Hinterland / National Parks, Gold Coast

Located about 70km west of the Gold Coast within Lamington National Park is a spot called O'Reilly's Guesthouse, which has a spectactular tree-top walk using suspension bridges 20-30 meters above the rainforest canopy.

There are some beautiful views to be seen here, and although my fear of heights kept me from going to the top, Sarah ventured further up one of the lookout posts, to get some great photos of the treetops!

The suspension bridges support up to 6 people per span, so for those people like me that are afraid of heights, please respect this... otherwise I may throw you off!

Nimbin is about 40min out of Murwillumbah - south-west of Gold Coast. Nimbin is a real cultural experience. We lived on a community (share land) for a while and enjoyed the natural lifestyle. The scenery is beautiful. Check out when the markets are on - it's a nice way to spend the day.

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Holidaying on the "Coast" is full of fun, sand & surf and nightlife.

Perhaps one day, you may feel like a change of scenery, if so, a drive to the hinterland in a hire car, or with a tour company is an excellent days outing.

This is a drive I have often done. It begins at Nerang (exit 69) off the Pacific highway. The drive is past lush green countryside, Dairy Farms, fresh crystal clear creeks, and all with the cliffs, and maybe some waterfalls as the backdrop.
As you follow this road through the Numinbah valley, you will see a Prison farm where low risk prisoner's are kept. These are ones that may have refused to pay a fine, etc. etc.

Make sure you take time to call into Natural Arch and have a look before continuing about another 4kms to the New South Wales border.
Just over the border, be ready to pull off and stop at the valley lookout [pull-off]. Views are far reaching.
A good stop for lunch is the "green village" of Chillingham. Just a quiet country town, that gets busy on the weekends!

All the way the scenery is nice, if like us, coming after a good rain, then you will see waterfalls plummeting down the cliff faces, and more waterfalls and cascades in the creek, like we did, ones I had never seen before. Also, the grass was green, green!!

This drive is also a chance to buy fresh fruit and vegetables from the roadside stalls, and at the little town of Uki, they hold a Sunday market in the hall.
Not long after here, you are back at the gold coast, away from the peace & quiet of the Gold Coast hinterland!

Fill up with petrol before you leave, and either take something for a bbq or picnic or buy something from the village. There are lots of nice picnic places, and most have Toilets.

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If you have developed a taste for the scenic ranges behind the Coast by now, you probably will enjoy this somewhat longer trip. I’d allow a day for it. Head down to Murwillumbah in NSW (probably the shortest and fastest route is on the main road, the most scenic would be via Springbrook).

Murwillumbah is an old agricultural centre for the dairying and sugar industries, alongside the Tweed River. Unlike the coastal communities, life here moves at a more relaxed pace. I have a VT page on it and on the subsequent drive I’d suggest you take through Chillingham and back into the ranges to visit Numinbah Valley. From there you can continue on to the main roads and Brisbane or Southport, or alternatively head back via Springbrook on the scenic route to the Coast. Either way, I’m sure you’ll have a great day’s outing.

Of course, if you’re feeling suitably fit at Murwillumbah, you could climb Mt Warning which is National Park and which more or less dominates the area.

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Off to the northern end of the ranges you will find Mt Tamborine and the associated Tamborine National Park. To reach it from the Coast, head toward Brisbane on the Pacific Highway and 36km from Southport turn onto the the Oxenford-Tamborine Road. The mountain section is another relatively narrow winding road requiring care, but the rewards are worth it when you find rainforest such as in the heading photo.

The top of Mt Tamborine is outside the National Park and relatively well developed with tourist facilities, such as restaurants and tourist-related shops. You can read more about Mt Tamborine and the giant ancient volcano which formed all these ranges (photo 2 shows model) in my Mt Tamborine VT webpage.

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These 110 metre falls are one of the real highlights of this section of Springbrook National Park. A short and easy walking track from the carpark at the Gwongorella Picnic Area makes them accessible to just about anyone. Gwongorella also is easy to find: just following the road from the Coast will almost take you there, but fortunately the good people of National Parks have provided large maps to guide you in various places – Gowngorella is marked with the red box saying ‘you are here’ (which may be difficult to read on screen), however I have marked the route with red dots.

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Now we get down to the parts of the Gold Coast I find the most interesting, the ranges inland. Much of these are included in the extensive Springbrook National Park. You could spend weeks walking on the National Park trails and still not see all the sights. Here you will find waterfalls, cliffs, thick sub-tropical rainforest dripping with moisture, and ancient Antarctic Beech trees which are relics of Gondwanaland.

The most direct route from the Gold Coast is to head inland from the Pacific Motorway via Mudgeeraba (exit 79 from the north, exit 80 from the south), then follow the Gold Coast – Springbrook Road. The road gradually narrows and there are some quite blind corners, finally culminating in a section of one-way road, so take care. The drive from Mudgeeraba is not long, I’d say about 30-40 km. We had only a few hours to drive in, make a short visit, then drive out – and had no trouble fitting it into the time available. We even stopped for a very pleasant lunch at the former Post Office in the little settlement of Springbrook.

On our way up, we stopped to take in the views back to Surfers Paradise from the Wunburra Lookout. I had forgotten how good the purple ‘morning glory’ flowers can look, as they are too tropical for my part of Australia. For interest sake I’m including the second photo – I could never repeat it, but of all things I stopped a dragonfly dead centre in the frame!

For those interested in ‘collecting’ World Heritage Sites’, the rainforests in these National Parks are part of the World Heritage site ”Central Eastern Rainforest Reserves.

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Plunging waterfalls, cool rainforests, rugged gorges beckon you to Springbrook National Park in the Gold Coast hinterland.

Springbrook lies on a chain of mountains stretching across the Queensland-New South Wales border. Many walking tracks ranging from easy to challenging take you to scenic lookouts, spectacular waterfalls and ancient rainforests.

At about 900m above sea level it can be cool here even during the summer. Rainfall averages 3000mm a year mostly between December and March. The drier months from May to October are probably the best time to visit.

Please feel free to drop by and check out my more comprehensive tips for the simply stunning Springbrook National Park.