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EspañolBARRINGTON TOPS NATIONAL PARK
'Barrington Tops' is a World Heritage listed National Park in the Hunter Valley, approximately 200 km north of Sydney in New South Wales, Australia. The nearest towns are Scone, Gloucester and East Gresford.
Barrington Tops is part of the Mount Royal range and part of the great escarpment, the edge of a mountain range that runs from the middle of New South Wales down to southern Victoria. Barrington Tops is a plateau between two of the large peaks in the range, The park is believed have been an extinct volcano and the mountain ranges are comprised of a mixture of sedimentary rocks with a granite top. Erosion has weathered the granite and rounded granite boulders can be seen in some areas of the park. Estimates put the age of the rock at 300 to 400 million years, well before Australia separated from Gondwana.
In 1969 the area between Mount Barrington, Mount Royal and the Gloucester Tops was declared the Barrington Tops National Park. In 1982 it was listed as a World Heritage Area and subsequently a Wilderness Area. Some of the rivers flowing through the Barrington range have been classed as Wild Rivers meaning they are exceptionally pure and unpolluted. The highest peak is Mount Barrington which rises to a height of 1556 metres (5105 feet).
The ecology of the national park varies from sub-tropical rainforests in the gullies to sub-alpine and alpine regions on the mountain peaks. Snow usually falls on the mountain peaks every year and occasionally snows enough to close roads. Rainfall can exceed 1500 mm per year.
A large variety of plants and animals reside in the park and the steepness of the terrain ensures that they are not disturbed by humans. Plant life includes a large variety of eucalypt trees including snow gums, mountain ash, mountain beech, tree ferns, a large variety of mosses and ferns and a wide range of edible plants such as the native raspberry, the native cherry and the lilli pilli.
The remoteness and inaccessibility of a large part of the park has allowed some of the more sensitive animals to remain largely undisturbed. A large number of fauna have been catalogued in the park including some that were previously thought to be extinct. Some of the more common animals sighted include; barking and sooty owls, eastern grey kangaroos, frogs, pademelons, cockatoos, rosellas, kookaburras, bats and echidnas. Animals such as quolls, native rats and platypus are a lot more reclusive but they may be seen. Not all of the animals in the park are desirable and feral animals such as horses and cats are being removed from the park.
Barrington Tops is a very popular weekend destination from Sydney and Newcastle. Numerous walking trails and camping grounds are scattered throughout the park. The park also contains well marked and well maintained gravel roads as well as specific 4WD tracks into less travelled areas. General sight seeing can be easily achieved in a non-offroad vehicle. The park is maintained by the NSW National Parks and Wildlife Service and rangers patrol the park daily.
As well as camping facilities, the nearby towns of Gloucester and Dungog have many places to stay.
The Barrington Guest House on the upper Williams River near Barrington Tops was a popular venue for people to stay in the park, until it burned down on in a fire at 11pm 24 September 2006 due to a fault in electrical wiring.[1] The guest house was undergoing modernisation under new ownership at the time of the fire. There are plans to rebuild the guesthouse anew.
The guest house was built from 1925 by Norman T. McLeod, licensee of the Royal Hotel in Dungog, using timber cut and milled from the property. It is located on property consisting of 10.5 hectares of forest surrounded by National and State Parks and was officially opened in 1930 by Dr Sir Earle Page MHR, then Leader of the Country Party and former Treasurer of Australia and later Prime Minister of Australia.
A number of aircraft have crashed in and around the Barrington Tops, Aircraft Hill being named after one of the crashes. The altitude, frequent fog & cloud, storms and cold weather (causing icing) make this area potentially hazardous to aircraft. One article refers to "The Devil's Triangle"
★ 'April 16, 1945' Mosquito A52-70. Wreckage found January 1946 in the national park.[2][3]
★
★ The propellor, ailerons and machine gun were on display at the Barrington Tops Guest House.[4]
★ 'September 2, 1948' Australian National Airlines DC3 VH-ANK. 13 killed.[5][6][7]
★ 'September 14, 1969' Lockheed Hudson VH-SML crashed in the foothills. 3 killed.[8][9]
★ '1969' ''RAAF Mirage ejected according to news article''.[10]
★ 'August 9, 1981' Cessna 210 VH-MDX. 5 killed, multiple searches have not found wreckage or bodies.10[11]
★ 'August 3, 1987' Macchi MB-326H A7-079 (built as CA30-79). Crew ejected. Wreckage located by bushwalkers April 28, 1995.[12][13]
★
★ Photo of crew being rescued from a tree.[14]
★ ''Area:'' 743 km²
★ ''Coordinates'':
★ ''Date of establishment:'' December 3, 1969
★ ''Managing authorities:'' New South Wales National Parks and Wildlife Service
★ ''IUCN category:'' Ib
★ Protected areas of New South Wales (Australia)
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2.
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4.
