Over
the past three decades the Foundation has acquired more than 350,000 hectares
of land.
Places of natural beauty, cultural significance or habitat for threatened
species became protected and created or extended 22 National Parks and
Nature Reserves. Discover one Foundation Park in each PAWS issue. (See
previous issues for reports on Bouddi
NP, Willandra NP, Cathedral
Rock NP, Morton NP and
World Heritage listed Mungo NP).
Growing Washpool National Park
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Photo
Henry Gold |
A raging dispute between loggers and conservationists in the early 1980s brought public attention to the natural wonders of the Washpool rainforests. The conservationists fought and won, and in 1983 this rainforest wilderness was declared a national park.
In 1986 Washpool National Park and the adjoining Gibraltar Range National Park were included on the World Heritage list. With their ancient and isolated remnants of rainforest and immense variety of plant and animal species they are part of the Central Eastern Rainforest Reserves of Australia (CERRA) World Heritage Area.
Thanks to the supporters of the Washpool Rainforest Appeal the Foundation has added another piece to the jigsaw puzzle of our NSW national parks with a new addition to the Washpool National Park.
Three sides of the 1191 hectare property known as ‘Rocky River’ adjoin the northern edge of eastern Washpool. Looking down from this forested escarpment you can take in the extensive views east over the dramatic steep-sided valleys and broad ridges of the largest rainforest park in NSW.
Rocky River protects the northern border of the “Willowie Scrub”, the largest remaining stand of coachwood-dominated warm temperate rainforest in the world. A staggering seventeen species of threatened plants and thirty threatened animals have been recorded in this area of the park including brush-tailed rock-wallaby, bush stone-curlew, brush-tailed phascogale, koala, long-nosed potoroo, seven species of bats, spotted-tailed quoll, hasting river mouse, parma wallaby, powerful owl, sooty owl and yellow-bellied glider.
Ancient volcanic geology dominates the park with the Demon Fault intersecting east from west where altitudes reach 1490m along the Great Dividing Range. The Rocky or Timbarra River and the Mann River run along the fault-line joined by the clear-running Washpool and Coombadjha Creek with their cascades, waterfalls and wet rainforest vegetation.
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To truly appreciate the rainforest you need to immerse yourself into the park. Washpool National Park is 75km north east of Glen Innes and 90km west of Grafton. Access is through the Gibraltar Ranges National Park off the Gwydir Highway. The World Heritage Centre on the highway has plenty of information on walking tracks in the park, many of which start at camping areas including Coombadjha, Mulligans (OK for caravans) and Bellbird. The Bicentennial Trail runs through Washpool touching at Boundary Creek camping area. There are lots of lookouts where you can take in the views, including The Granite and Billyrimbra lookouts.
To find out about access, tracks, activities and camping in the park, call the NPWS office in Glen Innes on 6732 5133 or Tenterfield on 6736 4298.
In
future issues read about:
Cecil Hoskins Nature Reserve
Coturaundee Nature Reserve
Crowdy Bay National Park
Davis Scrub Nature Reserve
Dural Nature Reserve
Little Llangothlin Nature Reserve
Mallee Cliffs National Park
Maroota Historic Site (Devil's Rock)
Mutawintji National Park
Myall Lakes National Park
Nombinnie Nature Reserve
Oxley Wild Rivers National Park
Sturt National Park
Warrabah National Park
Yathong Nature Reserve
Yuraygir National Park
