What I See with Peter Fiorenza: Touring the Coorang, where film Storm Boy was set, was a childhood dream

When the movie Storm Boy was released in 1976, it was a worldwide cinema sensation.

The film that starred Greg Rowe and the late David Gulpilil is the story of a boy who lives with his recluse father on South Australia’s Coorang.

It revolves around his relationship with a pelican, Mr Percival, and his secret Aboriginal friend Fishbone.

The mid-1970s was a period in cinema when Australia began to take centre stage, with films that exposed our stories, along with our unique landscapes around the globe, and, incidentally, to Australians, ourselves.

For me, Storm Boy captured an innocent imagination that remains embedded in my childhood memories.

So, when my friends told me we were going to visit the place that was the setting for this extraordinary tale, you could say I was a little excited.

The Coorang is situated not far from the mouth of the Murray River.

Along with Lakes Alexandrina and Albert it is a region, quite simply, all of its own.

It was in the riverside town of Goolwa that we took the opportunity to board a small ferry and investigate the Coorang.

Along with about 50 other sightseers, we enjoyed lunch, while being informed about the unique Coorang waterway and the Murray Basin.

As we motored along, we were informed about this critically endangered environment, a complex ecosystem with a diversity of habitats for both plants and animals.

And the significance of this area to the Ngarrindjeri people.

Our skipper and guide was a relatively young bloke, Craig, who had lived all his life in the region.

By the way he talked about his backyard, you could sense the endearing love he had for the place.

As we approached one section of the wide expanse of bush and beach, he pointed to some old huts back in the sand dunes.

“This is the area where Geoffrey Rush and his team filmed the latest remake of Storm Boy,” he told us.

“Hey, and look, there’s Mr Percival, himself,” he remarked with a grin on his face, bringing our attention to the big pelican that had just landed on sand close by.

During the journey there was a stop-over, where passengers had the opportunity to walk across the dunes and take a look at the wild Southern Ocean behind.

Here, we were, at the bottom of Australia.

Peter Fiorenza hosts Sports Shed Saturday (9am to noon) and Fiorenza on Sunday (10am to noon) on Radio MAMA.