DAY 1: (Sunday) Dorrigo NP - Mt Hyland [LD]
Pick up from your accommodation in Bellingen and scenic drive up the steep Great Escarpment to the Dorrigo Plateau, with magnificent views back to the coastal lowland. We enjoy a day in Dorrigo National Park, walking in lush subtropical rainforest on a journey back in time. Along the way, learning about the changes and the continuity of this ecosystem over millions of years enables us to look at this natural wonder through different eyes than those of the hurried tourist. Aftern exploring the Dorrigo Rainforest Centre shop and information display, we continue our journey to New England National Park in the late afternoon. Most likely, we will see kangaroos and wallabies along the way as they emerge for their nocturnal grazing. Accommodation for the next two nights is in an exclusively rented National Park's cabin.

DAY 2: (Monday) New England NP - Lyrebird/Cascades Walk [BLD]
At Point Lookout, at 1,550m the highest point in New England National Park, we will marvel at the awesome views over the seemingly endless valleys and ranges of the New England wilderness to the Pacific Ocean in the far distance. The moss-clad beech rainforest below is home to the Superb Lyrebird, a fascinating bird who mimics perfectly the sounds of other birds in the rainforest. The ancestors of this ground-dwelling bird roamed the same type of forest 120 million years ago when Australia and Antarctica were connected in the ancient supercontinent Gondwana.

DAY 4: (Wednesday) Guy Fawkes River NP - Lucifers Thumb - Coffs Harbour [BL]
The deep canyon of Guy Fawkes River cuts through the centre of the park and stretches over 100km from south to north. In the morning, strolling out to cliffs, imaginatively named "Lucifers Thumb", we enjoy the view over the vast wilderness of the park with no sign of civilization as far as the eye can see. Frequently, the rare Brush-tailed Rock-wallabies are seen sunbaking on these rocks. They were almost extinguished and are classified as endangered. Today, the wilderness of this park is home to a healthy population. After a leisurely lunch snack on the banks of the Chaelundi River, we return to the coast and Coffs Harbour in the afternoon.

Scrambling up Cathedral Rock, an impressive granite tor, we will enjoy extensive views over the New England Tableland. Frequently, Wedge-tailed Eagles, the largest birds of prey in Australia, soar high above in the blue sky. Kangaroos can often be observed close-up. The elusive echidna, one of two unique egg-laying mammals, is more difficult to spot. The perfume of flowering shrubs, orchids and wildflowers dominates the park in early summer. We continue our travel to the remote and beautifully located Mount Hyland Wilderness Lodge where we spend our last night.

This beech forest is a living relict, elsewhere only found as fossil, and today only surviving on several square kilometers in Australia. A rocky plateau rising like an island from the surrounding forest again offers magnificent views. If you are keen for more, we may descend to the cascades of Five Day Creek. After dinner, there is the option of a night-time walk with spotlights to observe the nocturnal wildlife, for example Greater Gliders, a possum species - or simply enjoy the quietness of the Australian bush at night and the amazing night sky away from city lights.