BINGARA....NSW

The New England area of NSW has so many opportunities to get away, explore, camp, fossick and so much more; but we think we just found a place where you can do all this in one destination. Bingara - a small town on the banks of the Gwydir River on the back roads east of Narrabri is known as the Gem on the Gwydir. 

Taking a step back to 1827 Allan Cunningham came through Bingara and camped beside the river with his entourage as they headed north looking for new pastoral land. Over the next few years things more people followed and subsequently Bingara was officially founded in 1840. With most new settlements locals started searching the outlying areas and gold was found a few years later along with other gems like Rubies, Garnets and a few diamonds. Not long after the word got out about another new goldfield the towns population grew, shops and pubs were built along with a police station, post office, flour mill and much more. The gold and diamonds soon ran out about 1950 and the miners, families and shop keepers moved on. At the time the Bingara diamond field was Australia’s largest and most profitable with the largest one found being 37 000 carats. 

These days it’s a quiet slow town where travellers are welcomed and the locals are friendly with advice and have big hearts. On our arrival we headed straight to the local Tourist info centre for some advice on where to stay and what to do. The local council has set aside several areas in the heart of town where you can free camp beside the Gwydir river and that’s where we headed. Only minutes from town there are plenty of spots along the river with water and paddock views. Being an ex mining and very friendly town Bingara has set aside areas where you can freely fossick for different gems and thankfully the Info centre can give you a map where you can go. One of the biggest gold mines ( and the last too close just before 1950 ) in Bingara was the All Nations mine and thankfully the stamper was saved. Minutes from town in Hill Street you can get up and personal to the massive 10 head stamper that was used in the mine. Fully intact you’ll be blown away with the size of this thing, but just for a minute stop and think about the logistics re getting this monster out here from England. 

A sad reminder of the past can be found NE of the town at Myall Creek where back in 1838 a huge massacre took place of local Aboriginal people when local white folk though it was “ok’’ to massacre men, women and kids who they thought stole cattle. After several court sittings a group of white men were hung. Every year on June 10 the local community still gather here for a mark of respect for those who innocently lost their lives.

Back in town, one of there best places to get an overall view of town is the Batterham Lookout on the eastern side of town. The narrow road leads you up several hundred metres to some of the best views of the area. You can make it a day out up here as there are toilets, bbq’s and one of the many bird walking trails in the area. This one leads you around Batterham Mountain and to the base where you may possibly see many types of birds and Wallabies. 

Strolling around town you can see just how old the buildings are from the Post office built in 1860, old churches dating back to the 1800’s, the Court House built in 1879 and the magnificent Roxy Theatre built in 1936. The Roxy was built by three men from Kythera who saw a niche in the towns quiet and slow life. After several owners it has now been fully restored back to its art deco look and feel. If your lucky enough to visit when it’s open you’ll be amazed with the restored and original items in the museum inside, the beautiful red theatre seats, old projectors and news-clippings. Just next door at the milk bar it’s an ideal spot to step back in time to sit in the bay type seating, have a ‘proper’ milkshake in original cold canisters and admire the old things on display. 

Bingara sits in a valley surrounded by several ranges including nearby Mount Kaputar ( an old volcano active 20 million years ago ), so weather conditions vary immensely from winter to summer. Frost is a common occurrence during Winter but that’s the best time to throw another log on the fire and enjoy the clear Winter skies. Summer time is often hot and dry with 4 million flies being a pain so come prepared or just spend time in the nearby pool or the Gwydir River cooling down. These days there are coffee shops, boutique galleries, bakeries and a local supermarket occupying the street lined shops. Some come to Bingara for the peace and quiet and others just for a quick stop over passing through but we found much more in it’s history, country hospitality, some of the best free camping around but more importantly we discovered that sometimes you just need to stop learn and listen. 

NARRABRI & YARRIE LAKE

One of the great things about living here on the mid north coast is the easy access to the central west. After a purchase of a new camper I decided to test run it out through the narrabri area. There are a few different options on the route out there but this time I decided to go via Grafton then to head west to Inverell. A great drive once you get over the Gibralter range onto the tablelands for a level run. Heading south east across towards Narrabri I cruised into the country town of Bingera, where they have some of the best pies that you will find. From here I headed west up over the northern side of Mount Kaputar. A pretty steep drive but great rock formation beautiful country side. Passing Sawn Rocks it was only a 35 km easy drive down into Narrabri. 

My plan was to refuel and grab a couple of basics like fresh bread and milk from the local store then head another 24 km west to camp. My choice of camp in the Narrabri area is Yarrie Lake. Some say it's the site of a very old meteor hit which has left a near perfect circle and at a depth of around 1-2 meters deep. The camping is great as all sites are waterfront, fires are allowed and there are showers and toilets nearby. I paid only $15 per night for a camp site- this is a hidden gem !!

Skiing is allowed on the lake if the water levels are up and boats can only go in one direction. Not a biggy but it can get noisy but def entertaining. 
The forests around the lake are of a Cyprus tree kind and to some give an eerie effect. On a recent trip we caught some blue claw yabbies in the lake and I am sure that there are fish in there too. Swimming and kayaking are other activities on the lake. 

For when you get board just 10 minutes away you can visit the huge Narrabri telescopes. There are 6 here and one located several km away. When you drive into the complex you can see a lot of the old equipment like scopes, towers and antennas. At the main display center there is a hands on area, viewing areas of the huge telescopes and information boards. Def a great place to spend a day exploring and understanding what these things do. 

Last year the roads leading to the lake were all dirt, but this year the southern road was nearly tar all the way. The northern road to the lake is still the typical red sandy dirt which gives you the outback feel. 
If you want another day away just 30 mins to the west you can visit the Pilliga hot baths, where hot artesian water comes out of the ground. Great place to soak the bones and recover from any ailments. 
I love Narrabri.