From Urunga's river boardwalks to Armidale's crisp highland air - your complete guide to the Waterfall Way
BELLINGEN’S SECRET SWIM SPOT
Bellingen’s bohemian bent has transformed the dairy-farming town, 11 kilometres west of the Pacific Highway, into a vibrant countercultural centre.
Swimming in the Bellinger River is ideal for cooling off in the valley’s humidity. But we skip past the popular swim spots of Lavender’s Bridge Park and The Point in the heart of town, searching for something even better.
Tempted by its name – the Promised Land – and my husband’s sketchy memories from an earlier visit, we set off north to find the hidden swimming hole on an unmarked bend of the Never Never River. Perhaps we find it – or perhaps we don’t – when we park at Arthur Keogh Reserve in the Gleniffer Valley (there’s enough space for our six-berth motorhome but it’s too squeezy for a caravan). A stone’s throw away, a tree-shaded riverbend is more pebbles than water at low tide and an afternoon breeze is starting to deter other pilgrims. It’s not quite what was ‘promised’.
Back in Bellingen, we’re ready for the weekly growers’ market at the Bellingen Showground before the farmers even arrive. Camping on location has its benefits, namely still-warm sourdough bought from the baker before breakfast.
In the cool waters of Dangar Falls, we each wash away the road in our own way. My husband and eldest son pick their way across the waterhole’s shallows in their quest to swim under the 30 metre cascades. Our two younger sons are lazing like crocodiles amongst the rushes. My shoes are off, still hot from the bitumen’s radiating heat. There’s a boulder with my name on it, shaded by steep basalt walls and ferns that know how to escape the full sun. Everybody exhales.
If we hadn’t paused on the 185-kilometre journey between the New South Wales coastal town of Urunga and inland Armidale, we could have ticked off the Waterfall Way in less than three hours. Instead, three days tracing the scenic drive’s ancient landscapes offer a chance to slow down as a family.
This celebrated roadway links the north-east coast of NSW with the New England Tablelands, luring coastal road-trippers west off the Pacific Highway (A1). Although the road technically starts at its intersection with the A1, the journey really begins at the riverside town of Urunga.
Urunga is Coffs Harbour’s quiet southern neighbour. Located at the junction of the Bellinger and Kalang rivers, it’s surrounded by water, water – everywhere. An extensive boardwalk follows the rivers where they meet the sea (the full one-kilometre boardwalk is expected to reopen later this year after partial closure for upgrades). A patrolled beach at Hungry Head is a few minutes from town, and there’s another boardwalk through Urunga Wetlands, a bird-spotting sanctuary home to more than 100 species of birds. As for a drop to drink, head upstream to Raleigh Winery. It claims to be Australia’s most easterly vineyard, offering wine tasting and a cafe overlooking the vines.
DORRIGO DELIGHTS
The first big waterfall of the drive, Newell Falls, is on the roadside as we wind up Dorrigo Mountain from Bellingen. We pause the long climb at a rest area shortly before the signposted falls. Just two minutes’ drive later, Sherrard Falls is another roadside bonus (if coming from the other direction, use low gears for what is a steep 11-kilometre descent). This area is prone to landslides (early 2026 saw long-lasting detours), so expect ongoing remediation works.
We swing by the Dorrigo Rainforest Centre for information on Dorrigo National Park, one of five intersected by the Waterfall Way. We stroll along the Skywalk, a 70-metre-long boardwalk stretching over the escarpment edge. High above the treetops, we overlook a subtropical rainforest of yellow carabeen, buttressed booyong, strangler fig and giant stinging trees (the latter come, unsurprisingly, with do-not-touch instructions, and centre staff guide bushwalkers on what to avoid).
Dorrigo’s rainforests are among 41 reserves dotted across north-east New South Wales and south-east Queensland that collectively make up the World Heritage-listed Gondwana Rainforests of Australia.
There are two easy walks that take you down amongst the ferns and vine-covered tree trunks. Both the Lyrebird Link track (800 metres return) and Wonga Walk (a 6.6-kilometre loop to Crystal Shower Falls) start at the Rainforest Centre.
Giant sculptures of blood-sucking leeches outside the centre hint that walkers should wear insect repellent and covered shoes. Years before the sculptures welcomed visitors, my first bushwalk here (in sandals, after rain) became a squealing trail run. My family sticks to the Skywalk before moving on to the most tantalising falls of the journey.
Dangar Falls near Dorrigo (not to be confused with Dangars Falls – with an ‘s’ – near Armidale) is one of the few along the Waterfall Way that we can both look at and touch. An elevated platform near the carpark sets the scene: a deceptively calm river meets the edge of an eroded basin, tumbling over the precipice in a spray of rainbows. Remnants of an ancient lava flow reveal the fall’s origin story from 19 million years ago. Less-eroded basalt resembling thin organ pipes peeks from the surrounding rock walls.
Below, a couple swims in the khaki-coloured pool at the falls’ base.
It’s a ten-minute walk down through Antarctic beech trees to reach the pool’s rocky surrounds. We swim like the falls’ elusive platypus and sun ourselves on the rocks like lace monitors.
EBOR FALLS
The road rolls over undulating hills, rich soil peeking through impossibly green grassland. Like the rounded basalt in the region’s plentiful creeks, the landscape is a legacy of its ancient past. The shield volcano that shaped the basalt flows of Dangar Falls was centred about 17 kilometres from Ebor Falls. Here, millions of years of post-eruption erosion have carved a two-tiered cascade where the Guy Fawkes River plunges 100 metres into the gorge below.
We walk to three viewing platforms overlooking what the Gumbaynggirr People call Martiam, ‘the great falls’. Lunch is at the Lower Ebor Falls picnic area surrounded by snow gums. The sub-alpine grassy woodland attracts rich birdlife. Superb fairy-wrens and grey fantails flit low while wedge-tailed eagles wheel overhead.
Halfway between Ebor and Armidale, we cross over into Anaiwan (also known as Nganyaywana) Country. The New England plateau that makes Armidale one of the country’s highest cities (about 1,000 metres above sea level) is also responsible for Wollomombi Falls’ dramatic heights. Best viewed after heavy rainfall, the falls tumble 220 metres to the valley below.
In Armidale, we feel refreshed. There’s a crispness to the air that we’ve previously only found in the spray of waterfalls. The Waterfall Way is more than a road. It’s an invitation to slow down, revive in nature and reconnect as a family.
JOURNEY PLANNER
The Waterfall Way (B78) is a scenic 185-kilometre journey running east to west between Urunga (approximately midway between Sydney and Brisbane) and Armidale in the New England Tablelands.
Dorrigo Rainforest Centre, Dangar Falls and Ebor Falls have dedicated RV parking spaces.
Dump points are located at Urunga, Bellingen, Dorrigo and Armidale (check traveller.cmca.net.au). Note, pets are not allowed in New South Wales national parks.
The writer travelled with support from Star RV.
STAY
Reflections Urunga Holiday & Caravan Park
Native Dog campground (near Ebor)
Armidale Tourist Park (G’day Parks)
