Get the latest news and updates emailed straight to your inbox. Bellingen is a small town that is surrounded by green rolling pastures and the famously clean Bellinger River. Wollomombi Falls is just jaw-dropping. We planned to visit at sunset but we were too late. If in summer, take water, a hat and sun cream. Its a friendly, relaxed tasting and I really enjoyed everything I tried. Wonga Walk - for a mysterious forest of wonder Distance: 6.1km loop Elevation: 210m Difficulty: Moderate Thank you x. Thats amazing! If you only want to take a quick look at the falls, you can get to a great viewpoint within minutes, its just 100m from the car park. There are many accessible boardwalks and walking paths, along with more challenging bushwalks. The next highest ascent trail is Bellingen River Paddle via Hammond Street with 262 ft of elevation gain. PO Box 4504 Get our book of 40 fantastic Walks on the NSW Mid-North Coast,from Port Macquarie to the Coffs Coast and Clarence Valley. For a more secluded option we recommend heading for North Valla Beach where a short five minute stroll on a good path through the bush, will take you to a very quiet stretch of sand (the walk begins at the park at the end of Cockburn Street). Stop at the Glade Picnic area for a picnic and enjoy the day out. Danny Deck Chair starring Miranda Otto and Rhys Ifans was filmed in Kilkenny House, a little further up the street. We headed up to Wrights Lookout for sunrise, which was very special if you can manage the early start. We take one last swim with the locals at our favourite swimming hole in the Promised Land, before heading home. Did the "up" version from Bellingen to Point Lookout with Konrad and Andrew McDonald on 28/07/2018. Its also fun to be in the rainforest at night which has a totally different feeling to during the day. Bellingen is surrounded by lots of great waterfalls, and one of the most spectacular is also one of the lesser visited ones. Its also quite nice to relax in Bellingen and enjoy the best coffee shops and food in the area after lots of exploring. You can make the trip in either direction, but if you are starting in Sydney, wed recommend beginning in Armidale. The 2.2km circuit track has a little bit of everything, with huge old Antarctic beech trees dripping in moss, a giant weeping rock, and some fabulous mountain views. Light enough to pop in your backpack, illustrated with over 150 photos, and with full colour maps for every walk. The food in Bellingen was definitely a highlight for us and we knew we had to check out the Bellingen Gelato Bar when we saw a queue every time we passed! Again, if it wasnt for our host at The Belfry Guesthouse to tell us about some of the things you can do in Bellingen, we wouldnt have known about the awesome road trip you can do down to Armidale which takes 2 hours. All the details on the walk and the glow worms are in this post. Dont let that put you off its super quiet here and oh my, waking up with the views is just stunning. Make the effort to drive out just to see how beautiful this part of Bellingen really is. Here are the 18 must-see stops along the Waterfall Way: 1: The arts and culture of Armidale2: Dangars Falls - Armidale3: Baker Creek Falls4: Wollomombi Falls5: Eagles Nest Trail - New England National Park6: The Wrights Lookout & Cascades Trail - New England National Park7: Point Lookout - New England National Park8: Cathedral Rock summit- Cathedral Rock National Park9: Ebor Falls10: Dangar Falls - Dorrigo11: Skywalk Lookout - Dorrigo National Park12: Crystal Shower Falls - Dorrigo National Park13: The Wonga Walk - Dorrigo National Park14: Red Cedar Falls - Dorrigo National Park15: Newell Falls16: The Promised Land - Bellingen17: Bongil Bongil Beach18: Coffs Harbour. 1500 ft. Markets. Shes the most gorgeous welcoming person who will definitely be a highlight of your entire trip. Whether you love wild swimming, catapulting off a rope swing or just having a picnic in a spectacular setting, the Promised Land will be for you. Pizza is the food of choice here and theres loads of board games to keep you entertained. Check out Hammond & Wheatley Emporium 2023 - Walk My World. Surrounded by century-old homes, this timber and weatherboard beauty is bounded by beautiful established gardens and offers serene views of the valley and pastureland from the wrap-around veranda. Which trail has the most elevation gain in Bellingen? Just a few minutes down the road from the Dorrigo Rainforest Centre