Kyogle Road Trip: 3 Days Exploring This Untapped NSW Region

We Are Explorers acknowledges that this adventure is located on the Traditional Country of the Bundjalung people who have occupied and cared for the lands, waters, and their inhabitants for thousands of years. We pay our respects to them as the Traditional Custodians and recognise that sovereignty was never ceded.

Quick Overview

Tucked away in the northern extremities of NSW and a little over an hour from Cavvanbah/Byron Bay, Kyogle offers countryside charm in spades and access to fantastic nearby national parks like the Border Ranges and Toonumbar. My three-day road trip itinerary covers all of this and more!

Welcome to verdant paradise

Kyogle Road Trip Facts

Distance: 290km
Duration: 5 hours
Time from: Warrane/Sydney: 8 hour 10 minutes, Meanjin/Brisbane: 2 hour 40 minutes, Cavvanbah/Byron Bay: 1 hour 17 minutes, Yugambeh Region/Gold Coast: 2 hour 8 minutes
Elevation gain: 72m
Nearest town: Lismore, 43km away

Get ready to slow your pace

About Kyogle

The name Kyogle is adapted from the local Indigenous Bundjalung word ‘kaiou-gal’ meaning ‘the place of the plain turkey’.

Kyogle itself is a small town with enormous appeal. It’s reminiscent of the Cavvanbah/Byron Bay of old — but with endless ancient rainforest instead of beaches.

Outside of town, the area is a trove of natural beauty and an assortment of ways to experience it. But there’s no hurry — the slow pace of life and relaxed vibe is very evident. Exactly what I needed to get away from it all. Nearby national parks with camping, trails, and waterfalls to cool off in are the status quo in a region that asks you to slow down and take it easy.

Read more: Remember to leave no trace

History of Kyogle

The region’s topography shows the hallmarks of colossal eruptions 23 million years ago from the Tweed Valley Shield Volcano.

The area has been inhabited by the Indigenous Bundjalung people for thousands of years, while the town was founded in the 1830s as a timber settlement to harvest abundant Red cedar and Hoop pines.

When the land was cleared, and the timber industry slowed, there was a distinct move to dairy farming around the end of the 19th century. As time went by, many buildings were reconstructed in the early 1930s when Art Deco was in vogue. The result is one of Australia’s finest main streets displaying this era.

How to Get to Kyogle

Coming from far away or interstate? You can fly into Ballina Byron Gateway Airport or Gold Coast Airport and be in the area in less than two hours.

Getting here isn’t complicated by car as you have various main roads, depending on your time allowances. If you’re coming from the south, the Summerland Way is a natural choice and a brilliant scenic drive starting in Grafton.

If you’re feeling more adventurous, the New England Highway will take you a little further inland through the distinctive townships of Armidale and Tenterfield.

Essential Gear for Road Tripping Kyogle

• Walking boots/shoes
• Hiking pole
• Insect repellent
• Hat
• Sunscreen
• First aid kit
• Adequate water when camping in national parks
• PLB
• Warm clothing for winter
• Camping gear

Where to Stay in Kyogle

Sheepstation Creek Campground

This is a spacious and well-set-out campsite at the base of the Border Ranges with three connected walks of differing skill levels and incredible views of Brushbox Falls. It includes camp toilets, non-potable water, and roving Lace monitors (AKA tree goannas) that provided us with impromptu entertainment!

Forest Tops Campground

This high-altitude campground only accommodates three sites and offers much more secluded camping— it’s my favourite for its unparalleled sense of adventure. Also, the adjoining Booyong walking track connects to the Sheepstation Creek Campground, so for added adventure, you could park at one and walk to the other. This camp includes toilets and non-potable water.

Rainforest Gateway Caravan Park & Campground

28km north of Kyogle — and right beside the Border Ranges National Park — you’ll find this camping option beside Gradys Creek. Three one-bedroom cabins and a multitude of powered and non-powered campsites comprise this well-placed campground.

Where to Eat in Kyogle

Wiangaree General Store

Hearty breakfast burgers and delicious lunchtime sandwiches are the name of the game at this little tucked-away charmer.

Bursting with country charm

And if you swing by on the weekends, the little outside section filled with antiques and trinkets hosts the Sticks, Staves, and Staffs coffee trailer, who pour some seriously good cups of joe. The Big Breakfast Burger is pretty hard to beat.

Exchange Hotel

With prime position on a prominent street corner in town — and nearly 100 years under the belt — the ‘bottom pub’ is the place to get a pub feed. They also boast the town’s only beer garden and regularly host live music on weekends, with weekly meal specials to boot.

