Switch waves for waterfalls and uncover the Barrington Coast’s hidden high country. 

Just-shucked oysters, backflipping dolphins and easy-access rock pools have long lured crowds to the Barrington Coast. Home to summer holiday magnets, such as Hawks Nest, Seal Rocks, Forster and Hallidays Point, the Mid North Coast hotspot is a well-trodden paradise of saltwater swims and sun-drenched dining.  

Beyond its famed sand dunes lies nirvana of a different kind. Cascading waterfalls, birdsong-rippled rainforest and non-stop activity fill the Barrington Coast’s high country with sensory delights. A clear-air collective of Copeland Tops, Gloucester Tops, Tapin Tops and Barrington Tops might just be this region’s best-kept secret.  

Explore Copeland Tops State Conservation Area 

I comb Copeland Tops State Conservation Area while holidaying in Tuncurry, Forster’s neighbouring town. An easy day trip about 90 kilometres inland, the reserve is home to the historic Mountain Maid Gold Mine, which opens a window into Australia’s gold-rush era in the 1800s. Once one of the state’s longest-running gold mines, its wooden carts and rusty machinery draw countless ‘wows’ from my children. Cultural artefacts also beckon from the rainforest’s 4.5-kilometre loop Hidden Treasure Track. Dusty tunnel entrances and an abandoned boiler enchant the littlies, while the astonishingly swollen roots of towering fig trees have me captivated.  

If happy kids equal happy parents in your family, too, the reserve’s The Junior Ranger: Mountain Maid Gold Mine Tour ($18 per child and free for an accompanying adult) is a must. Led by a ranger specialising in cultural education, the school holiday expeditions include gold panning and answers to the curliest of queries from young minds. Other reserve-run tours include the Copeland Tops Aboriginal Cultural Tour and Copeland Tops Twilight Tour (both cost $20 per adult and $14 per child). 

Waterfalls and trails of Gloucester Tops 

The hills are alive with similar wonderment in Gloucester Tops, where the tiered rocky drops of Gloucester Falls mark the headwaters of the Gloucester River. Located about 120 kilometres west from Hallidays Point in the hinterland, the falls culminate in a twin-plunge waterfall that is particularly impressive after decent rainfall. 

The 1.8-kilometre loop Gloucester Falls Walking Track offers a magical vantage point over its spritzy serenity. But, if you have time, consider the eight-kilometre Gloucester Tops Circuit for more lookout love as you wind through Barrington Tops National Park (more on that beauty soon), which forms part of the World Heritage-listed Gondwana Rainforests of Australia. In Gloucester Tops, Andrew Laurie Lookout boasts views over the Gloucester River and impossibly beautiful mountain ranges. 

Gloucester highlights 

Refuel in Gloucester, about 65 kilometres from Hallidays Point, after immersing yourself in nature. Idyllic wineries dotted around the town, including Gloucester River Wines, Faulls Ridge Wine and Mograni Creek Estate, invite visitors to sample a stream of indulgences. Balance that liquid diet with paddock-to-plate dishes at The Common on Church Street, where Single O beans also offer creamy-smooth caffeine hits, and The Kitchen at The Roundabout Inn, for great pub grub.     

Gloucester also gathers some of the region’s most luxurious farm stays and petite cabins, such as The Highlander’s Retreat, an original 1890s cottage with views of the countryside, and Banool Tiny House, in nearby Bindera, with an Instagram-friendly outdoor hot tub. There’s also Firefly Creek Farm, a lovingly restored dairy set amid landscaped gardens on a small-scale seasonal flower farm. Or take a 400 metre uphill hike to sleep in Unyoked’s Roscoe cabin at Invergordon and be rewarded with sweeping valley views and rare seclusion. Peeling yourself away will prove tough, but Tapin Tops National Park commands attention.  

Rainforest and bushwalks of Tapin Tops National Park 

Located 70 kilometres inland from Hallidays Point, the verdant subtropical rainforest is brimming with bushwalks. Edge in easy with the 300-metre Mountain Brush Circuit and the 900-metre Potoroo Falls Walk, which leads to a natural swimming hole. Once you’ve warmed up, climbing 45 minutes from Rowleys Rock Road to the Rowleys Rock Lookout will plonk you 1000 metres above sea level to gaze open-mouthed at the green-carpeted peaks below. Tapin Tops National Park also offers the chance to tick off another ‘Tops’:  Dingo Tops, a tranquil campground open to tents. 

Fishing to mountain biking in Barrington Tops 

If you lean more turbulent than tranquil, Barrington Tops provides the ultimate adrenaline hit, particularly on the 4WD-friendly Barrington Trail. The trail is open from October to May, and the park is a mecca of subalpine wilderness that also draws mountain bikers, canoeists and kayakers. Given the park’s abundant rainbow and brown trout supply, anglers are equally hooked, momentarily ditching the coastline’s sandbars for streams in search of thrills. After days spent exploring an entirely new side of the region, I find I’m right there with them.   

How to get to the Barrington Coast

The Barrington Coast is around a three-to-four-hour drive north of Sydney.  

Rates for The Highlander’s Retreat start at $514 per night. Banool Tiny House rates start at around $408 per night. Roscoe by unyoked starts at $388 per night. All have a two-night minimum stay. The nightly rate at the Firefly Creek Farm ranges from $200 to $350+ per night. Campground rates at Dingo Tops start at around $12 per night, including booking fee.