Federation Walk is a pedestrian walkway on the

Queensland Queensland ( , commonly abbreviated as Qld) is a States and territories of Australia, state in northeastern Australia, and is the second-largest and third-most populous state in Australia. It is bordered by the Northern Territory, South Austr ...

Gold Coast. It is operated as a community project that was launched through efforts of the Main Beach Progress Association and the Friends of Federation Walk to celebrate the Centenary of the

Federation of Australia The Federation of Australia was the process by which the six separate British self-governing colonies of Queensland, New South Wales, Victoria, Tasmania, South Australia (which also governed what is now the Northern Territory), and Wester ...

in 2001. It is located at the northern end of the

Gold Coast Oceanway The Gold Coast Oceanway is a foreshoreway for use by pedestrians and cyclists along the Gold Coast, Queensland, Australia connecting the Point Danger lighthouse on the New South Wales and Queensland border to the Gold Coast Seaway. The net ...

on the

Southport Spit The Southport Spit (officially known as The Spit) is a Spit (landform), spit and neighbourhood within the northern end of Main Beach, Queensland, Main Beach, City of Gold Coast, Queensland, Australia. It is a permanent sand spit that separates ...

, Gold Coast in

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country comprising mainland Australia, the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania and list of islands of Australia, numerous smaller isl ...

History

The project was launched in 1999 after receipt of the Centenary of Federation Queensland grant of $75,000, the Gold Coast City Council matched that amount and the $150,000 was committed to Stage 1 construction of the Federation Walk pathway designed and surveyed by Southport Architect and Urban Planner Arnold Wolthers. On 19 March 2000, the walk was officially launched, and was attended by more than 100 people. A

fig The fig is the edible fruit of ''Ficus carica'', a species of tree or shrub in the flowering plant family Moraceae, native to the Mediterranean region, together with western and southern Asia. It has been cultivated since ancient times and i ...

tree that currently marks the start of the walk was planted to mark the ribbon-cutting. The first stage of Federation Walk was officially opened on 21 January 2001, with more than 5,000 people in attendance and 100 trees planted. The Opening of the Federation Walk Pathway was held on 6 June 2002, with the unveiling of a large plaque at the Walk's start. Arnold Wolthers prepared and submitted to Gold Coast City Council the Land Management Plan for Federation Walk. Although the region faced a number of challenges, due in part to the proposed construction of a cruise ship terminal, the Walk has been preserved. In 2007 the Queensland State Government committed $100,000 per year to the Federation Walk project. This amount was matched by the Gold Coast City Council and with an additional $30,000 in funds not only managed the funding but also employed a part-time Ranger specific to the Federation Walk Coastal Reserve.

Location

A natural section of the area known as The Spit, the long Federation Walk begins at a fig tree in the parking lot opposite the entrance to Sea World. The walk continues through patches of rainforest where regular community planting days are held. After leaving the

Federation Walk Coastal Reserve The Federation Walk Coastal Reserve is a reserve comprising the eastern part of The Spit on the Gold Coast, Queensland, Australia. The reserve was opened on 22 June 2003, and is approximately 93 hectares in size. The area supports a subtle mix of ...

, the walk continues under the sand bypass jetty and along the pathway to the southern training wall of the Gold Coast Seaway. The tip of the walk is at the end of the Gold Coast Oceanway.

Support

Federation Walk is supported primarily by Friends of Federation Walk, a subcommittee of the Main Beach Progress Association, whose mission is to prepare a Master Plan for the regeneration of the vegetation on The Spit, create public access for passive recreation, to ensure present and future generations of the community have access to enjoy, appreciate and care for The Spit. Much of their work was undone between 2003 and 2005 when seven deliberately lit fires devastated the area and destroyed planting that had been supported by a $25,000 grant from Enviro Fund. Following the fires, a weed-a-thon was held in November 2006 to mark the receipt of a grant from the government of Queensland, which was in addition to money received from the Gold Coast City Council. Work for the Dole and Green Corps have also been among the organisations that have supported Federation Walk. In 2006 the state government promised $100,000 per annum towards the employment of a ranger for the Federation Walk.

References

{{Reflist

External links

Gold Coast City Council — Federation Walk

Friends of Federation Walk
Tourist attractions on the Gold Coast, Queensland Hiking and bushwalking tracks in Queensland