Barrington Tops

Barrington Tops National Park in NSW is little altered by time, even in August 2018. It is a haven for adventurers and outdoors lovers. More than half of the park is part of the Gondwana Rainforests of Australia World Heritage Area- and the Gondwana Rainforests is one of my favourite haunts. Barrington Tops has so much to offer to conservationists, visionaries and dreamers. Though the terrain is generally rough and the climate sometimes unforgiving, the park is also a bushwalking and birdwatching destination. Its tracks and trails are sometimes also trod by plodders. Walking the Barrington is an experience that’s worlds different from any urban stroll in the park or seeing any human made structure. This is the awesome real world, the majesty of nature manifest in the rugged mountains and rainforests.

About three-quarters of the park is a declared wilderness area. The park is characterised by narrow ridgelines, rugged escarpments and deep river valleys in all directions.

There’s about a 1300m difference in elevation between the highest and lowest points in Barrington (in comparison the elevation difference in the Cordillera range in the Philippines is around 2600m). This dramatic range in altitude results in a range of forest types from subtropical rainforests to snow-gum country, and everything in between. The largest temperate rainforests in mainland Australia are found here.

Many birds such as parrots and cockatoos are common overhead and in the trees. Lyrebirds may be seen in the undergrowth. This shy one above, was on the Corker Trail cheering us on. It must have heard the cheers for trail runners on the Thunderbolt race. “You’re almost there,” it sang as we commenced the 12km climb to Careys Peak. 

A few hours after we left the liarbird, we reached the SnowGum-forested mountain top to be greeted by this historic hut built sometime in 1934. I felt warm on the climb, but in the midst of Sub-alpine woodland in the cool temperate rainforest dominated by the Antarctic beech, I was shivering.

Careys Peak (1,544 metres above sea level) is one of the higher points in the park. I felt on top of the world standing on this summit at the edge of the escarpment. 

Surrounded by wilderness, I swept my gaze across the rugged high mountain ranges. The mountains spoke to me like the bilig back where I was born. Amidst the blustery cold of late Winter, I heard the whisper “Inmali ka?”  “Wen, I hear you. Inmali ak.” I said.

From Thunderbolts Lookout facing due south to a panorama of untamed wilderness.

The Corker Track is a local legend, climbing 870m at 7-8% gradient over nearly 12km. The trail rises immediately from the start and the forest type changes from blue gums and white box to messmate and brown barrel. Further on up the slopes, it changes again to sub-alpine forest with snow grass and an understorey of thick pepperbush, and then to big stands of Antarctic Beech forest on top of the range. Trail runners often visit this trail for some hill training.

There was a race on that day - the Thunderbolt classic. These guys did the marathon.

I don't know the winners but I think I got a photo of them.

Wilderness streams, such as the Allyn River and Williams River find their headwaters in the Barrington Tops. 

The accessible Rocky Crossing Track includes Blue Gum loop that goes along a beautiful section of Williams River where the following photos below were taken.

There’s beauty in the silver singing river...

I can’t see my reflection in the waters...

At the Pool of Reflections, I reflected – on a rock.

And I swear I see my reflection/

 somewhere so high above this wall.

Looking north to Barrington Tops from Salisbury.

This reminds of the fragility, remoteness and isolation of this beautiful wilderness. Let us keep it in its pristine state and look after it in whatever way we can. There were big plans and commercial ideas mooted for this National Park wilderness in the past. Conservation won out as it should but let us not get complacent, don’t let anybody pave this paradise.

The winners of the Thunderbolt Classic on the day.

This is for the non-standard 42.2km event (33km plus Careys Peak).