It’s time to explore your adventurous side with great walks and hikes just perfect for everyone. Explore Upper Hunter Country by foot and take in the magnificent scenery and historic buildings.

Historical Walks

Scone Town Walk

The town of Scone was laid out in 1837, in the area between the Kingdon Ponds and the Great North Road – now the New England Highway. A map showing thirty-six points of historic interest can be obtained from the Scone Visitor Centre – Hunter Warbirds, 1 Walter Pye Ave.

Class 5. Distance: Variable

Aberdeen Town Walk

Historic Aberdeen was one of the first settlements in the Upper Hunter Valley. By 1840 there was a mill and an inn near the banks of the river (both still exist today). By 1866 the town had a post office, a school, 3 inns, some shops, a mill and 2 churches. Today you can still see much of the earlier Aberdeen in a walk around the town. Plaques set in the footpaths and on the buildings identify these historic places from Aberdeen’s past. Sixteen are listed in the brochure and map available at Upper Hunter Visitor Information Centres.

Class 1. Distance: Variable

Muswellbrook Heritage Town Walk

This 4.5k walk throughout Muswellbrook CBD includes 40 different items of historical significance. You can start and stop at any point and pick up again at another time where you left off. Fine old buildings dating back to the mid-1800s, grand residences, community precincts – testimony to the good times and hard times; all of great importance to the development of Muswellbrook. A copy of the Muswellbrook Heritage Town Walk can be obtained from Muswellbrook Visitor Information Centre – Weidmann Cottage, Bridge Street Muswellbrook.
Class 5. Distance: Variable

Merriwa Historical Town Walk

Walk Early settlers in search of good grazing land arrived in the Merriwa district in the late 1820s. The first land sales of town lots were held on the 10th and 15th October 1840. The first church was built in 1850; the first school (private) in 1849; state 1850; the hospital in 1883; the railway line came to Merriwa in 1917 and electricity in 1937. Twenty-six points of historic interest and map can be obtained from the Merriwa Visitor Information Centre in Vennacher Street.

Class 5. Distance: Variable

Nature Walks & Hikes

Paradise Park – Eye of the Needle (Murrurundi)

The walk starts at a signboard at the far end of Paradise Park (on Paradise Rd, approximately 1k past Murrurundi Golf Club). It is a constant uphill climb, through a jumble of massive granite boulders and on into the ‘Eye of the Needle’, a deep narrow crack in the cliff, almost so tight you can barely turn around. Continue upwards where you can choose to head either left or right to a rocky outcrop, overlooking the town below.

Class 3-4. Distance: 2.5k; 1.5 hours

Burning Mountain (Wingen)

Start at Burning Mountain Rest Area carpark and follow a well-constructed track to the active vent. Panels along the track give information about the area, and there are conveniently placed seats to rest or look at the views. See the geological effects of the naturally burning coal seam and its effect on the local plant communities. The seam is currently burning 30 metres below the surface and moving south at just over one metre each year.

Class 3. Distance: 4.6k return

Burning Mountain (Wingen)

Start at Burning Mountain Rest Area carpark and follow a well-constructed track to the active vent. Panels along the track give information about the area, and there are conveniently placed seats to rest or look at the views. See the geological effects of the naturally burning coal seam and its effect on the local plant communities. The seam is currently burning 30 metres below the surface and moving south at just over one metre each year.

Class 3. Distance: 4.6k return

Washpools (Towarri NP)

From the Washpools Picnic Area take the steps down to Middle Brook. Follow the edge of the creek upstream for about 250m until you come to a natural square-shaped cutting in the rocks. Sheep graziers used to wash their sheep here prior to shearing, hence the name. Take care as the rocks can get slippery if wet. The water is usually crystal clear, and you can see little fish and tadpoles. There are a number of pools big enough to have a dip in hot weather and children always love splashing about in the shallow sections. A variety of birds can be heard as you walk along.

Class 3. Distance: 250m one; return the same way; 10 minutes

Lake Glenbawn Foreshores

An easy walk-in short sections, or kilometres, of waterfront hiking in natural bushland – the home of a host of kangaroos and birds of every size, tiny wrens, brilliant parrots of every colour and wedge tail eagles. Add some reasonably strenuous scrambles to surrounding hilltops to enjoy the vista of crystal-clear lake waters that tumble down from the mile-high Barrington Top. Take the fishing rod along – you might just hook a huge golden perch. Kiosk and toilet facilities on the eastern foreshore. Call at the Park office for more details.

Class 6. Distance: Variable

Giants Leap (Sandy Hollow)

The imposing sandstone cliffs that form Giant’s Leap, offer an exhilarating and rewarding climb. A return trip to the top takes 1 1/2 hrs or if you’re not feeling too energetic, a 10 min walk still gives fine views over the valley. The walk is not signposted but there are a number of trodden trails to follow. Keep the village of Sandy Hollow in your sights to keep your bearings. The summit has views to Mt Dangar, Goulburn River National Park, the Bylong Valley Way, vineyards, farmland and untouched woodland. The area is of significant interest because of its biodiversity and hence is frequented by nature lovers and adventurers.

Class 6. Distance: 2k

Polblue Swamp (Barrington Tops NP)

A circuit walk around the Polblue Swamp provides an enjoyable introduction to the wetlands and high-altitude forests of the Barrington Tops Plateau. Start from either Polblue camping area or Polblue day-use area on the Barrington Tops Forest Road and walk in either direction. A timber walkway across Polblue Creek connects the camping area to the picnic area. The track is narrow and soft underfoot, and often wet as it winds in and out of the forest to the edge of the swamp. Please keep to the track as the swamp edge is vulnerable to trampling. From the forest edge, grasses give way to a dense growth of sedges crowding the sphagnum moss of the swamp. You may see rare ground orchids along the track in spring and summer. This is a good walk for spotting grey kangaroos and perhaps a wombat.

Class 2. Distance: 2k; 1 hour

Polblue Falls Track (Barrington Top NP)

A short walk through the bush from the Polblue Falls Picnic Area on Tubrabucca Road gives views of the cascades which run with pure clear water that forms some of the headwaters of the Hunter River. After heavy rain the Falls roar with extensive flows as they run off the Barrington Plateau to the valley below. You can also access the Falls from Horse Swamp Camping Area via a short 150m walk.

Class 3. Distance: 250m one way; return the same way

Honeysuckle Forest Track (Barrington Tops NP)

From the Honeysuckle Day Use Area on the Barrington Tops Forest Road, this sheltered circuit walk loops through magnificent Antarctic Beech Forest and thickets of soft tree fern. It’s a special delight in the misty rain so common on the Tops. The abrupt boundary of the beech forest, which here hugs the moister southern slope of the plateau, is probably the result of bushfire burning up to its edge. The surrounding open forest has an understorey of tall mountain banksia, also called honeysuckle, hence the picnic area’s name.

Class 2. Distance: 1k; 30mins