Walking through the beautiful forest surrounding the Numinbah Valley Environmental Education Centre, it’s hard to imagine the stories that could be told by Page’s Pinnacle, the 23 million year old rock, which looks over the centre. If volcanic plugs could talk, they would tell you about the numerous explosive eruptions of the Tweed Volcano, whose lava flows covered this area over a period of millions of years, and how it has weathered to nearly half its original size. For at least 9000 years, clans belonging to the
Yugambeh language region lived in this area for part of the year, hunting and
gathering all of their food, making tools and constructing shelter using what
they could find in the forest.
Part of the state forest, the site was originally developed to provide workers' barracks for the Forestry Industry. Timber logged in Numinbah Valley was used to build ‘Queenslander’-style houses.
In a twist of irony, as logging in the valley ceased, the site was repurposed to educate students about the importance of nature conservation and environmental education. Originally called ‘Numinbah Valley Field Study Centre,’ the first students in 1978 would have had a very different experience to students who visit today. Facilities were very basic, with an open fire place cookout and tents giving meaning to the term going on ‘camp’.
Since then, expansion of the centre’s facilities has enabled larger school groups to visit the centre. Over 5,000 students each year participate in an experiential style of learning about the surrounding environment and living in a sustainable way.