Wadeville Woolies (no, not Woolworths)

Attached to another excellent camping option, this collective general store, café, and bottle shop serves up top-notch fish and chips and couples nicely with an excursion to nearby Hanging Rock Falls. Grab some cake for the journey home like we did.

Things to Do in Kyogle

• Red Cedar Loop
• Pinnacle Lookout
• Brindle Creek walking track
• Hanging Rock Falls
• Kyogle Mountain Bike Forest
• Border Ranges and Tweed Range Scenic Drives
• Kyogle Art Deco Walk
• Captain Cook Memorial Lookout
• Clarence River Canoes

What It’s Like to Road Trip Around Kyogle

A road trip cum hiking sojourn to the Kyogle region is an authentic Northern NSW off-grid experience. Mind you, it’s not rugged outback stuff where you don’t see another person for days, either.

But the quiet country lanes, slower pace of life, and incredible ancient rainforest walking trails are peaceful and perfect for a digital detox – just what I was looking for.

* Takes a long exhale *

Day 1 – Gold Coast to Border Ranges National Park

Distance: 130km
Duration: 2.5 hours

Leaving the skyrises and golden beaches behind, we headed west into the Scenic Rim, before a stunning little valley known as Running Creek shoehorned us over the border and into the verdant Kyogle LGA under the canopy of the Border Ranges National Park.

The road took us past historic bridges and old railway tracks into the valley floor — with a few produce stalls on the way — before a slight climb to Razorback Saddle and then a tight turn out towards Sheepstation Creek Campground.

This spacious and well-maintained campground is a gem. We pulled into our reserved spot, pitched the tent, and limbered up for an afternoon stroll.

Time to unlock and unload into our tree-filled campsite

The nearby Palm Forest Walking Track leads to Brushbox Falls and is an easy 2km out-and-back affair.

A viewing platform of the waterfall makes for a first-rate selfie opportunity. We left it late, but should you have more time and energy, the out-and-back Booyong Walk connects up to tomorrow’s campsite at Forest Tops Campground.

Luckily, it’s a nice, cruisy walk to Brushbox when you’re strapped for time

Day 2 – Explore Border Ranges National Park

Distance: 37km drive
Duration: 1.5hrs

A 5am start and a 30-minute drive on unsealed roads got us to Pinnacle Lookout. This eastern-facing platform has expansive views of Tyalgum and the mighty Wollumbin National Park. From here, we welcomed the sun as it rose over the Pacific Ocean – mesmerising.

Next up we headed to Brindle Creek Falls, which is tucked into some of the last remaining UNESCO Gondwana Rainforests of Australia World Heritage areas. This intermediate 6km track winds through dense greenery beside Brindle Creek amid towering Hoop pines and Antarctic beech trees.

Along the way, Evans Falls’ swimming hole provided somewhere to strip off and get wet; further on, we passed Selva Falls, a stunning series of cascades and an enjoyable place where we took a break on moss-covered boulders.

Our camp was in complete isolation at Forest Tops Campground, I particularly loved this spot for its sounds of the forest beneath unadulterated night skies.

Day 3 — Border Ranges National Park to Kyogle to Gold Coast

Distance: 156km
Duration: 2.5 hours

After packing up, the road took us to Wiangaree General Store, a great spot to soak in the atmosphere of this quaint country village. The breakfast burgers, sandwiches, and coffee from their on-site cart sufficiently fuelled us up for another day of exploring.

Food stop!

Around Kyogle, we wandered the streets to get an up-close look at unique Art Deco architecture along the main strip and Summerland Way. We also spotted murals dotted around town depicting local culture and history.

After working up a hunger, lunch at the Exchange Hotel (locally known as ‘the bottom pub’) was a treat. Its corner location and beer garden made it an excellent spot to relax and relish good, honest food.

Deciding it was time to finish up our road trip, we drove out of town towards the Tweed Valley, paying a visit to Hanging Rock Falls along the way. This is such a beautiful place to sit by Leycester Creek for some last chance nature bathing (or jump in for a literal bath).

Always worth squeezing in one more swim before home

Hot tip! As you join the main road, Wadeville Woolies has brilliant baked goods for the drive back — after grabbing some sweet delights, there was nothing but picturesque rolling hills on our way back to the Gold Coast.

Tips for Road Tripping Kyogle

• Be sure to fill up your car with fuel before heading out to and from Kyogle. Petrol stations options are limited
• Prepare for the cold in winter when you’re in the Border Ranges National Park. The dense forest and elevation means the temperature can drop right away at night
• Mobile phone coverage is pretty limited in the Border Ranges National Park
• Camp bookings and park permits are organised through the NSW National Parks and Wildlife Service website
• Follow Leave No Trace principles to help preserve the natural environment
• Honour the cultural significance of the land, traditionally owned by the Bundjalung people