This is a beautiful trail located in the Sunnyside Reserve nestled alongside the Blackwood River. The beautiful fauna against a backdrop of rolling hills and a twinkling river create a picturesque landscape indeed.
Sunnyside Reserve is located adjacent to the Blackwood River, 12.5km out of Bridgetown along Tweed Road. The track commences at the Sunnyside Hall, accessible from either Tweed Road or Carbunup Brook Road, depending on which direction you come from, and follows a mixture of dirt trails and undulating bush trails through the forest. There is parking available at the trail start which is appropriate for horse floats, if you are choosing to ride this trail.
Sunnyside Hall was built in 1921 and was first used for monthly dances. The hall and oval are still used for many local activities including the annual Sunnyside New Year’s Day cricket game.
The Carbannup Brook flows from the south and meets the Blackwood River within the reserve, which initially was used as a stock watering point.
Sunnyside has healthy vegetation and a variety of plants, which provide valuable habitat for wildlife. An initial survey has identified 120 species, which include various native buttercups, Running Postman and Native Wisteria, as well as Red and Green Kangaroo Paws.
The vegetation is predominantly Jarrah-Marri open woodland with an understory of wattle, pea scrub and native grasses. A number of plants were used by Aboriginal people as food, including the small sweet fleshy fruit of Australian Bluebells, Bardi grubs, which live in the trunks of dying trees and fruits of the Zamia, which requires a lengthy period of treatment to be made edible.
Sunnyside Reserve was vested with the Shire of Bridgetown -Greenbushes in 1971 for recreational purposes.