02/02: Camping Weekend
Spent a spectacular weekend away just North of Dungog in Chichester state forest which neighbours Barrington Tops National Park.
Travelling from Cass's place gave us some extra time but I was so keen to get out there that we left early anyway. Up the freeway and via Raymond terrace we were soon sitting on a hill looking of the town of Dungog.
The first service station we came to brought memories back of the days when I used to 4wd in the area. At least its easy to find and sells ice for the esky. After meeting N and S we soon had to chase after L and P as mobile reception was not available and they had driven straight passed us.
We were soon following Salisbury road out to the park entrance, which would take us to the camp ground. My car being in the class of 2wd and fairly low, didn't really enjoy the dirt, pot hole ridden track, but it made it into the park without any problems.
Driving along Williams Top forest road and looping back down Lagoon Pinch Forest Road was a simple but long drive for my vehicle, however once at the junction of Allyn River Road we had several options for campsites which were all along the Allyn River. The camp sites furter south and south of the water hole appeared larger but as we arrived after 12pm most of the good spots had already gone, so we headed onto the loop road of Patterson Forest Road only a few hundred metres up the hill from Allyn river road we found a great open area for camping. We were the only ones there and it was equipped with a male/femail pit toilet and water tank.
After setting up camp we headed back down the the Allyn River road and went for a swim in the Ladies Well water hole. It was a fantastic part of the river with multiple watering holes that were several metres deep. Not that I wanted to find out but I still couldn't touch the bottom even when jumping from the clifftop above the water. There was a rope swing and smaller rockpools and a small water fall which offered a great way to cool off in the heat. Many of the locals appear to bring their kids up for the day and have a picnic on the side of the banks. I will have to ensure I visit this place again soon as it is truely spectacular.
For dinner that evening Cass and I decided to give my Camp oven a go, and cooked up some mean Lamb Shanks. I put the lamb shanks in the oven for about 40 mins all up with some read wine, tomato paste , water and vegies. I probably needed to cook them a little longer as they meat didn't quite fall off the bone, but the stew that came out was delicious. mmmm Yum.
The next day, we explored the Barringtops National Park, by first hopping into S's 4WD and headed to the top of Mt Allyn. The view was amazing and the track followed a fairly narrow knife edge style ridge.
We also visited the Burraga Swamp, which the swamp itself wasn't that much but the forest leading to it was truly amazing. Some of the flora would have been hundreds of years old, with towering ferns and Orchards high in the trees. Some very tall and larged trunked trees surround the area. We ended up finding a nice shady spot to sit for a picnic lunch before getting back into the car and heading back to Ladies Well for some swimming.
A great weekend overall, and makes we want a 4WD again even more :-)
Travelling from Cass's place gave us some extra time but I was so keen to get out there that we left early anyway. Up the freeway and via Raymond terrace we were soon sitting on a hill looking of the town of Dungog.
The first service station we came to brought memories back of the days when I used to 4wd in the area. At least its easy to find and sells ice for the esky. After meeting N and S we soon had to chase after L and P as mobile reception was not available and they had driven straight passed us.
We were soon following Salisbury road out to the park entrance, which would take us to the camp ground. My car being in the class of 2wd and fairly low, didn't really enjoy the dirt, pot hole ridden track, but it made it into the park without any problems.
Driving along Williams Top forest road and looping back down Lagoon Pinch Forest Road was a simple but long drive for my vehicle, however once at the junction of Allyn River Road we had several options for campsites which were all along the Allyn River. The camp sites furter south and south of the water hole appeared larger but as we arrived after 12pm most of the good spots had already gone, so we headed onto the loop road of Patterson Forest Road only a few hundred metres up the hill from Allyn river road we found a great open area for camping. We were the only ones there and it was equipped with a male/femail pit toilet and water tank.
After setting up camp we headed back down the the Allyn River road and went for a swim in the Ladies Well water hole. It was a fantastic part of the river with multiple watering holes that were several metres deep. Not that I wanted to find out but I still couldn't touch the bottom even when jumping from the clifftop above the water. There was a rope swing and smaller rockpools and a small water fall which offered a great way to cool off in the heat. Many of the locals appear to bring their kids up for the day and have a picnic on the side of the banks. I will have to ensure I visit this place again soon as it is truely spectacular.
For dinner that evening Cass and I decided to give my Camp oven a go, and cooked up some mean Lamb Shanks. I put the lamb shanks in the oven for about 40 mins all up with some read wine, tomato paste , water and vegies. I probably needed to cook them a little longer as they meat didn't quite fall off the bone, but the stew that came out was delicious. mmmm Yum.
The next day, we explored the Barringtops National Park, by first hopping into S's 4WD and headed to the top of Mt Allyn. The view was amazing and the track followed a fairly narrow knife edge style ridge.
We also visited the Burraga Swamp, which the swamp itself wasn't that much but the forest leading to it was truly amazing. Some of the flora would have been hundreds of years old, with towering ferns and Orchards high in the trees. Some very tall and larged trunked trees surround the area. We ended up finding a nice shady spot to sit for a picnic lunch before getting back into the car and heading back to Ladies Well for some swimming.
A great weekend overall, and makes we want a 4WD again even more :-)
