DEVELOPMENT OF WELLINGTON CAVES AND THEIR IMPACT ON THE ECONOMY OF THE LOCALITY
The Wellington caves are thought to have been discovered by George Ranken, a squatter, in 1830. That same year he returned with Sir Thomas Mitchell and together they took samples of cave structure and bone fossils.
In his report of 1838, Professor Richard Owen of the Hunterian Museum of London stated that the caves were very important because they contained bones of some of the commonest and most striking members of extinct marsupial fauna of Australia, the most famous being the Diprotodon.
In 1887 the first guide was appointed to conduct visits through one cave and in 1938 electricity was connected through a 32 volt system. In 1967 the lighting was improved and in 1976 completely updated with quartz halogen floodlights.
There are two caves open to the public, Cathedral Cave and Gaden Cave, whilst Bone Cave is only open for scientific research.
The caves are located 300 kilometres west northwest of Sydney and 8 kilometres south of the town of Wellington, on the top of a limestone ridge approximately 30 metres above the level of the Bell River.
The caves are administered by the Wellington Shire Council as trustees to the Department of Lands. However, they are completely financed by the council and are run on a commercial basis.
Until recently little development work had been carried out apart from lighting and steps, however new lighting and grid-mesh steps and interior painting have recently been carried out. The grounds surrounding the caves are kept in magnificent condition and have won numerous awards in the "Herald" garden competition.
The caves are important as a tourist attraction and are one of many in the area. Locally they are coupled with attractions like Burrendong Dam, Mount Arthur Nature Reserve, Burrendong Arboretum, Ironbarks (Stuart Town goldfields) and Cameron Park in Wellington; whilst slightly further away are the Warrumbungle National Park, Dubbo Zoo, Parkes radio telescope. Warren cottonfields, Siding Springs Observatory, Gulgong township, Mudgee wineries and the Bathurst-Orange growth centre.
From an educational viewpoint the caves are very important, because they feature formations which are unique. One such formation is the anticline and syncline in the Cathedral Cave. When grouped with the Mt Arthur Reserve, Stuart Town, Wuuluman granite fields, the world famous Burrendong Arboretum, Parkes radio telescope and Siding Springs Observatory, the student can study geology, flora, fauna and astronomy in the same region.
The caves form an integral part of a series of attractions for visitors to see around Wellington, hence they are important in the economy of the locality. Visitors remaining longer in the area, are bound to spend money which in turn benefits the community. It is estimated that $1.5 million annually is spent by tourists prior to or after visiting the caves.
The number of visitors to the Wellington region is increasing at an annual rate of 10% compared with some areas which are sliding backwards at an alarming rate. The length of stay in Wellington has risen from 4 hours to 1.7 days. The question may be asked as to why we are increasing. I feel that people are becoming disenchanted with coastal areas where there are crowds and so much visual pollution.
The majority of visitors are from metropolitan NSW and then Victoria, South Australia, Queensland and Western Australia. The latter areas are becoming more important now that the Eyre Highway is sealed.
The number of visitors to the caves has recently risen dramatically with 48.2% being the increase for the first 3 months of 1977.
Visitor numbers since 1971 have been: 1971 30,000; 1972 29,000; 1973 28,000; 1974 27,200; 1975 28,000; 1976 29,720. The question can be asked as to why the decline, and why the sudden increase. The decrease was, I feel, mainly due to the caves, guides and advertising going stale.
When I first went to Wellington 2 years ago I discovered no research had been carried out as to why there was a decrease. On carrying out some research it quickly became apparent that the caves were stale. The comment made by one tourist executive was that "the signs were lousy hence the caves would be the same". As a result of this a study was carried out into an appropriate sign which would be effective and aesthetically pleasing. The wording selected was "Visit Natures Wonderland: Wellington Caves 3 km". This was simple yet effective. The speed at which cars were travelling past the sign was 100 kph, hence the sign could carry no more than 12 words.
Secondly guiding methods were studied and eventually one guide was removed and replaced by one who had an interest in the job. I actually guided for 7 weeks so as to learn the caves and to find out why the job had become boring.
The lighting was then replaced by quartz halogen and exterior direction signs were painted.
Once this had been carried out it was time to again advertise the caves as a tourist attraction so new brochures were produced for free distribution through signboards in service stations and at shows, etc. As well as this we had to get back the coach market and to do this effectively we designed advertising for the bus proprietors journals in NSW, Victoria and Queensland. This advertising has paid off with over 75 coaches being booked in so far this year, compared with a total of 47 for 1976. The sealing of the Eyre Highway and the opening of the Open Range Zoo at Dubbo will also help to increase visitor numbers.
With the upsurge of visitors has come problems which will become serious in the future if no improvements are made at the caves complex. The major problem appears to be the sewerage disposal which we estimated would not be seriously affected until 1980; however with this unexpected 48% increase the sewerage problem has been accelerated. Apart from the 40,000 estimated to visit the caves an additional 20,000 stay at the caravan park and an estimated 30,000 use the picnic area adjacent.
There are signs that during peak demand the water supply is being slightly affected, however at this stage chlorine is killing any bacteria. A grant of $60,000 has been applied for through the Tourist Industry Development Act for improvement to the toilet block, sewerage pipes and water lines.
As well as this a further $40,000 is being sought for the cleaning of the caves using a high pressure hose process. The other problem being researched is how to control the amount of dirt being deposited throughout the caves. The Cathedral Cave has large sections of dirt floor which if sealed with concrete would spoil the appearance of the caves. Also the steps are cut into the limestone and when covered with damp dirt are very dangerous to walk on. As it now stands you walk up a gravel track to the cave entrance before changing to concrete steps and path to the first level which has a dirt floor, thence on concrete steps to the dirt floor surrounding the giant stalagmite. From there on you walk down steps cut into the limestone onto the next level of dirt floor. To get into the Echo Chamber you used to have to climb steep uneven steps. In January, Council constructed grid-mesh steps into Echo Chamber to alleviate the uneven climb and to study the cleaning process the steps had on shoes. The results of this have been outstanding and it is anticipated that two other sets of steps will be placed between the levels of dirt floor to extend this cleaning process.
Finally I would like to mention briefly the trends in tourism as they affect Wellington Caves. During the past 2 years there has been a distinct movement of people away from the coast to the country areas. The length of stay of clients staying in Wellington has gone from 4 hours to 1.7 days. The reason for these changes is that people are becoming very conscious of overcrowding and the feeling of being 'ripped off' that occurs on the coast. Most caravan parks in our area have lawns between each site. The other point is that the economy is having an effect of restraining people from travelling great distances and they are now tending to stay at one location and then radiate out from there. Wellington is one day's travel from Sydney.
In summary I would say that Council is interested in running a commercially viable business and at the same time preserving the caves for future generations.