 The Mount Lofty Ranges , which encompass Waterfall Gully , was first sighted by Matthew Flinders in 1802 . The gully itself was discovered soon after the establishment of Adelaide , and Colonel William Light , the first <unk> General of South Australia , was said to have " decided on the site for Adelaide when viewing the plains from the hills near Waterfall Gully " . Nevertheless , the gully had seen human visitors long before the arrival of the Europeans , as the native population had lived in the area for up to 40 @,@ 000 years prior to Flinders ' appearance off the South Australian coast . 
