Port Hedland WA
Port Hedland WA
Port Hedland in WA is a dynamic town in the beautiful North West of the state. It is located approximately 1,800km north of Perth. Around 16,000 people from diverse cultural backgrounds call Port Hedland home.
The original inhabitants, the Kariyarra people, call the place Marapikurrinya for the hand shaped formation of the tidal creeks coming off the natural harbour.
Port Hedland is one of the three major iron ore ports in the Pilbara. It is an industrial city committed to the extraction, processing and exporting of iron ore. The city is defined by a huge port at Nelson Point with its gigantic iron ore carriers; and the seemingly endless iron ore trains (as long as three kilometres and with up to 300 wagons) which move backwards and forwards from the mines at Mount Newman. It is also the major port for Rio Tinto’s salt export business.
Iron Ore Trains in Port Hedland WA
Beyond being a vital link in the export of iron ore and salt, the city does offer excellent fishing, whale watching, mangrove crabbing, bird watching and turtle nesting. It has a new and attractive town park and it also makes a convenient base for tours of adjacent towns and national parks.
The satellite town of South Hedland (18 km inland) was established due to a shortage of land above cyclonic storm surge levels adjacent to the original town site. When it was completed South Hedland had the state’s largest shopping complex outside the Perth metropolitan area.
To find out more about Port Hedland’s history, hit the award-winning Cultural and Heritage Trail which maps out the early times of European settlement. Or visit Dalgety House Museum, Don Rhodes Open Air Train Museum and the Courthouse Arts Centre and Gallery.
The Port Hedland lifestyle is relaxed and the location on the ocean provides for a variety of leisure activities. There are two main residential centres, Port and South Hedland, and they offer a range of community services including cultural, recreation and shopping facilities.
Staircase to the Moon Port Hedland WA
While you’re in Port Hedland, be sure to enjoy a natural spectacle that’s unique to the North West – the Staircase to the Moon. Best viewed from Cooke Point between March and October, this natural phenomenon occurs when the full moon rises over the exposed mudflats at extremely low tide, creating the optical illusion of a staircase reaching to the moon.
The Wedgefield Industrial Area contains a variety of light and service industry premises and the iron ore crushing and shipping facilities are features synonymous with the rugged landscape, along with the expanded port facilities.
Port Hedland is proud to be Australia’s largest bulk export port with Pilbara Ports Authority recording a record annual tonnage throughput of over 633.5 million tonnes in 2015/16 with 460.4 million tonnes throughput at Port Hedland.
The town’s role is well established on the national and international stage, attracting internationally prominent resource companies and contributing at a nationally recognised level to the broader Australian economy.
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Port Hedland, WA, AUSTRALIA
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