Onkaparinga River Recreation Park is a protected area occupying land in the estuary of the Onkaparinga River in South Australia. The recreation park which was established in 1985 is approximately from Adelaide city centre. It is the venue for recreational activities such as walking, canoeing, kayaking, recreational fishing and picnics. Description The recreation park occupies the majority of the portion of the river's catchment area between Main South Road near Old Noarlunga in the east and Commercial and Saltfleet Roads at Port Noarlunga in the west. The occupied land is located within the following suburbs in the City of Onkaparinga: Noarlunga Downs, Port Noarlunga South and Seaford Meadows. A combined pedestrian/cycle track known as the Coast to Vines Rail Trail has an easement that passes through the recreation park on its east side following the alignment of the former Willunga railway line. The Seaford railway line passes over the recreation park on a elevated bridge (known as the Onkaparinga Valley Bridge) which was built between 2011 and 2014. It is classified as an IUCN Category III protected area. History Most of the land now dedicated to the recreation park was purchased in the period 1973 to 1977 by a former SA government agency, the State Planning Authority. The purpose of the land acquisition which included land along the full length of Onkaparinga River was threefold. Firstly, it was ‘to provide open space for recreational purposes’, secondly, ‘to preserve the natural character of the landscape, including the native flora and fauna’ and thirdly, ‘to function as a buffer between areas of urban and rural land.’ In 1982, the majority of the land was transferred to the then Department for Environment and Heritage which established the recreation park in 1985. In 1993, all of the land east of Main South Road (known as the gorge section’) was reclassified as the Onkaparinga River National Park. For managerial and administrative purposes, the recreation park and the national park are known collectively as the ‘Onkaparinga River Reserve’. Prior use of the land Aboriginal use As of 2004, radiocarbon dating of material recovered via archaeological excavation from known Aboriginal sites in the river's estuary suggest continuous use of the land prior to European colonisation for as long ago as 7,500 years BP. European use Land in the locality including the Onkaparinga floodplain was surveyed and became available for selection in February 1839. Most of the land