AN ANCIENT Aboriginal celebration that saw Indigenous families travel hundreds of kilometres on foot is being revived in the scenic Maryvale countryside this March.

The Bunya Festival was a huge annual gathering that brought Aboriginal families from as far as Bundaberg and Goondiwindi together at the Bunya Mountains in Northern New South Wales to connect, learn, share, dance, socialise and enjoy sustenance from the traditional Bunya fruit.

Now, a committee of Aboriginal leaders are inviting Indigenous and non-Indigenous people to help bring the festival back to life in the Southern Downs.

A two-day celebration on March 10 and 11 boasts an impressive program of entertainment and activities that aim to improve recognition of Indigenous cultures and promote reconciliation.

Festival co-organiser Sharman Parsons said the festival would be an enjoyable way of sharing Aboriginal culture with the wider community.

"It's really important from an Indigenous perspective that we hold this ceremony,” she said.

"The Indigenous connection to the Bunya is a story that hasn't really been told or fully recognised, but it was such a meaningful event.”

Ms Parsons said the committee had invited Indigenous rangers from the Bunya Mountains to attend the festival, along with a ranger from the local Githabul people.

There will also be a chance to try a range of delicious traditional bush food including the bunya fruit, wildlife displays, music, ecology walks and talks about plant knowledge, spirituality and other aspects of local Indigenous culture.

The informal theme of the festival, now in its third year, is 'making tracks', but anyone concerned about the drive out to Maryvale can't complain.

Organising committee members recounted how Aboriginal ancestors would spend weeks travelling on foot in the early days of the original ceremony.

"I imagine it would have been almost like an holiday... it would have been a fun journey and they would have taken their time to get there,” Mr Parsons said.

The festival will be held on March 10 and 11 from 10am until evening at Nyalar Mirungan-ah Nature Refuge, 49 Mailmans Rd., North Branch.

For more information contact David Parsons on 0459 655 648 or visit the Bunya Festival Facebook page.