Shamrock Trail: A wander of The Boorowa River Walk

Not every stop in this series sits on the official Shamrock Trail, and the Boorowa River Walk is one of them. It falls outside the historic route, but locals and visitors return to it again and again, making it too good a piece of Boorowa to leave out. The walk was a joint project of the then-Boorowa Council and the community, opened by the governor of New South Wales at the time, Gordon Samuels, on 15 November 1997. Many of its trees were donated in memory of family members, with a plaque along the path recording it was built "for the future enjoyment of residents and visitors." The track follows the Boorowa River, linking the main street to the Showground, and gives walkers a quiet stretch of riverbank within easy reach of town. Keen-eyed visitors might spot a platypus gliding through the water, or catch a flash of green and gold as a superb parrot passes overhead. Further along, a lone pine stands as a quiet war memorial, marked by a sign bearing local poet Margaret Barry's lines: "On the river walk / a lone pine / stops us in our tracks / lest we forget." The walk is about to get a little more colourful. A five-person volunteer committee, including Patty Boulding, has spent years working towards a mural for the river walk, first proposed in 2019. The design features a platypus emerging from the water alongside a lizard and a colourful parrot, to be painted beneath the Young Bridge. An educational sign on platypus habitat, biology, conservation and cultural significance will accompany the artwork. Council and the Department of Roads have approved the bridge-side location, after an earlier proposal for a silo mural did not go ahead. Grant applications have proven unsuccessful so far, so the committee has turned to the community for sponsorship and donations to get the project across the line. The mural will be painted and unveiled at this year's Boorowa Irish Woolfest, on the October long weekend, adding a fresh landmark to a walk that has been part of Boorowa's story for almost 30 years. Those wanting to support the mural ahead of the unveiling can contact committee member Patty Boulding on 0429 353 886 or pattyboulding@bigpond.com.