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★ NSW National Parks and Wildlife Service
★ Barrington Tops Tourism Website
★ Barrington Guest House
| Contents |
| History |
| Flora |
| Fauna |
| Visitors |
| Barrington Guest House |
| Aircraft crashes |
| Fact sheet |
| See also |
| Notes |
| External links |
History
Barrington Tops is part of the Mount Royal range and part of the great escarpment, the edge of a mountain range that runs from the middle of New South Wales down to southern Victoria. Barrington Tops is a plateau between two of the large peaks in the range, The park is believed have been an extinct volcano and the mountain ranges are comprised of a mixture of sedimentary rocks with a granite top. Erosion has weathered the granite and rounded granite boulders can be seen in some areas of the park. Estimates put the age of the rock at 300 to 400 million years, well before Australia separated from Gondwana.
In 1969 the area between Mount Barrington, Mount Royal and the Gloucester Tops was declared the Barrington Tops National Park. In 1982 it was listed as a World Heritage Area and subsequently a Wilderness Area. Some of the rivers flowing through the Barrington range have been classed as Wild Rivers meaning they are exceptionally pure and unpolluted. The highest peak is Mount Barrington which rises to a height of 1556 metres (5105 feet).
Flora
The Barrington River.
The Barrington River.
The ecology of the national park varies from sub-tropical rainforests in the gullies to sub-alpine and alpine regions on the mountain peaks. Snow usually falls on the mountain peaks every year and occasionally snows enough to close roads. Rainfall can exceed 1500 mm per year.
A large variety of plants and animals reside in the park and the steepness of the terrain ensures that they are not disturbed by humans. Plant life includes a large variety of eucalypt trees including snow gums, mountain ash, mountain beech, tree ferns, a large variety of mosses and ferns and a wide range of edible plants such as the native raspberry, the native cherry and the lilli pilli.
Fauna
An echidna on a walking trail
The remoteness and inaccessibility of a large part of the park has allowed some of the more sensitive animals to remain largely undisturbed. A large number of fauna have been catalogued in the park including some that were previously thought to be extinct. Some of the more common animals sighted include; barking and sooty owls, eastern grey kangaroos, frogs, pademelons, cockatoos, rosellas, kookaburras, bats and echidnas. Animals such as quolls, native rats and platypus are a lot more reclusive but they may be seen. Not all of the animals in the park are desirable and feral animals such as horses and cats are being removed from the park.
Visitors
Barrington Tops is a very popular weekend destination from Sydney and Newcastle. Numerous walking trails and camping grounds are scattered throughout the park. The park also contains well marked and well maintained gravel roads as well as specific 4WD tracks into less travelled areas. General sight seeing can be easily achieved in a non-offroad vehicle. The park is maintained by the NSW National Parks and Wildlife Service and rangers patrol the park daily.
As well as camping facilities, the nearby towns of Gloucester and Dungog have many places to stay.
Barrington Guest House
The Barrington Guest House on the upper Williams River near Barrington Tops was a popular venue for people to stay in the park, until it burned down on in a fire at 11pm 24 September 2006 due to a fault in electrical wiring.[1] The guest house was undergoing modernisation under new ownership at the time of the fire. There are plans to rebuild the guesthouse anew.
The guest house was built from 1925 by Norman T. McLeod, licensee of the Royal Hotel in Dungog, using timber cut and milled from the property. It is located on property consisting of 10.5 hectares of forest surrounded by National and State Parks and was officially opened in 1930 by Dr Sir Earle Page MHR, then Leader of the Country Party and former Treasurer of Australia and later Prime Minister of Australia.
Aircraft crashes
A number of aircraft have crashed in and around the Barrington Tops, Aircraft Hill being named after one of the crashes. The altitude, frequent fog & cloud, storms and cold weather (causing icing) make this area potentially hazardous to aircraft. One article refers to "The Devil's Triangle"
★ 'April 16, 1945' Mosquito A52-70. Wreckage found January 1946 in the national park.[2][3]
★
★ The propellor, ailerons and machine gun were on display at the Barrington Tops Guest House.[4]
★ 'September 2, 1948' Australian National Airlines DC3 VH-ANK. 13 killed.[5][6][7]
★ 'September 14, 1969' Lockheed Hudson VH-SML crashed in the foothills. 3 killed.[8][9]
★ '1969' ''RAAF Mirage ejected according to news article''.[10]
★ 'August 9, 1981' Cessna 210 VH-MDX. 5 killed, multiple searches have not found wreckage or bodies.10[11]
★ 'August 3, 1987' Macchi MB-326H A7-079 (built as CA30-79). Crew ejected. Wreckage located by bushwalkers April 28, 1995.[12][13]
★
★ Photo of crew being rescued from a tree.[14]
Fact sheet
★ ''Area:'' 743 km²
★ ''Coordinates'':
★ ''Date of establishment:'' December 3, 1969
★ ''Managing authorities:'' New South Wales National Parks and Wildlife Service
★ ''IUCN category:'' Ib
See also
★ Protected areas of New South Wales (Australia)
Notes
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.
10.
11.
12.
13.
14.
External links
★ NSW National Parks and Wildlife Service
★ Barrington Tops Tourism Website
★ Barrington Guest House
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