Park is a national park in the South West region of Western Australia, 267 km (166 mi) south of Perth.
It is named after the two capes either end of the park, Cape Leeuwin and Cape Naturaliste.
It is located in the Augusta Margaret River and Busselton council areas, and is claimed to have the highest visiting numbers of any national park in Western Australia. The park received 2.33 million visitors through 2008–2009.
Description
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The park extends over 160 kilometres (100 mi), from Cape Naturaliste in the north to Cape Leeuwin in the south. It is composed of 28 separate reserves, which together have an area of about 15,600 hectares (39,000 acres). Despite the park's large size, the reserves are fragmented, and in many places the park consists only of a narrow coastal strip.
It has many features of interest including limestone and granite outcrops like Sugarloaf Rock and Canal Rocks. The coastal area also contains many beaches with well-known surf breaks, such as Supertubes, Yallingup Beach, and Smiths Beach. Other coastal features include coastal cliffs and aeolian dunes. The park contains many caves, some of which are accessible by the public. There are brackish and freshwater lakes and springs, and the park is crossed by several creeks and rivers, including the Margaret River.
The park either passes through or contains historic sites including the Cape Leeuwin water wheel.
Leeuwin–Naturaliste Ridge
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The Leeuwin-Naturaliste Ridge is a discontinuous strip of coastal dune limestone running north–south and extending along the western shore, parallel to the coast from Cape Naturaliste to Cape Leeuwin. The ridge is composed of two landform elements, Tamala Limestone and the basement rock the limestone formed on, called the Leeuwin Complex.
Tamala Limestone is a naturally occurring eolianite limestone, found in deposits on the western coastline of Western Australia.
The Leeuwin Complex is a strongly metamorphosed igneous Proterozoic rock made up mostly of granitic and anorthositic gneisses. The Dunsborough Fault forms the eastern boundary of the Leeuwin Complex where it adjoins the sedimentary Perth Basin.
The ridge's geology and the variations in vegetation are confined to a number of very narrow bands that follow the north–south orientation of the ridge.
