Mungo National Park

Mungo National Park is a protected area in southwestern New South Wales that preserves the Lake Mungo lunette and surrounding dry lakebed landscapes. It is internationally significant for its archaeological, geological and Aboriginal cultural heritage.

The park is best known for the wind-sculpted sand and clay lunettes called the Walls of China and the exposed surfaces of Lake Mungo where archaeological deposits are visible. Interpretive walks and guided tours lead to key viewpoints and excavation areas, and a visitor centre provides background on the palaeolandscape and human history.

Archaeological work at Lake Mungo uncovered human remains and artefacts that date to the Late Pleistocene, including specimens often cited at around 40,000 years old; these discoveries have been central to understanding human occupation of inland Australia. The area was inscribed as part of the Willandra Lakes Region World Heritage Area for its cultural and scientific values.

The park lies in the semi-arid interior of southwestern New South Wales within the Willandra Lakes Region, inland from the Murray River and the New South Wales-Victoria border.

• Ancient human remains: Contains human skeletal remains and other archaeological material dated to around 40,000 years before present, making it one of Australia's most important Pleistocene sites.
• World Heritage and visitor access: Part of the Willandra Lakes Region World Heritage Area and managed for both conservation and cultural heritage; a visitor centre and guided tours are available.

What to See #

• Walls of China: A crescent of wind-sculpted lunettes and ridges along the lake shore known as the Walls of China, formed from lake-bed sediments and wind erosion.
• Lake Mungo: The dry bed of Lake Mungo, a large palaeolake basin that preserves archaeological and geological deposits including ancient human remains and footprints.