Mount Lindesay

Mount Lindesay National Park is a 3,553-hectare protected area in the Great Southern region of Western Australia, situated southeast of Albany. The park protects coastal heath, jarrah-banksia woodland, and granite inselberg habitats on the southern margin of the Southwest Australian Floristic Region. Mount Lindesay itself is a prominent granite dome rising from coastal heath country, providing panoramic views over Two Peoples Bay and the Southern Ocean. The park is managed by DBCA.

The park supports coastal heath fauna including western grey kangaroos, echidnas, quendas, and a diverse range of reptiles. The surrounding Two Peoples Bay area is one of the last refuges of Gilbert's potoroo — the world's rarest marsupial. Carnaby's black-cockatoo forages in banksia and proteaceous heath. Hooded plovers nest on beaches near the park. The coastal waters support Australian sea lions and New Zealand fur seals.

Coastal kwongan heathland — dense assemblages of banksias, dryandras, hakeas, and grevilleas — dominates on nutrient-poor sandy and lateritic soils. Jarrah woodland occurs on deeper soils at higher elevations. Granite inselbergs support specialist rock community plants including sedums and lithophytes. The Great Southern kwongan is globally significant for plant diversity, with over 1,000 endemic species in the broader region.

Mount Lindesay is a granite inselberg — a dome of Archaean granite rising from deeply weathered Precambrian basement. The Albany-Fraser Orogen provides the geological setting. The surrounding coastal plains are covered by Quaternary aeolian sands and calcarenite. The granite dome has been exhumed by differential weathering — the surrounding softer rocks have weathered and eroded more rapidly than the resistant granite.

Cool temperate Mediterranean climate with high rainfall (700–900 mm) on the coast. Winters are wet and windy with frequent storms from the Southern Ocean. Summers are mild. Spring is the primary wildflower season.

Mount Lindesay and the Two Peoples Bay area lie within Minang Noongar country. Minang people have connections to the coastal and forest country of the Great Southern. The name Two Peoples Bay commemorates the chance meeting between French and English explorers in 1803.

Mount Lindesay National Park was proclaimed to protect coastal heath and granite inselberg habitats in the Two Peoples Bay area. The park forms part of a system of coastal reserves along the Great Southern coast.

The Mount Lindesay summit walk provides panoramic coastal views. Spring wildflower observation in spectacular coastal kwongan. Coastal walks with Southern Ocean views. Nearby Two Peoples Bay Nature Reserve offers the chance to see Gilbert's potoroo (a rare experience).

Located southeast of Albany near Two Peoples Bay. Access via Two Peoples Bay Road. Minimal facilities in the national park. Two Peoples Bay has a beach and picnic area. Albany provides full visitor services.

Phytophthora cinnamomi dieback is a severe threat to the proteaceous coastal heath. Feral cats and foxes predate ground-dwelling fauna. Coastal erosion and climate change are long-term pressures on coastal habitats.