lies Dangar Falls, the first of our must see waterfalls on the Waterfall Way road. The most popular hike in the Dorrigo National Park is to Crystal Shower Falls. Promised Land Retreat offers three luxury self-contained chalets from $250 a couple per night. Before you go - tips to stay safe. Not only is the waterfall wide and dramatic, but it cascades into a huge swimming hole. Thats a slight incline walk. #1 - Lardner Lookout via Hill Street Trail. Connection as you taste native, fragrant leaves. By AlpinerHut. Now trigs are the forgotten technology of the last century. Note that Google Maps/GPS is not very accurate in directing you to the Promised Land, its located near the Angel Gabriel Capararo Reserve. Walk My World provides highly detailed guides for those who love to explore independently and seek out hidden gems. There was also a gorgeous shop which sold a variety of beautiful furniture and trinkets from Asia, which was right up my street, if not my budget! Freedom as you dash into the waves. The first falls youll come to is Newell on the windy road before you reach Dorrigo. Qudo is only open from Wednesday Saturday. Eat pizza and watch some awesome bands at The Bellingen Brewery, 7. Expect to see a loads of awesome stalls including home grown fresh produce, food stands and live music. If you're running short on time, you can also just drive to the other side where you will find another car park. Uranga Beach permits dogs off-leash This helps towards the costs of running our website. Looking for the best hiking trails in Bellingen? 2.8 mi. You can access your free e-book by clicking on this link. Here you will find a small carpark and rest area with picnic tables. 10,000-mile walk includes stop in Delaware. How great is that? More information about this trail. There is also a well reviewed cafe we had been planning to check out. Free, no car required and good for you. And its not called Waterfall Way for nothing. We drove out there just to see what its like and its absolutely stunning! Depending on the flow of the falls you can even take a little dip in the small pool at the base of the waterfall. For full functionality of this site it is necessary to enable JavaScript. Some places are so beautiful; it feels like holy ground. #3 - Bellingen River Paddle via Hammond Street. Make sure you visit this gem of a restaurant! Now global navigation satellite systems (GNSS) and continuously operating reference station (CORS) networks have largely replaced trig stations over the last couple of decades. Check out the menu here and the reviews here. Get our book of 40 fantastic Walks on the NSW Mid-North Coast, ,, events and offers for our new guidebooks, 25 Waterfalls Port Macquarie to Coffs Coast. It's become something of a ritual, that whenever we arrive in town we head straight for the Bellinger River. They did have some local products too but most looked to be from overseas. Its a fabulous, easy walk with great views and the chance to take a dip in the river by the start of the boardwalk. In normal conditions, the view will be good, but its less about the falls than it is about the mountains and forest. To get to the bottom of the lower falls looks like a mission and a lot of bush bashing involved. This is a short and sweet stroll behind the beautiful town of Bellingen leaving from Garrett Park and following an undulating trail through an open green space before heading back via Short Street Lane. 9. Bellingen: With an ascent of 269 ft, Lardner Lookout via Hill Street Trail has the most elevation gain of all of the trails in the area. We visited multiple times because it looks so different depending on the conditions. Bellingen On-line links you to local businesses, restaurants, accommodation, events, activities, maps, as well as art, craft and produce markets, and tourist information. All Rights Reserved. You then retrace your steps and follow the boardwalk straight towards the ocean. Frequently asked trail questions about Bellingen, According to AllTrails.com, the longest trail in Bellingen is. Overlook at Stone Oak Park Apartments 22202 Estate Hill Dr is an apartment building with 10 floorplans, and 1-3 bedrooms units available. If youre keen to see more of the lookouts, wed recommend reading our post on which lookouts are worth the walk. The second being the longer Wonga Walk which well talk about in more detail next. We visited on a cold Autumn day so swimming was out of the question for us. Wander down Hyde Street, the main street in the town of Bellingen and pop into the legendary Hammond & Wheatley Emporium store. 