Lightning Ridge NSW

Make sure you do a under ground tour, picked us up and dropped us off at caravan park..very good!!

Hi Jerry,
Depends on how much time you Have up your sleeve.
From Newcastle you would be well advised to go straight up the new England to Wallabadah. Stay in the free camp at Wallabadah over night and have a long look at the First Fleet Park right beside the free camp.

Then head toward Gunnadah via Quirindi, Currabubula, then Gunnedah. While in Gunnedah have a look at the machinery museum there as it is quite extensive. A small fee required.

After that you can head toward Narrabri, plenty to see there abouts as well. Then you could make a stop at the Burren Junction Bore baths about 5 K or so before Burren Junction which has an excellent free camp right beside the bore baths. Merely a gold coin donation required for the bore baths. Very good value.

I am not sure what is on offer in the Walgett area but the brother tells me there is a very good cake shop in that town so it might be worth checking that out.

Then you could head on up to Lightening Ridge which the brother has not stopped going on about since he was there. Very impressed he was. There is plenty to see and do there he tells me. I have not been there as yet but it is on the bucket list.

We always call into the tourist info centres of each town we go through to see what is on offer in that town. This works well for us.

Cheers, Bruce.

Jerry,
Chambers of the Black Hand underground has some awesome carvings. Don't miss it.

If you are just going there and back then here is a suggested round trip. If you want stop over parks on the journey I have marked a couple.

As far as parks at the ridge go here is your map of them. Zoom in to separate the pins and then click on the pins for more info. You will no doubt get recommendations for them all. The one to the east is on the edge of town but near the hot pool. The one to the south is out of town and is a farm stay. You will get reports on them through the pins and the link "What Badger Reports have to say." Don't forget to add your report to Badger after your stay.

As well as your in town attractions I would suggest a visit to the Garwin Opal Fields. They are featured on this link. We went to the Sheepyard Inn for morning tea, Glengarry Hilton for lunch and the Club in the Scrub for afternoon tea. A run up to Hebel to Woolpack Dining Room & General Store makes for a good lunch run, the tucker is excellent.

A trip out to Glengarry opal fields and a beer in the Sheepyard hotel, parking over night near the pub is available.

The three pubs at Grawin and surrounds are great as is the underground Chamber tour. A swim or two at the free heated spa and the Car Door Tours are also good.
We stayed at the caravan park near the spa and can recommend it highly.
The sunset lookout are also worth a look and also the big emu south on the highway too.

I was also going to recommend Glengarry/Grawin etc, but see it's well covered above.
To my perspective this area holds more draw power than Lightning Ridge itself, which to me has become a tad too touristy for my taste.

Burren Junction Bore baths are closed for the season from Nov to ?

I was there just before they closed.

PeterH

There is a station we stayed at just south of town, but I can't recall the name and it was around 8 years ago. Follow Opal Street south, which becomes Old Lorne Road out of town south, go past the Aerodrome Road turn off, then after a sweeping right hand bend turn off to the right. The dirt road runs for maybe 500m before you come to the buildings. There are (or used to be) shearers huts and camping sites on the property.

Thank you all for great info.
Left Newcastle on Thursday very early morning.
Back on Saturday late at night.
Opal caravan park was great and so was Black Opal Tour Package with Underground mine tour.
Both tired but very happy.

Great forum...thank you
Jerry

Firstly it depends on the time that you have in your mind. there are some very nice places that you can visit during your trip. Here are some, new England to Wallabadah, Gunnadah via Quirindi, CurrabubulaWalgett and finally Lightening Ridge. There are stil many others and small detaisl that I can help you with if tell me the budghet and time you have.

Hi Henry.
trip finished last week.
Highlight was Black Opal Tour & underground carvings.
cheers
jerry