Located 540 km north of Adelaide and 240 m above sea level, Beltana is a truly remarkable State Heritage listed town in outback South Australia. Settlers began arriving in the area in the 1850s and 60s, and the town was surveyed in 1873. It is hard to imagine today that the little town grew to boast a population of 390 with 70 houses by 1883.  Changing patterns of employment, transportation and resource exploitation have seen it change over time. Beltana's refusal to lie down and die, the fate of many small towns in the north of South Australia, is a source of amazement to anyone who visits the town – although the locals know all too well why it hasn't.  Waking on a cool morning to the sun sparkling on the leaves of the trees, watching emus wander past or euros grazing among the salt bushes, discovering a small, still waterhole in the creek or a flowering eremophila on a rocky hillside, watching the golden rays of sunset light up the foothills and Mt Stuart – these magic moments are a daily experience for those lucky enough to live in Beltana. All buildings in Beltana are privately owned and occupied and we have a permanent population of 30 and an active community of 55. You are welcome to walk around the town and read the interpretive signage. We have recently built visitor facilities for you to have a picnic by the creek. The town has both Telstra and Optus 4G transmission towers.

All photography provided by private patrons and State Library of South Australia