General Information
Trips generally depart Rylstone at 9.00am and return at around 5.30pm.
Morning tea and lunch are provided, as is bottled water.
Standard tariff $170 per person. (Minimum of four people, not recommended for children under 12).
Trip 1: Lady Bushranger and Nullo Mountain Country
We start up Nullo Mountain to explore the ‘Watershed’ Trail. The Lady Bushranger hide-out is next (an easy hike in but medium difficulty climb to the spot). After lunch you have the choice of a) an impressive drive into the semi-rain forested Myrtle Creek area and back, or b) a scenic drive down Nullo Mountain Road to Olinda and on for a taste of breathtaking Dunn’s Swamp, with its pagoda formations and walking tracks.
Trip 2: The 'Watershed' Trail and Dunn's Swamp
This time the interesting and challenging ‘Watershed’ Trail leads us to Dunn’s Swamp for lunch, giving us more time to enjoy a canoe trip or paddle cruise (optional, weekends when available) or just to savour the beauty and walks around this stunning man-made and natural oasis—birds, platypus, possums, Wiradjuri rock art.
Trip 3: Mountain Magic
An hour’s drive from Rylstone we take a challenging drive up another mountain for breathtaking views of the Capertee Valley—the second-largest enclosed valley in the world. A walk and climb through a magical rain forested sandstone grotto will help prepare you for lunch and a visit to the once-thriving mining village of Glen Davis.
Trip 4: Hill End and the Bridle Track
Via the grazing country of Crudine we come to historic Hill End for morning tea. You have a couple of hours free to explore and absorb the history of this gold-mining town, once home to thousands in the 1870s. After lunch we follow the Bridle Track, with its hairpin bends overlooking the Macquarie River. We arrive at Sofala, another gold-mining—and still vibrant—town, for a late cup of coffee or a squash at the pub.
Trip 5&6: Newnes Plateau & Glow Worm Tunnel
Too much for one day, these trips cover land that is part Gardens of Stone NP, part NSW Forests, with magnificent views of rock formations and vistas, extensive flora, an array of wildlife and driving to match. The Glow Worm Tunnel is home to fascinating glow worm flies and Blackfellows Hands Cave features a number of hands and weapons painted onto the cave overhang. Historic Newnes itself abounds in mining history.
Trip 7: Wolgan Valley & Newnes
We travel to Baal Bone Gap, then to Cape Horn Lookout, with sweeping views over the Wolgan Valley. Heading south, we follow the range and visit several other lookouts before descending into the valley to savour the history of the old disused oil shale mine at Newnes. This ghost town was once home to 1200 people in the early 19th century.
Trip 8: Turon River & Sofala
From Rylstone we head to Capertee then wind our way down and follow the scenic Turon River. We pass several lovely picnic and camping spots, where you can enjoy your home-made morning tea and lunch. The Sofala of today is testament to the roaring days when gold drew 40000 people there and the main street was once 16km long. From there we take the Hill End Road to Crudine and return to Rylstone via Windamere Dam.
Trip 9: Rylstone Dam, Fern Tree Gully & the Bylong Valley
Rylstone Dam is a secret treasure with an expanse of water almost as beautiful as Dunn’s Swamp, where you may be lucky enough to see black swans. From here we travel to Fern Tree Gully, a semi-rainforest reserve for a variety of flora and fauna. After morning tea there are a number of possible walks (most requiring a reasonable level of fitness and taking anything from half-an-hour to two hours). At Growee we show you a lookout over the valley and aboriginal caves and then continue down into the Bylong Valley to Upper Bylong via Lee Creek and Bylong.
If you would like to book one of the set trips above, please use the Application form. Variations on these trips are available. Just let us know - almost anything is possible.
To discuss anything, please see the Contact Us page.
