Welcome to Coomba Connections
This website provides visitors and the local community within Coomba Bay, Shallow Bay, Wallingat National Park, Wallis Lake, Whoota and Coomba Park with information on the available facilities, community events and local organisations. Coomba & District Progress Association meetings are held on a regular basis in the community hall where everyone is welcome to attend but only members can vote on issues raised. A membership application form can be downloaded here. As a service to the community a monthly newsletter is widely circulated and emailed copies are free to subscribers.
A view of Coomba from a child's perspective can be found on the following link - https://sway.com/nSf43CFywXMIF8lc
this is a presentation developed by the grandson of one of our residents.
Part of the Great Lakes area (32° 14' 31.6841" S, 152° 28' 36.9502" E) and situated on the fringes of Wallingat National Park, the Coomba district is blessed with an abundance of native flora and fauna and is truly a garden of Eden. The resort towns of Forster/Tuncurry are 46 kilometres via road, although those with a boat can be there in approx 15 mins, sailing around the south of Wallis Island and across Wallis Lake which was named in honour of James Wallis, a soldier of the 46th Regiment.
Wallis Lake has a catchment area of 1,197 square kilometres (462 sq mi) and a surface area of 99 square kilometres (38 sq mi). When full, Wallis Lake covers an area of around 10,000 hectares (25,000 acres), is approximately 25 kilometres (16 mi) long, with a width of 9 kilometres (5.6 mi). It is safe for swimming, suitable for all water sports, and has hundreds of navigable areas to explore. Four rivers run into Wallis lake, the Wallamba, the Coolongolook, the Wang Wauk and the Wallingat. They are mostly navigable, and a small boat or canoe can transport you to absolute bushland areas where you will be totally undisturbed. There are also several islands in the lake, most of which are nature reserves with picnic facilities. The Lake has good fishing with flathead, leather jacket, bream, whiting and luderick from shoreline, jetty or boat. Oysters can be picked from the shoreline and in season, prawns and occasional crabs. The lake edge is shallow, suitable for paddling, swimming, and launching small boats and windsurfers and we even have a tidal pool in the village to protect swimmers from the frequent visitations of jellyfish.
To get to Coomba, after turning onto The Lakes Way just north of Bulahdelah, drive another 35 kilometres then turn onto Coomba Rd and travel a further 23 kms. The road goes no further and the 700 or so residents living in the village and the surrounding area can't imagine why you'd want to when paradise is here. People who happen on it are usually astonished to find this unexpected gem on the western shore of Wallis Lake.
The village has made some remarkable progress since the turning of the first sod on the first block in the sparsely vegetated grazing land designated Coomba Park in the late 1960's - and most of this due to the 'can do' attitude of the locals.
There were few facilities then but by 1974 things were starting to happen. Six locals got together and the Progress Association was started. Before long, more joined, aided by the presence at each meeting of a frozen chook and a book of raffle tickets. One of their first tasks was to rally residents to make sure the Shortland Power Company was in no doubt about what they wanted – electricity. The power finally came to Coomba later that year.
That same year fund-raising started to build a community hall. With $3,500 raised, a grant from Council and much labour from locals, it was completed and opened in 1987. In the years that followed, the Coomba community worked together to 'make it all happen'. In the 70's and 80's the single party phone line was upgraded, the roads improved, the school bus service established and the Council garbage service extended to Coomba. They successfully lobbied for a 5 days a week postal service and managed to get hold of some second-hand public toilets for an amenities block at the foreshore.
In the 90's,equipment for a children's playground at the foreshore was erected by locals and funds raised for a tennis court was supplemented with a grant and the court opened in 1991. A Senior Citizens Group was formed as was the Coomba Aquatic Club which provides plenty of opportunities for lakeside socialising and sport.
Ten years ago, to celebrate its 30 year Anniversary, Coomba & District Progress Association commissioned the production of a folk history – We Built a Village - which can be purchased for just $10 + postage contact us to order.
The community hall, always a focal point of social life was extended and a modular stage installed and other projects were able to be completed because of the thousands of man-hours put in by local volunteers. These include:
- the building of a walking track and boardwalk along the foreshore which continues to be extended
- the building of a large pontoon at the end of the jetty at the Aquatic Club site to facilitate the increased use by boats
- the building of a large gazebo on the same site which is used every week for a ‘happy hour’ BBQ and used on many other occasions for community events including the annual Melbourne Cup lunch
- the installation of new playground equipment at the foreshore, with an enormous amount of local labour involved especially in landscaping the area
We have, a very active, friendly community and great facilities in the Coomba area. Many events are held throughout the year such as themed dances and raft races. We have a variety of accommodation options and several community groups, including dragon boating, sustainable living, and the choir, some with their own websites. More Information...
Coomba and district residents would like to acknowledge the Worimi people who are the traditional custodians of this land. We would also like to pay respect to the elders past and present of the Worimi nation and extend that respect to other Aboriginal people present.(Source: http://www.creativespirits.info/aboriginalculture/spirituality/welcome-to-country-acknowledgement-of-country#ixzz3bzfRI5ZA)
For more information regarding the history of Worimi people in the area follow this link.
This website is updated on a regular basis so feel free to look around. We hope you find it informative and useful and if you have any ideas on how the site may be improved please do not hesitate to contact us. Your support is appreciated.