Paddy Pallin Reserve

I’d like to have a little corner of Australia named after me. I think it would mean that I had been a good member of my community over a long period of time. Today I went to the Paddy Pallin Reserve principally Named after Franic Austin (Paddy) Pallin.

The small reserve runs between Highfield Road and Provincial Road in Lindfield. There is a wild extension to the reserve that runs on from Provincial Road on to Bent Street where Paddy lived for much of his life.

Born in country Durham in England at the turn of the last century, Paddy emigrated to New South Wales in 1926. Sadly, like many people, he was a victim of the Depression of 1930, but the then unemployed Paddy began making light-weight camping gear on his household sewing machine as he was a keen bushwalker and unsatisfied with the quality of bushwalking gear in Australia.

The business quickly took off as people liked his lightweight, high quality equipment. Over time, Paddy Pallin the bush walking and outdoor leisure business has grown in to elevn stores which are still owned and run by the Pallin family. During his life, Paddy maintained a close involvement with the Scout movement and many bushwalking clubs throughout the State. Paddy was a founding member of the Search and Rescue arm of the Confederation of Bushwalking Clubs NSW in 1936. This was a predecessor of the Police Search and Rescue unit, and is known today as the Bushwalkers Wilderness Rescue Squad.

The Paddy Pallin Reserve was named after Paddy Pallin by the then Mayor Ron Yeates. This small reserve is in the catchment of Little Blue Gum Creek. As you enter the reserve, you can hear the birds chattering as the noises of the nearby Provincial Road fade away. The reserve is small and elongated bisected by Provincial Road. The majority of visitors will head for the northern end near Highfield Road which has a small play park and barbecue facilities. I liked the wild Bent Street end.

It only takes a few minutes to walk from one end of the reserve to the other. But it is a nice, peaceful stroll and one that I would recommend you take, if you are in the area.