Aboriginal Culture

The Frames acknowledges Australia’s First Nations People – the First Australians – as the Traditional Owners and Custodians of this land and gives respect to the Elders – past and present – and through them to all Australian Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people.

Calperum Station Accommodation Experiences with The Frames South Australia Luxury Accommodation

Aboriginal Story

The Riverland has a rich Indigenous history which we proudly share with our guests. The First Peoples of the River Murray and Mallee region are the Traditional Owners of the Riverland area, and Paringa, where The Frames is located, comes from an Aboriginal word meaning "big bend in the river". Our local area is the homeland of the Erawirung people, who lived on the river from what is now Paringa in the north, to Loxton in the south. The River Murray provided fish, mussels, yabbies and waterbirds, and reeds for weaving, whilst the land supported game and was treed with river gums which were used for making canoes. The Erawirung people also quarried chert, a compact microcrystalline quartz prized for making tools and spearheads. Despite co-existing peacefully with the white pastoralists throughout the late 19th century, by 1900 the Erawirung people had ceased to occupy their traditional lands. Yet, if you look closely, the land reveals its ancient Aboriginal story.

Calperum Station Eco-Cultural Experience

Just 20 minutes from The Frames, Calperum Station is an internationally significant wetland system which makes up approximately one third of the Riverland RAMSAR site. On our Calperum Station Eco-Cultural Experience guided by an Aboriginal ranger and an ecologist, you will walk on Country and learn about the ecosystems of this diverse wetland and the secrets of its Traditional Owners. Starting with a traditional Welcome to Country, you’ll come to understand the way of the First Peoples of the River Murray and Mallee region - that the region’s rivers, lakes and creeks were their roads, and canoes were their vehicles. Calperum Station is also home to many archaeological treasures which unearth the story of the First Peoples. You’ll need our expert guides to point these out, or you might find yourself walking right past a scar tree, which has had its bark removed to make canoes or shields. Keep an eye out for ring trees – river red gums which were modified from sapling to form a ring, believed to mark boundaries and areas of significance. Our guides will show you the remnants of a 5,000-year-old traditional clay oven, which was traditionally used by the local Aboriginal people to dry reeds. The beauty of our Calperum Station Eco-Cultural Experience is that these sites and artefacts are not fenced off, and you won’t be surrounded by crowds jostling for a glimpse. They’re right there among nature, and as a guest of The Frames, they’re exclusively yours to marvel at. At the end of the tour, you’ll enjoy home-made saltbush damper with jam made from local quandongs – a delicious native desert peach.

The Frames South Australia Luxury Accommodation Aboriginal Tourism Experiences

We are proud to employ a young Riverland local named Jeremy Michael Sumner, who is a Ngarrrindjeri man from Raukkan. Jeremy shares his skills between working with us at The Frames and as a ranger at nearby Calperum Station. Jeremy often guides our Wetlands and Wildlife Experience, and his warm, friendly persona will have you feeling like you’re old friends as you meander your way upriver. Jeremy’s favourite part of living and working in the Riverland are the sunset views and landscapes. “I love that we can learn so much from the River Murray – it’s rich in both Indigenous and European history, if you know what to look for,” says Jeremy.

The Frames South Australia Luxury Accommodation Riverland Gourmet Food

Aboriginal flavours

Our goal at The Frames is to immerse you in our beautiful region, which also means tasting the indigenous flavours of the Riverland. We incorporate many bush foods into our experiences; you’ll go from tasting native succulents like pig face, samphire and salt bush on our Wetlands and Wildlife Safari, to appreciating the flavour-enhancing qualities of these same edible plants which we use as seasoning for fish, red meat, and other protein-based dishes on our in-house menus (saltbush scrambled eggs, anyone?). Our guides explain how the seeds of the mulga trees were dried and ground into flour, and how various native plants were used as food, fibres and medicine. Your retreat's pantry is also stocked with products from South Australian brand Green Farmhouse which produces bush food inspired salts and seasonings featuring flavours like bush tomatoes, native peppercorns and lemon myrtle.