Banksia Point picnic area

New England National Park

Open, check current alerts 

Overview

Banksia Point picnic area, in New England National Park, is a great place to have a cuppa surrounded by the sounds of the resident superb lyrebirds.

Type
Picnic areas
Where
1316 Point Lookout Road, Ebor, NSW, 2453 - in New England National Park in North Coast, Country NSW
Accessibility
Medium
What to
bring
Hat, sunscreen, drinking water
Please note
  • The weather in this area can be extreme and unpredictable, so please ensure you’re well-prepared for your visit.
  • Remember to bring your binoculars if you want to bird watch

Banksia Point picnic area is a pleasant, grassy picnic area nestled in the forest. It's conveniently located near a trackhead that leads to walking opportunities out along and below the escarpment edge. From here, you can head off on Lyrebird walking track. You could also take the one hour Banksia Point circuit and return via Tree Fern Valley.

This pretty picnic area is a popular place to enjoy a meal, for both bushwalkers and campers staying at the nearby cabin accommodation. There's space to kick a ball around or toss a frisbee, and a sheltered picnic spot with an elevated woodfire barbecue.

For directions, safety and practical information, see visitor info

Map


Map


Map legend

Map legend

Current alerts in this area

There are no current alerts in this area.

Local alerts

For the latest updates on fires, closures and other alerts in this area, see https://www.nationalparks.nsw.gov.au/things-to-do/picnic-areas/banksia-point-picnic-area/local-alerts

Park info

See more visitor info

Visitor info

All the practical information you need to know about the Banksia Point picnic area.

Getting there and parking

Banksia Point is in the Point lookout precinct of New England National Park. It is 1km south of Point lookout.

To get there by car:

  • Turn onto Point Lookout Road from Waterfall Way, halfway between Armidale and Dorrigo.
  • Continue for approximately 13km
  • Turn right at the sign to Banksia Point, 1km before Point lookout.

Road quality

  • Unsealed roads

Vehicle access

  • 2WD vehicles

Weather restrictions

  • All weather

Parking

Parking available at Banksia Point picnic area in a small, bitumen carpark.

Facilities

  • Drinking water is limited or not available in this area, so bring ample water with you.
  • You’re encouraged to bring gas or fuel stoves, especially in summer during the fire season.

Amenities

Toilets

  • Flush toilets

Picnic tables

Barbecue facilities

  • Wood barbecues (firewood supplied)

Carpark

Step-free access

The picnic area is mostly flat and step-free. You'll need to cross over flat grass and natural ground to reach the picnic tables and nearby walking tracks.

The toilets are set at the end of a natural surface pathway.

Maps and downloads

Safety messages

This park is in a remote location, so please make sure you’re well-prepared, bring appropriate clothing and equipment, and advise a family member or friend of your travel plans.

Bushwalking safety

If you're keen to head out on a longer walk or a backpack camp, always be prepared. Read these bushwalking safety tips before you set off on a walking adventure in national parks.

If you’re bushwalking in this park, it’s a good idea to bring a topographic map and compass, or a GPS.

Fire safety

During periods of fire weather, the Commissioner of the NSW Rural Fire Service may declare a total fire ban for particular NSW fire areas, or statewide. Learn more about total fire bans and fire safety.

Mobile safety

Dial Triple Zero (000) in an emergency. Download the Emergency Plus app before you visit, it helps emergency services locate you using your smartphone's GPS. Please note there is limited mobile phone reception in this park and you’ll need mobile reception to call Triple Zero (000).

Accessibility

Disability access level - medium

Banksia Point picnic area is flat and step-free. You'll need to cross over natural ground and flat grass to reach the facilities and nearby walking tracks.

The toilets are set at the end of a natural ground path, but they are not accessible or ambulant.

Prohibited

Pets

Pets and domestic animals (other than certified assistance animals) are not permitted. Find out which regional parks allow dog walking and see the pets in parks policy for more information.

Smoking

NSW national parks are no smoking areas.

Learn more

Banksia Point picnic area is in New England National Park. Here are just some of the reasons why this park is special:

Aboriginal cultural heritage

Point lookout, New England National Park. Photo: Shane Ruming

The park straddles the traditional boundaries of the Dunghutti, Anaiwan and Gumbaynggirr People, and covers an area of great spiritual and cultural significance to local Aboriginals. Point Lookout in particular is a sacred location, known to Aboriginal people as 'Berarngutta', which roughly translates as 'prohibited area'. It is considered a men-only place, and today many Aboriginal women choose to continue this tradition and avoid visiting the area.

  • Point lookout Point lookout is a must-see destination for visitors to New England National Park, offering panoramic views across World Heritage rainforest to the ocean in the distance.

Amazing wildlife

Spotted-tailed Quoll (Dasyurus maculatus), New England National Park. Photo: Jim Evans

The park's altitudinal range, from 150m above sea level to 1563m, makes it a superb habitat for a diversity of wildlife. You might see kangaroos, wallabies, gliders, possums and the inquisitive spotted-tailed quoll. Adults and children alike will love watching the resident lyrebird at Banksia Point. Yet with over 100 species of birds in the park, there are plenty of opportunities for birdwatching. You might spot white-throated tree creepers and rufous fantails in the open forests, while in winter flowering banksias attract Lewins honeyeaters and eastern spinebills.

