Explore Dorrigo National Park's stunning rainforest

BRIAN Johnston has a wonderful time sampling the natural and man-made delights of the ancient rainforest in Dorrigo.

A waterfall in Dorrigo National Park. Picture: Supplied

MY BRITZ Venturer motorhome is 7.2m long and no doubt weighs more than an elephant, but it seems to be make easy headway up the Great Dividing Range.

I'm driving up the Waterfall Way from Bellingen, swinging around white-knuckle bends and praying I don't meet a truck coming the other way.

So far so good, though I nearly career off the road admiring waterfalls and lush valleys that tumble to the ocean.

I've discovered there are benefits to driving a motorhome up an escarpment.

It gives me a good excuse to go slowly and an elevated seat from which to goggle at splendid landscapes of rainforest and rolling farmland.

There are only a few isolated pockets of these ancient Gondwana rainforests left along Australia's east coast, and they're now World Heritage-listed. My destination is Dorrigo National Park, which preserves some of the region's last red cedars, as well as soaring 40m tallowwoods and fig trees with buttresses the dimension of a cathedral's.

Riflebirds and whipbirds sound from behind a tangle of vines that loop between impressive rosewood and mighty carabeen trees. My first glimpse of this ancient world is from the skywalk at the Dorrigo Rainforest Centre, a platform jutting out from the cliff edge above the forest canopy.

"Twenty years ago, we were one of the first places to have a skywalk, but these days people find it a little small," ranger Stephen Hull says apologetically. This is merely proof that some people are never satisfied, even when presented with a panorama fit for paradise spread at their feet.

After the angel's-eye view, I take to walking tracks where lizards wiggle and low, green light oozes down through the forest canopy.

There is rich birdlife in Dorrigo. Picture: Supplied

I start with a few short and easy walks (coyly named Lyrebird Link and Satinbird Stroll), where I'm serenaded by warbling doves.

Then I tackle the Wonga Walk, which takes a little over two hours and brings me down through blackbutt and cedar trees to hidden waterfalls.

It's a good way to work up an appetite, because Dorrigo National Park has a final pleasure well worth some time - its Canopy Cafe. It's rare to find a good eatery in a national park, and this place is special.

Chef Wolfgang Zichy insists on using mostly regional and organic ingredients, with local farmers bringing him boxes of vegetables and herbs daily.

The tempting menu wanders the globe with the likes of Spanish omelet, Hungarian goulash and Japanese noodles.

I tuck into an excellent slow-roasted pork belly with rhubarb sauce, and follow it up with a cappuccino that's practically a meal in itself.

A whipbird makes its distinctive call from a wall of trees half a millennium old as I bask in the warmth.

Sometimes there's no better place to be than in Australia, where I can sit in a cafe on a rainforest plateau.

It's a happy thought that, tonight, my motorhome could be parked on the edge of a beach, surrounded by another kind of beauty entirely.

Brian Johnston was a guest of Legendary Pacific Coast and Britz Campervans. Follow his travel blog at www.thoughtfultravelwriter.com

A waterfall in Dorrigo National Park. Picture: Supplied

Go2 - Dorrigo

Getting there

Dorrigo is 63km from Coffs Harbour on the Waterfall Way, inland from the Pacific Highway. Virgin Australia flies to Coffs Harbour. See virginaustralia.com, ph 13 67 89.

Getting around

Britz Campervans has a wide range of motorhomes and campervans for hire, allowing you to explore the NSW North Coast at leisure and on a budget. See britz.com.au, ph 1800 331 454.

Staying there

Bellingen Valley Lodge in Bellingen sits in lush landscaped gardens with views of the hills, and has large, comfortable motel-style rooms. See bellingenvalleylodge.com.au, ph 02 6655 1599.

Eating there

Canopy Cafe, ph 02 6657 1541.

Doing there

Dorrigo Rainforest Centre. See environment.nsw.gov.au, ph 02 6657 2309.

More: pacificcoast.com.au