Mitchell River National Park (Western Australia)
| Mitchell River National Park Western Australia | |
|---|---|
Mitchell Falls | |
| Nearest town or city | Wyndham |
| Coordinates | 14°48′24″S 125°42′29″E / 14.80667°S 125.70806°E |
| Established | 2000 |
| Area | 1,153.25 km2 (445.3 sq mi) |
| Managing authorities | Department of Parks and Wildlife |
| Website | Mitchell River National Park |
| See also | List of protected areas of Western Australia |
Mitchell River National Park is a national park in the Kimberley region of Western Australia, 2,140 kilometres (1,330 mi) northeast of Perth. The park adjoins the northern boundary of the Prince Regent National Park. The nearest towns are Derby, 350 kilometres (217 mi) to the southwest, as well as Wyndham, 270 km (168 mi) to the southeast. Created in 2000, the park covers an area of over 1,150 km2 (440 sq mi) on the Mitchell Plateau (Ngauwudu).
The two main features of the park are Mitchell Falls (a waterfall on the Mitchell River) and Surveyors Pool (or Aunauyu). It lies in the traditional lands of the Wunambal, an Aboriginal Australian people. The park is known for distinctive plants such as a species of fan palm; it is home to several significant and threatened species, including the tiny rock wallaby known as the monjon and the black grasswren.
A new Kimberley National Park, which would encompass Mitchell River National Park, Prince Regent National Park and Lawley River National Park, was in the early stages of planning around 2015 by Colin Barnett's government, when permits to mine bauxite on the plateau were terminated, but since then (as of November 2020) these plans have not been furthered.