Armidale
City in New South Wales
Description
Armidale is a city in the Northern Tablelands, New South Wales, Australia. Armidale had a population of 24,504 as at June 2018. It is the administrative centre for the Northern Tablelands region. It is approximately halfway between Sydney and Brisbane at the junction of the New England Highway and Waterfall Way.
Cathedral Rock Track
Hike up Cathedral Rock to sit on a natural throne – perched on 200 metres of stacked boulders – and survey your kingdom. The nearby Round Mountain is the highest point of the New England Tablelands, although only by a royal whisker at 1,584 metres.
The track is most easily accessed from Barokee campground. Follow the circuit clockwise and hike through sub-alpine woodland to the summit turnoff. Rock-hopping is the scientific term for what you’ll be doing for much of the next 400 metres as you clamber over boulders and straddle crevices. On the way back, keep following the circuit around through a protected valley of manna gums.
For the intrepid, pack headlamps and set out to Cathedral Rock at sunrise or sunset. Remember to take your camera, a raincoat, warm clothes, and a flask of coffee to reward yourself with for when you reach the top.
**To keep visitors safe ALL camping in NSW national parks now requires a booking. For day visitors, please plan ahead and visit outside of peak periods (11am and 2pm). Check park alerts and visit COVID-19 updates for more information before visiting any park – www.nationalparks.nsw.gov.au **
Chandler View Circuit Walk
Long Point Road Hillgrove NSW 2350 Australia
Chandler View Circuit Walk
Accessed from Long View campground and picnic area, moderately challenging Chandler View circuit walk offers the chance to get up close to and experience the unique dry rainforest that has put Oxley Wild Rivers National Park on the map.
The medium length track leads through dry rainforest where you might see the delicate rock orchids and felt ferns that only grow in these conditions. The track opens out, following gorge ridges dotted with yellow box and silvertop stringybark.
Take a break at Chandlers lookout and take in the scenic views over the river. Bring your binoculars for wildlife and birdwatching. Brush-tailed rock wallabies and peregrine falcons live in the nearby rocky outcrops and wedge tailed eagles often cruise the thermals above the ridges.
**To keep visitors safe ALL camping in NSW national parks now requires a booking. For day visitors, please plan ahead and visit outside of peak periods (11am and 2pm). Check park alerts and visit COVID-19 updates for more information before visiting any park – www.nationalparks.nsw.gov.au **
Threlfall picnic area
Castle Doyle NSW 2350 Australia
parks.info@environment.nsw.gov.au
https://www.nationalparks.nsw.gov.au/things-to-do/picnic-areas/threlfall-picnic-area
If you like the idea of a leisurely lunch beside a clear mountain river, then Threlfall picnic area will have you packing the sandwiches. Just off Waterfall Way near Armidale, this peaceful lunch spot is on the northern edge of Oxley Wild Rivers National Park.
Unroll the picnic blanket beside the crystal clear Gara River and let the rest of the world look after itself. It’s a perfect day trip from Armidale or bush lunch break on a touring holiday.
A short walk downriver, there’s a popular swimming spot where you can swim with care in the wonderful waters. After a relaxing lunch, you can kick back in the shade of the redgums. If you want to go walking, try the nearby Threlfall walking track.
**To keep visitors safe ALL camping in NSW national parks now requires a booking. For day visitors, please plan ahead and visit outside of peak periods (11am and 2pm). Check park alerts and visit COVID-19 updates for more information before visiting any park – www.nationalparks.nsw.gov.au **
Wollomombi Gorge and Falls Picnic Area
If you love the raw power and beauty of rugged wilderness, then a visit to Wollomombi Falls campground and picnic area in New England is your idea of heaven. After heavy rain the waterfall cascades 220 metres over the dramatic cliffs to the valley below and a great way to introduce the kids to the might of the natural elements.
Make your way to the nearby lookout and gaze over the highest waterfall in NSW. If it’s been raining, you’ll soak up more than just the scenic views as the massive gorge fills with mist and the occasional rainbow.
When the force of nature gives way to hunger, unpack the picnic basket and barbecue up a feast under the shade of the red gum and yellow box. If you’re after action, there’s a range of walks that show off the rugged beauty of this beautiful area.
**To keep visitors safe ALL camping in NSW national parks now requires a booking. For day visitors, please plan ahead and visit outside of peak periods (11am and 2pm). Check park alerts and visit COVID-19 updates for more information before visiting any park – www.nationalparks.nsw.gov.au **
Ebor Falls
Watch the Guy Fawkes River plunging 100m over two waterfalls at Ebor Falls. Three lookout platforms along the edge of the gorge – upper falls, lower falls and valley view — give spectacular views out into the rugged gorge country.
A walking track links the upper falls and lower falls lookout platforms via the escarpment edge and is an easy walk that’s suitable for children. You can start out at either end and return via the road.
Golden everlasting daisies bloom around the upper falls in the warmer months and rare ground orchids flower in the late spring and summer. If you’re lucky, you may even spot a wedge-tailed eagle soaring above you as you picnic in the grassy woodlands area next to the falls.
The Gumbaynggirr people traditionally called Ebor Falls ‘Martiam’, which means ‘the great falls’.
**To keep visitors safe ALL camping in NSW national parks now requires a booking. For day visitors, please plan ahead and visit outside of peak periods (11am and 2pm). Check park alerts and visit COVID-19 updates for more information before visiting any park – www.nationalparks.nsw.gov.au **
Tea Tree Falls Walking Track
Overview
Roam through eucalypt forest and beneath hanging moss on Tea Tree Falls walking track, linking Thungutti campground and Toms Cabin in New England National Park.
It’s easy to imagine you’ve wandered into a prehistoric forest on Tea Tree Falls walking track. Brown barrel eucalypts tower above you, while honeyeaters call from the understorey of banksia and tea tree.
Approaching Toms Cabin, you walk through a patch of Antarctic beech with hanging moss dripping from its branches. Here, near the headwaters of Styx River, the damp conditions prove excellent territory for other types of moss, including tall moss, which grows to 25 centimetres, and sphagnum moss.
Tea Tree Falls walking track is one of the easiest tracks in this part of New England National Park, and is suitable for all walkers. It links Thungutti campground and Toms Cabin. For those who want to do a longer hike, it also joins Lyrebird walk and Eagles Nest walking track.
**To keep visitors safe ALL camping in NSW national parks now requires a booking. For day visitors, please plan ahead and visit outside of peak periods (11am and 2pm). Check park alerts and visit COVID-19 updates for more information before visiting any park – www.nationalparks.nsw.gov.au **