World Heritage Rainforest on the High Country of Barrington Tops
Overview
Barrington Tops National Park protects a high, cool section of the Great Dividing Range in the Hunter region of New South Wales, roughly 90km north-west of Newcastle. What makes it stand out is the meeting of plateau country, deep valleys and some of the southernmost rainforest in the Gondwana Rainforests of Australia World Heritage Area. The result is a park with a very different feel from lower country nearby, where rainforest, wet forest and open high-country vegetation sit close together.
Highlights
The park’s scenery is shaped by an elevated plateau that breaks away into rugged ranges and steep falls. From the edges of that high country, the land drops into heavily forested valleys, and the changing textures of rainforest, eucalypt forest and open sub-alpine country are a big part of what gives Barrington Tops its character. Snow gum woodland, cool mountain forests and broad views from the plateau margins all add to that sense of height and space.
Another defining feature is the rainforest itself. This is not just a pocket of sheltered gully forest, but part of a much larger World Heritage landscape with ancient lineages and a strong sense of age. In places, the park feels damp, mossy and enclosed, then opens suddenly to wide mountain outlooks across the surrounding ranges.
Best Time to Visit
Barrington Tops changes noticeably with the seasons, so the best time depends on the kind of landscape you want to experience. The warmer months are usually the easiest for seeing the plateau and rainforest in milder conditions, while autumn often brings crisp air and clear days. Winter gives the high country a stark, cold feel that suits the sub-alpine side of the park, and this is one of the few places in New South Wales where snow can settle from time to time.
Plants and Animals
The range of habitats here is unusually broad, from World Heritage rainforest to eucalypt forest, snow gum woodland, sub-alpine swamps and wetlands. That variety supports a high diversity of native species, including animals of the cool, wet uplands as well as rainforest specialists.
Among the more distinctive wildlife are superb lyrebirds in the wetter forests and the vulnerable rufous scrub-bird in isolated rainforest habitat. You may also come across swamp wallabies, wombats, brush turkeys and ringtail possums, depending on the part of the park and the kind of country you are moving through.
Culture and Heritage
Barrington Tops National Park and the adjoining conservation area lie within the traditional Country of Biripi, Worimi, Geawegal and Wonaruah people. The park retains Aboriginal cultural places including campsites, scarred trees and ceremonial sites, and the rainforests once provided useful food resources such as native cherry, lilly pilly and figs.