2 Oak Street, that put Bellingen firmly on the foodie radar, has reopened under new owners, with a new name and a new chef. Its a magnificent view over layers and layers of mountains and takes just a few minutes to walk to from the carpark (if youre walking the Eagles Nest you will pass this lookout). What more could you ask for? Along with Dangar Falls, Crystal Shower Falls is the most popular waterfall in the area. CountryLink trains run three times a day from Sydney to nearby Urunga and Coffs Harbour (about eight hours). Bring a picnic with you and chill out on the grass. Check out our brand NEW expat podcast on Spotify -, 27 Best Things To Do In Bellingen & Dorrigo NSW 2023 Guide. Theres a pool at the base which makes for an incredible wild swimming spot (unless the flow is too powerful in which case you can paddle in the pool before the base). Afterwards we stroll the "Walk with the Birds" and from the lookout see two eagles soaring on the thermals high above the Bellinger Valley with the Pacific Ocean sparkling invitingly in the distance. terms and conditions Ebor Falls has both an upper and a lower falls and both would be a spectacular waterfall in their own right. (Isaiah Glen Shields/Facebook) He graduated from college, landed a well-paying job in corporate finance and bought his first home. As well as the glorious rainforest you will also visit two spectacular waterfalls. Turns out that just a 30minute drive on from Ebor Falls and youll come to this magical spot called Wollomombi Gorge. If you prefer a closer look, stretch your legs along Rosewood Creek walking track. Hi there, ooh we havent written it yet, but will do so soon! Phone 02 6699 3800 Weve combined the two friendly rival towns of Bellingen & Dorrigo as well as the incredibly awesome Waterfall Way road which takes you right to Armidale in NSW in this post. Just be respectful as its a scared area for the community and always leave no trace. CBA ATM in a crevice next to Windsong Travel, 58 Hyde St, Bellingen NSW 2454: Google Maps: Two credit union ATMS in the Bellingen downtown. You can also visit the nearby Aboriginal rock art site, which was very well preserved, as well as an excellent regional art gallery. When we visited there was no water in sight even though it had been raining. Here are the instructions how to enable JavaScript in your web browser. . It costs $195 for a whole day trip white water rafting with Break Loose. Its wide and powerful and makes a beautiful shape as it flows over the rock. The upper falls is the more famous of the two, and the one you will have seen in many photographs. Also located along the Waterfall Way and roughly a 1 hour 20 minute drive from Bellingen, youll find Cathedral Rock National Park. It's a hot and sticky morning on market day, so afterwards we head for the hills the World Heritage-listed Dorrigo rainforest one of the top 10 most visited parks in NSW and one of the highlights of the Waterfall Way, a scenic route that runs from New England to Coffs Harbour. Long before white man arrived on the north coast to build his beacons and towers, the Gumbaynggirr clans travelled between the coast and the tablelands along the Yildaan (dreaming track) using story as one of their methods of navigation. With its abundance of leafy trees and parks, Grafton is one of Australia's most beautiful provincial cities, renowned for its jacaranda trees, graceful old buildings, and its location on the banks of the majestic Clarence River. Sign up to our mailing list to get our free mini guide! As we sit on the deck, the cool sounds of jazz float across from Lodge 241 opposite and we muse that this is surely as good as it gets. Despite being a net downhill, there is still ~2100m of climbing. Easily accessible, anyone can enjoy the panoramic views of the Rosewood rainforest basin. The walking track we took is the Bundagaree Rainforest Walk, a 6km circuit. Our absolute favourite beach near Bellingen is Bongil Beach, that we mentioned at the start of this post. 4:38 pm CST. Were about to introduce you to some cracking waterfalls and National Parks which need to be on your radar. The walk to reach it is less than a couple of minutes and the view is nothing short of extraordinary. Your email address will not be published. 