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The park
beside the Denmark River
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Denmark
Attractive resort town on the
banks of the Denmark River
Denmark is located on the
Denmark River 18 m above sea
level and 414 km south of Perth.
It is a popular and attractive
resort noted for its excellent
fishing, the diversity of
landscape (from rugged coastline
to tall timber country) and the
quietness of an area which has
not been over-developed or
commercialised.
The first European to explore
the district was Dr Thomas
Braidwood Wilson in 1829. A
surgeon with the Royal Navy
Wilson decided to explore the
land to the west of Albany while
his ship was laid up in King
George III Sound. The Wilson
Inlet was named after him by
Governor Stirling and Wilson
named Denmark after a colleague,
Dr Alexander Denmark.
Wilson's report on the area
was favourable. 'The surrounding
hills are of very fine soil and
may be easily turned to good
account', he declared. In 1831
Captain Thomas Bannister gave a
more realistic account when he
noted that it would require
'great physical and moral
courage' to farm the area.
Bannister's assessment was
obviously the one which
prevailed. It wasn't until 1884
that Edwin and Charles Millar
took out timber leases in the
Denmark area. From 1884–1889
they worked in the Torbay area
between Albany and Denmark.
Denmark really became
established as a town in 1895
when the Millar brothers built a
number of timber mills on the
banks of the Denmark River to
process the giant karri trees
which were felled inland and
exported to Britain, China,
India, Africa and South America
where they were used for
everything from paving blocks to
wharf piles and telegraph poles.
The town grew rapidly to handle
the large labour force required
to run the mills which, at their
peak, were employing 750 men and
producing 90 000 super feet of
timber a day. At that rate of
consumption the timber industry
was bound to be short-lived. The
mills only lasted from
1895–1905.
A few mill workers (probably
no more than two or three
families from a population of
over 2000) stayed on after the
mill closed. In 1907 the Western
Australian government bought out
all Millars interests in the
town - the buildings, the mills
and the railway. By 1911
dairying had taken over as the
major industry in the area and
in 1922 Denmark became part of
the Group Settlement Scheme. It
was far from successful with
some of struggling group
settlers actually marching to
Albany to protest at their poor
conditions.
Today the town's economy is
sustained by a combination of
tourism, timber, dairying, beef
cattle and fishing. Tourism has
become increasingly important
since World War II. During the
war American soldiers stationed
in Albany would often make day
trips to Denmark and this
encouraged the establishment of
tea rooms and souvenir shops.
Things to see:
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The Bandstand
One of the town's more unusual
attractions is a bandstand
located on the river bank with
the seating for listeners on the
other side of the river. The
acoustics of the bandstand are
such that the quality of sound
which travels across the river
is excellent.
Wineries in the area
The Denmark area, like so much
of the South West, has a growing
reputation for its wineries. The
two best known wineries are
Goundrey's in the Old Butter
Factory which has wine tastings
from 10.00 a.m. - 4.00 p.m.
Mondays to Saturdays and
Tinglewood Wines in Glenrowan
Road which is open seven days a
week from 9.00 a.m - 5.00 p.m.
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A beach
near Greens Pool in
William Bay National
Park
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Exploring the Coast
Denmark's great appeal lies in
its proximity to some of the
most beautiful coastline in the
country. The easiest access
points are Ocean Beach Road
which runs south from the town
to the mouth of Wilson Inlet,
and William Bay National Park,
15 km west of Denmark, which has
the delightful Green's Pool
natural rock swimming pool as
well as Tower Hill and the
fishing spots at Madfish Bay.
One of the highlights of the
coast is the remarkable
waterfall at Madfish Bay where
tumbles over the cliffs and into
the sea. The coastal views here
are quite remarkable.
Denmark offers fishermen
excellent facilities and the
possibility of a good catch. On
Ocean Beach (5 km south of the
town), Parrys Beach (21 km west)
and William Bay (17 km west)
good fisherman can catch salmon,
sampson fish, tailor, bay
snapper, skippy, herring,
whiting and silver bream.
Heritage Trails
The publication Heritage Trails
in the Denmark District:
Exploration and Settlement in
the Tall Timber Country offers
three trails in the area. There
is the Mokare Heritage Trail, a
3 km walk along both sides of
the Denmark river from the main
road bridge to the old railway
bridge. There is the Denmark
Timber Heritage Trail, a 20 km
drive, cycle of walk along
Scotsdale Road which focuses on
the timber industry which
thrived in the area in the
1890s. This trail offers a
fascinating insight into the
establishment of the town and
the way timber was extracted and
processed. And there is the 9 km
Wilson Inlet Heritage Trail
which runs along Wilson Inlet
from Ocean Beach Road to Crusoe
Beach Road.
