Gloucester Tops picnic area

Barrington Tops National Park

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Overview

Gloucester Tops picnic area is a great place to enjoy a picnic or barbecue lunch. It’s close to some of the best short walks in Barrington Tops National Park.

Type
Picnic areas
Where
Barrington Tops National Park in North Coast, Country NSW
What to
bring
Drinking water, hat, sunscreen
Please note
  • Check the weather before you set out as the road to Gloucester River and Gloucester Tops may be inaccessible during wet weather.
  • Remember to bring your binoculars if you want to birdwatch.

If you’re looking for a relaxing and refreshing day out head to Gloucester Tops picnic area. Not far from Gloucester, it’s a great base for exploring the unbelievably beautiful walks in the eastern part of Barrington Tops National Park.

Choose from the easy Gloucester Falls walking track or River walking track or try the Antarctic Beech Forest walking track. If you’re after a longer walk, you can combine all three together to make the Gloucester Tops circuit that will take around 4 hours to complete. You’re bound to enjoy the scenery and be sure to keep an eye out for some of the park’s resident birds.

The picnic area has tables so make sure you bring some tasty lunch to enjoy before or after a stroll in the park.

Take a virtual tour of Gloucester Tops picnic area captured with Google Street View Trekker.

For directions, safety and practical information, see visitor info

Map


Map


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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/gloucester-tops-picnic-area/local-alerts

General enquiries

Park info

See more visitor info

Visitor info

All the practical information you need to know about the Gloucester Tops picnic area.

Getting there and parking

Gloucester Tops picnic area is in the Gloucester Tops precinct of Barrington Tops National Park. To get there:

  • From Bucketts Way, between Gloucester and Stroud.
  • Turn into Gloucester Tops Road and continue to Gloucester River
  • Continue past the river for approximately 40 minutes
  • Take the left fork to Gloucester Tops picnic area

Road quality

  • Unsealed roads

Vehicle access

  • 2WD vehicles

Weather restrictions

  • All weather

Parking

Parking is available at Gloucester Tops picnic area.

Best times to visit

There are lots of great things waiting for you in Barrington Tops National Park. Here are some of the highlights.

Autumn

Take to the park's walking tracks to make the most of cooler and drier daytime weather.

Spring

Look out for ground orchids and other wildflowers along the Polblue Swamp walking track.

Summer

Look out for the eastern water dragon basking on rocks around the streams.

Facilities

Non-flush toilets are available at nearby Gloucester Falls picnic area.

Picnic tables

Carpark

Maps and downloads

Safety messages

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.

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).

River and lake safety

The aquatic environment around rivers, lakes and lagoons can be unpredictable. If you're visiting these areas, take note of these river and lake safety tips.

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

Gloucester Tops picnic area is in Barrington Tops National Park. Here are just some of the reasons why this park is special:

    World Heritage-listed rainforests

    Rocky crossing, Barrington Tops National Park. Photo: John Spencer

    The rainforests in Barrington Tops 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. You can explore the rainforest on one of the park's many walking tracks, like the Honeysuckle Forest track, the Rocky Crossing walk or the Antarctic Beech Forest track. Listen out for the lyrebird whose mimicking calls ring out through the rainforest.

    • Antarctic Beech Forest walking track Antarctic Beech Forest walking track offers rainforest, cascades, scenic views, and birdwatching in Barrington Tops National Park, near Gloucester.
    • Careys Peak walking track Easy Careys Peak walking track offers picnicking, scenic views, birdwatching, and historic heritage in the sub-alpine region of Barrington National Park, near Scone.
    • Cobark Park picnic area Take a break at Cobark Park picnic area to plan your adventures in the plateau region of Barrington Tops National Park—1 hour from Gloucester.

    An ancient landscape

    Thunderbolts lookout, Barrington Tops National Park. Photo: John Spencer

    Barrington Tops National Park and the adjoining State Conservation Area are the traditional land of several Aboriginal groups, including the Worimi and Biripi people, the Gringai clan of the Worimi people and Wonnarua people. The rainforests of Barrington Tops offered a wealth of resources for Aboriginal people, including many edible fruits, like the native cherry, lilly pilly and figs. Today, the history of Aboriginal people in Barrington Tops is recorded in oral history and in the presence of Aboriginal sites. Barrington Tops National Park protects ancient campsites, scarred trees and sacred ceremonial places.

    A dramatic wilderness

    Barrington Tops National Park. Photo: John Spencer

    Most of Barrington Tops National Park is declared wilderness; large, natural areas of land that, together with their native plants and animal communities, remain essentially unchanged by modern human activity. Wilderness areas in NSW represent the largest, most pristine natural areas within NSW - the last of Australia's wild and untamed places. The edges of the wilderness area of Barrington Tops are easily accessible; some of the most spectacular views in the park are from Careys Peak and Devils Hole and Thunderbolts lookouts. You'll notice the varied textures of the forest below you, with the ranges of the Barrington Wilderness running east and south from the plateau like the fingers of an outstretched hand.

    • Barrington trail Take the challenge of the Barrington trail, a 4WD trail in Barrington Tops National Park. Open between October and May every year, plan your 4WD camping holiday now.
    • Gloucester Tops circuit Walk through snow gum woodland and ancient rainforest to lookouts and waterfalls, along the Gloucester Tops circuit. This 8km loop combines 3 popular and scenic walks in Barrington Tops National Park.
    • Majestic Barrington mountain bike tours Enjoy spectacular scenery as you cycle through Barrington Tops National Park and beyond on this supported mountain bike tour with Aussie Bike or Hike, near Gloucester.
    • Rocky Crossing walk Rocky Crossing walk along Williams River offers scenic rainforest views, wildlife and birdwatching on a long easy track in Barrington Tops National Park, near Dungog.

    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.

    • Swamp wallaby in Murramarang National Park. Photo: David Finnegan

      Swamp wallaby (Wallabia bicolor)

      The swamp wallaby, also known as the black wallaby or black pademelon, lives in the dense understorey of rainforests, woodlands and dry sclerophyll forest along eastern Australia. This unique Australian macropod has a dark black-grey coat with a distinctive light-coloured cheek stripe.

    • Bare-nosed wombat. Photo: Keith Gillett

      Bare-nosed wombat (Vombatus ursinus)

      A large, squat marsupial, the Australian bare-nosed wombat is a burrowing mammal found in coastal forests and mountain ranges across NSW and Victoria. The only other remaining species of wombat in NSW, the endangered southern hairy-nosed wombat, was considered extinct until relatively recently.

    • Australian brush turkey, Dorrigo National Park. Photo: Rob Cleary

      Australian brush turkey (Alectura lathami)

      The Australian brush turkey, also known as bush or scrub turkey, can be found in rainforests along eastern NSW. With a striking red head, blue-black plumage and booming call, these distinctive Australian birds are easy to spot while bird watching in several NSW national parks.

    • Eastern common ringtail possum. Photo: Ken Stepnell

      Common ringtail possum (Pseudocheirus peregrinus)

      Commonly found in forests, woodlands and leafy gardens across eastern NSW, the Australian ringtail possum is a tree-dwelling marsupial. With a powerful tail perfectly adapted to grasp objects, it forages in trees for eucalypt leaves, flowers and fruit.

    • 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.

    Environments in this park

    Education resources (1)