Rainforest, Escarpment and Falls on the Budderoo Plateau

Overview

Budderoo National Park sits on the eastern edge of the Southern Highlands, about 30km south-west of Wollongong, where the plateau breaks into the Illawarra escarpment. The park brings together very different landscapes in a relatively compact area, from high country woodland and heath to steep, moist slopes lined with rainforest and creeks.

What gives Budderoo its character is that sharp change in country. On the plateau the land is more open and exposed, while the escarpment edge holds deep gullies, tall forest and sheltered rainforest pockets. Streams rising here feed places like the Minnamurra River, Gerringong Creek and the Kangaroo River system, so the park feels closely tied to water even away from the falls themselves.

Highlights

Budderoo is best known for its contrast between upland plateau and escarpment scenery. Lookouts along the escarpment open across the Jamberoo Valley and the South Coast, while the park’s waterfalls and creek-cut gullies give the landscape a much greener, more enclosed feel in other sections.

The scenic character shifts quickly from open forest and heath on the tableland to dense vegetation below the escarpment. Around Minnamurra and Carrington Falls, that mix of basalt country, rainforest and falling water gives the park much of its visual identity.

Best Time to Visit

Budderoo is rewarding in most seasons, but late winter and spring are especially good if you want to see the plateau at its liveliest, with wildflowers appearing through the open forest, woodland and heath. The rainforest sections tend to stay green year-round, so they keep their appeal even outside the flowering season.

After decent rain, the creeks and waterfalls are usually at their most impressive, which can make the escarpment country feel particularly dramatic. In warmer months, the shaded rainforest areas are often the most comfortable parts of the park.

Plants and Animals

One of Budderoo’s strengths is the range of plant communities packed into one park. There are warm temperate and subtropical rainforest areas on the escarpment, open forest and woodland across the plateau, and patches of heath and sedgeland shaped by shallow wet soils and groundwater.

That variety of habitat supports a rich birdlife and a notable concentration of uncommon species. The Budderoo and Barren Grounds plateaus provide habitat for the eastern bristlebird and ground parrot, while the moist forests below the escarpment support birds such as the superb lyrebird, topknot pigeon and Australian king-parrot. Around Minnamurra and Carrington Falls, the mix of rainforest and sheltered gullies also supports several rare plant species.

Culture and Heritage

Budderoo has a long Aboriginal history. The park area was used by the Wodiwodi people, with movement between the coast and the highlands linked to changing food resources. Recorded sites in and around the park include artefact scatters, rock shelters with occupation deposits and art, and axe grinding grooves, with many more sites likely to exist.

There are also historical references to corroborees on the river flats below the Minnamurra Falls area. Beyond Aboriginal heritage, the park contains evidence of earlier European land use, including old road and track remnants in the Minnamurra area and historic places associated with settlement in the district.