25 Best Things To Do In Tromso Norway 2023 Winter Guide, What Our 5 Day Sumba Island Indonesia Itinerary Looked Like, 14 Crucial Tips For How To Get Around Sumba Island, Indonesia, The Real Story Behind Waimarang Waterfall In Sumba Indonesia, 5. It really is sensational and despite visiting during heavy rain it was a while before we could tear ourselves away. There are a couple of different ways to get there, the shortest route being 6.8km return. Its a beautiful clear day. Coffs Harbour Jetty NSW 2450 Australia Additionally, there is a good motel in Ebor Falls, and a couple of cabins in New England National Park, which dont appear on any booking sites (nor does the Ebor Falls Motel). The Waterfall Way officially ends at the coast at Coffs Harbour. Watched over by the commanding Mt Warning, and surrounded by five World Heritage National Parks, the countryside surrounding Murwillumbah is a blend of rolling green hills and gently flowing rivers, punctuated with pockets of sugar cane, banana plantations, hobby farms and small villages. 3. Its worth noting that for all three spots weve mentioned in New England National Park, you do have to negotiate a stretch of dirt road, it has potholes but no special clearance was needed when we visited. It is a 30-minute drive from Coffs Harbour airport, serviced by several daily flights from Sydney and Melbourne on Qantas, Tiger Air and Virgin Blue. Leonys Martn led off with a walk and Wong hit a line-drive single, bringing . Bellingen has this effect on a lot of Sydneysiders we met whove since relocated to this part of the world. Book ahead for this one but we loved it here. bellingen attractions Waterfall Way Scenic Drive Overview The 185 kilometre Waterfall Way scenic drive links Coffs harbour and Armidale, passing rainforest, river valleys and waterfalls, including New England and Dorrigo National Parks. Hope you manage to stop by Bellingen! Utes with farm dogs line the main street alongside Land Rovers, BMWs and rusty bicycles. Again you must visit when its been raining A LOT to see the falls in action but the car park is located right next to it so you dont need to do any hiking. Via Nobles Lane. Its a large area so if you happen to visit on a busy day there is plenty of room to spread out and enjoy the serenity. I will never forget the experience of wandering through the ancient Gondwana rainforest, past hanging vines, gnarled roots and towering Blackbutt trees, all to the backdrop of the eerie Catbird calls. This is an iconic boardwalk you really have to see for yourself. See airbnb.com.au/rooms/2387682. Tastings are free, a rarity in NSW nowadays, although I do always buy a bottle! Bellingen River Paddle via Hammond Street. Theres so many places to stop along the way that its so exciting to come across the beautiful spots which await you. Unfortunately its a six hour road trip from Sydney which would be better for a brilliant long weekend getaway. Lookouts. Bellingen, New South Wales, Australia Length: 1.3 mi Est. When names like "The Promised Land" and "Never . . Is there a separate article about them? Required fields are marked *. and Showcasing the regions agricultural livestock and produce, As one of the oldest, largest and most diverse, Bellingen Community Markets is abuzz every third Saturday of the month in, Touch Football Australia National Touch League, Bellingen Show -Bellinger River Agricultural Society Inc, Destination New South Wales (Corporate site). Check out some trails with historic sights or adventure through the nature areas surrounding Bellingen that are perfect for hikers and outdoor enthusiasts at any skill level. We can hear the sound of logging machinery as we walk, and in the distance the brown slope of clear fell is jarring among the green of the forest. It will take you about 60 to 65 minutes. All the insider news, tips and inspiration you need to plan your next trip, delivered straight to your inbox. I've been living in Sydney since 2011 and am bringing you everything you need to know about moving to Australia, moving back to England as well as some fab tips from our travels around the world! We used to talk about travelling the world together, and in 2012 we finally made that happen. Green River Overlook. Walk 3: Rotary Lookout and Tarkeeth State Forest Circuit This is an excellent walk for those wanting an overview . When we saw the above photo, we actually couldnt believe a sight like this exists in Australia. 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That whenever we arrive in town we head straight for the community and always leave no trace 3 - River.