villages

The panoramic view from the Open Air Cathedral makes it a popular spot for outdoor weddings or just a quiet place to sit and ponder. Bexhill’s tiny church is renowned for its outstanding organ with recitals sometimes attracting organists from Sydney and Brisbane. 

The little General Store on the main street has some great local produce and products. Pick up some of their fruit and vege on your way to Rocky Creek Dam for a family picnic.

 

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Once a staging post on the Lismore to Bangalow Road, Clunes is said to be the birthplace of the area’s dairy industry. Whilst the village is named after a pioneering engineer called Robert Mortimer Clunes, it is fitting that Clunes is a Gaelic word for “pleasant place”. Clunes has beautiful examples of North Coast federation houses and some early Australian church architecture.

Stop at the Clunes General Store for a coffee or pizza and a taste of the friendly village atmosphere. Enjoy breakfast, while soaking in the sunshine, from the comfort of their outdoor dining area.

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Surrounded by endless rows of macadamia plantations, it’s not hard to see why the village of Dunoon is known as the Macadamia Capital of Australia. Dunoon is the gateway to Rocky Creek Dam, the major source of the region’s drinking water and one of the most beautiful picnic and barbeque spots around.

Swimming and boating are prohibited but there is a great kids’ playground and plenty of nature walks.

If you prefer to dine in style, take the family along to the Dunoon Sports Club overlooking the lush grounds of the Dunoon Sports and Recreational Club. 

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Just off the Lismore to Bangalow Road, between Bexhill and Clunes, the historic railway village of Eltham is nestled in a lush and picturesque valley. Hire the local court for a game of tennis then pop across the road for a refreshing ale at the classic country pub, the Eltham Hotel, living up to its name with real country hospitality and accommodation.

 

 

 

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On the edge of the rainforest, the tiny hamlet of Rosebank is dotted with macadamia and coffee plantations and home to Rosebank Gold, the very first coffee plantation in the region. Make sure your visit includes a trip to Minyon Falls at the eastern edge of the Nightcap National Park.

The falls sometimes trickle, sometimes tumble over 100 metres to the valley floor and the view overlooking the rainforest gorge and valleys beyond is breathtaking. If you’re feeling energetic, take the trail to the base of the falls for a refreshing dip in the crystal clear waterfall pools.

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This pretty little village is set in the foothills of the Nightcap Ranges draped in tranquil subtropical rainforest is home to the Channon Craft Market that is held every second Sunday of the month.

Visitors pour into the village for the famous market to enjoy wonderful home-made cuisine and buy hand crafted goods, be entertained by buskers and to soak up the colour and energy of this bold and funky market. With up to 250 stalls, the market is one of the biggest and most popular in regional NSW.

The heritage-listed old butter factory on the banks of Terania Creek is now the Channon Tavern, a popular country tavern where visitors and locals mix. The tavern is open Thursday to Sunday from 2pm to 10pm. 

Travel 15 kilometres along the winding Terania Creek Road to the World Heritage-listed Nightcap National Park. Follow the gorgeous rainforest trail along the babbling, palm-fringed creek to Protesters Falls named after the protesters whose anti-logging campaign in the late 1970s led to the declaration of the National Park in 1983 and generated world wide awareness of the need to preserve our natural environments. Swimming is not permitted as it is home to the endangered Fleay’s barred frog.

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Downstream from Lismore on the Wilsons River’s meandering journey towards the sea, the village of Wyrallah was once a bustling river port. Just south of the village, stop off at the Aboriginal Bora Ring at the back of the Tucki Tucki Cemetery, a sacred ceremonial site for the Bundjalung tribes of the region estimated to be at least three centuries old. 

Further down the road, the Tucki Tucki Nature Reserve is a koala haven that was planted out in the 1950s by concerned locals to preserve the natural habitat for these national treasures. Look high in the trees and you may just spot one of the sleepy locals.

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