  • Point lookout walking track It only takes 20 minutes to negotiate the easy Point lookout walking track, but the views from this sealed track, within New England National Park, are truly stunning.
  • Wrights lookout walking track Wrights lookout walking track takes you through a lush world of ferns and wildflowers to a rocky plateau with spectacular panoramic views looking down to Bellinger River.

Historic heritage

Point lookout, New England National Park. Photo: S Leathers

In 2010, New England National Park celebrated its 75th anniversary as one of NSW's most iconic parks. Its history is a testament to the vision and dedication of several influential New Englanders, notably Philip A Wright and his son Peter. They were deeply impressed by the beauty and grandeur of Point Lookout and recognised the value of the area as a sanctuary for plants and animals. After you see the spectacular views at Point Lookout, take a moment to learn about the history of the park and the visionary people behind its conservation.

Volcanic landscape

Tea Tree Falls walk, New England National Park. Photo: J Evans

The steep cliffs of the plateau edge at New England National Park are the result of at least 5 basalt lava flows from the Ebor volcano, forming a rim over 300m thick. Active until about 18 million years ago, this massive volcano was centred around The Crescent, a semi-circular ridge in the Bellinger Valley, visible from Point Lookout. Subsequent erosion has created the dramatic profile of the escarpment we see today. The Banksia Point circuit provides a close-up view of a basalt flow, and you can see the layers of cliffs north from Point lookout.

  • Point lookout Point lookout is a must-see destination for visitors to New England National Park, offering panoramic views across World Heritage rainforest to the ocean in the distance.
  • Tea Tree Falls walking track Roam through eucalypt forest and beneath hanging moss on Tea Tree Falls walking track, linking Thungutti campground and Toms Cabin in New England National Park.

World Heritage rainforests

Wrights lookout, New England National Park. Photo: S Ruming

The rainforests in New England National Park are part of the Gondwana Rainforests of Australia World Heritage Area; the most extensive strip of diverse rainforest anywhere on earth. The World Heritage Area is a direct window into the past and the future, providing a link to the ancient pre-human world and a stunning and irreplaceable record of life on our planet. Discover the ancient Antarctic beech forests below the escarpment edge on trails like Lyrebird walking track.

  • Snow Gum walk Snow Gum walk in New England National Park offers a scenic stroll through World Heritage rainforest. Just 1km and suitable for all ages, it’s ideal as a quick family outing.

Plants and animals protected in this park

Animals

  •  Superb lyrebird, Minnamurra Rainforest, Budderoo National Park. Photo: David Finnegan

    Superb lyrebird (Menura novaehollandiae)

    With a complex mimicking call and an elaborate courtship dance to match, the superb lyrebird is one of the most spectacular Australian animals. A bird watching must-see, the superb lyrebird can be found in rainforests and wet woodlands across eastern NSW and Victoria.

  • A male satin bowerbird with black plumage and blue eyes stands in a bower made of brown twigs. Photo: Peter Sherratt © Peter Sherratt

    Satin bowerbird (Ptilonorhynchus violaceus)

    With vibrant blue-violet eyes and curious antics, the satin bowerbird is a favourite for bird watching and easy to spot as it forages for food in open forest. Relatively common across eastern Australia, in NSW they’re found in coastal rainforests and adjacent woodlands and mountain ranges.

  • Profile view of a rufous scrub-bird (Atrichornis rufescens) standing on a mossy rock. Glen Trelfo © Glen Trelfo

    Rufous scrub-bird (Atrichornis rufescens)

    The vulnerable rufous scrub-bird is a small, ground-foraging bird that lives only in isolated rainforest areas of south-eastern Australia.

  • A spotted-tailed quoll walks across a moss-covered forest floor at night. Photo: Lachlan Hall © Lachlan Hall

    Spotted-tailed quoll (Dasyurus maculatus)

    The spotted-tailed quoll is the largest remaining carnivorous marsupial on the Australian mainland. It’s protected as a vulnerable species in NSW.

Plants

  • Blueberry ash. Photo: Jaime Plaza

    Blueberry ash (Elaeocarpus reticulatus)

    The blueberry ash is a rainforest shrub which produces blue olive-shaped berries and spectacular bell-shaped flowers, which often appear on the plant together. It is a tall slender shrub or small tree found in rainforest, tall eucalypt forest and coastal bushland in eastern NSW, south-east Queensland and Victoria.

  • Wonga Wonga vine. Photo: Barry Collier

    Wonga wonga vine (Pandorea pandorana)

    The wonga wonga vine is a widespread vigorous climber usually found along eastern Australia. A variation of the plant occurs in the central desert, where it resembles a sprawling shrub. One of the more common Australian native plants, the wonga wonga vine produces bell-shaped white or yellow flowers in the spring, followed by a large oblong-shaped seed pod.

  • Coachwood flower. Photo: Michael Van Ewijk

    Coachwood (Ceratopetalum apetalum)

    Coachwood trees are Australian native plants that grow in warm temperate rainforests along coastal NSW. Also known as scented satinwood, the mottled grey bark of the coachwood has horizontal markings and a delicate fragrance.

Environments in this park

Education resources (1)

School excursions (1)