Getting there: Gloucester is about 90 minutes from Newcastle. Take the Pacific Highway past Raymond Terrace and watch for the Bucketts Way on your left.
Who should go: Mainly for outdoor types, couples and families. Camping, kayaking and river sports, bushwalking, mountain biking, birdwatching, nature photography.
What to see: The Bucketts, Rocky Crossing swimming hole and picnic area on the Barrington River, Copeland former gold town, Capparis Goat Cheese Farm (pictured), Trudgalong Farm.
Where to eat: Perenti Cafe, Gloucester Country Club, Soldiers Club, Bowling Club, either pub. BBQ your own "Barrington Beef" steak from local growers.
Best-kept secret: "The Rock" a formation of somewhat rude, phallic appearance en route to the Barrington Tops.
CLEAN rivers, beautiful bushland and idyllic rural landscapes have made Gloucester a favourite escape for city people.
The town of about 2500 sits on the junction of the Bucketts Way and Thunderbolts Way, linking Newcastle, Taree and the New England district.
It lies directly beneath the spectacular rock formation known as "The Bucketts", a word said to originate from the former Aboriginal inhabitants of the area who are reputed to have used the crags as a site for initiation ceremonies.
Many first-time visitors use Gloucester as a base-camp to explore the Barrington Tops, but often find plenty to bring them back for a closer look at the town and its hinterland.
In the past Gloucester was chiefly a timber and dairy town but in recent years the emphasis has shifted to tourism, grazing and boutique agricultural pursuits. The mixed blessing of coal deposits means the future of the Gloucester district is subject to considerable debate.
The most accessible points of interest from Gloucester include The Bucketts, which can be reached by a relatively easy walking track and offer rewarding views of the surrounding areas.
The Gloucester Tops a short drive out of town offer some wonderful walks and superb camping and swimming spots.
Former gold-rush boom-town Copeland is only minutes away, with delightful semi-rainforest walks and the Mountain Maid mine, reopened as a tourist attraction.
The Barrington River is renowned as a kayaking and canoeing mecca, offering a variety of rapids to suit most levels of experience.
One popular kayaking run is from Bindera Island (at the end of Manchester Road, outside the village of Barrington) to Rocky Crossing, where the Barrington West Road fords the Barrington River. This run includes the famous "Steps", an exhilarating set of rapids with a very appropriate name.
The kayaking experience varies with river conditions. The Barrington River has seldom if ever stopped flowing, but at its lowest flows it is too shallow to negotiate. In flood it can become a raging yellow torrent of extraordinary power, far too dangerous to attempt.
At its moderate best it is a delight, interspersing quiet stretches where platypus, lizards, fish and birds of great variety can be watched at leisure, with challenging, scenic and exciting rapids.
Email a friend