Location: Aberdeen is a small town in the Upper Hunter Valley, 12 km north of Muswellbrook. It is possibly best-known for the former abbatoirs in the town centre, which operated for well over 100 years until 1999. Neraby Lake Glenbawn and Lake St Clair are popular fishing spots in the area.

Where is it?: 273 km north of Sydney and 186 m above sea-level, between Muswellbrook and Scone.

Places of Interest: Lake Glenbawn Recreation Area; Mt Woolooma; Mt Aberdeen; Allan Bridge; Kia Ora (1912); The Grange; formerly M. Campbell and Co shop; Segenhoe Stud (1837); old mill ruins, c.1840 (believed to be the oldest mill of its kind still standing in Australia); old butter factory remains; steel truss bridge (1891); Hunter Valley Museum of Rural Life.

In the area


Lake Glenbawn State Park: Lake Glenbawn is also one of the best freshwater fishing spots in NSW. Cast a line and you can catch our famous 'big bass', golden perch (yellow belly) and catfish. Water sports are popular, including canoeing, pleasure boating, sailing and wind surfing water skiing and wake boarding.

Fishing, birdwatching, bushwalking and watersports are all magnets for the families and nature lovers who flock to the shores of Lake Glenbawn ��� not to mention the beautiful setting. The Park also offers great facilities for a fun family day out or holiday destination such as, picnic areas, BBQs, playgrounds and tennis courts. On the Hunter River 20 km east of Scone, Lake Glenbawn can be accessed from Aberdeen via Rouchel Rd. If you���re coming from Scone, travel via Gundy Rd.

The main camping area for Lake Glenbawn State Park is on the lake���s eastern shore. There are also bungalows and cabins, a boat ramp, children���s playground, and even archery. Other activities include canoeing, fishing, boating and waterskiing. A kiosk on this side of the lake sells basic grocery items.

Lake Glenbawn is named after the property submerged under the dam waters. Glenbawn Dam was built between 1954 and 1957 to regulate the flow of the Hunter River in order to meet stock, domestic and irrigation requirements. It covers 2614 hectares, draws on a catchment area of 1295 square km, has a storage capacity of 750 000 megalitres and a maximum depth of 85 m. The main wall is 100 m high and the length of the crest is 1125 m.

Hunter Valley Museum of Rural Life: The building was purpose built 30 years ago and houses many items depicting the every day rural life in the Hunter Valley. These include carriages, carts, horse drawn hearse, ploughing implements, implements used for wine making, butter making, various tools, household items, washing machines, sewing machines, lamps, irons, musical instruments, a rock collection, and much more. The Hunter Valley Museum is located near the picnic area. It is only open by prior arrangement and preferably for groups rather than individuals. Ph: 02 6543 7193.

Segenhoe estate: this historic 3-storey property, built as an inn in 1837, is inseparably tied to the establishment of Aberdeen. Situated to the right, on the west bank of the Pages River, it is now a horse stud. The single-storey stone Georgian homestead (1830s) is a little difficult to see from the roadside as it is set back from the road. It has a hipped roof and bull-nosed verandah. Surveyor-General Thomas Mitchell, explorers Allan Cunningham and Edmund Kennedy, and Governor Bourke all used the house as a base for their investigations of the land to the north.


Scenic Drive: Just north of Aberdeen along the highway two roads head off to the left. The first, Blairmore Lane, veers south-west past McIntyre's old Blairmore estate, with a homestead dating back to 1836, Negoa, granted to William Cox who built the first road over the Blue Mountains, and Kayuga, granted to Peter McIntyre's brother Donald. A nearby cemetery is the oldest on the upper Hunter, being established in 1828.

The second road (signposted for Dartbrook) heads west for 3.2 km through farming land to a T-intersection. It is here that the Dartbrook estate was established, granted to George Smith Hall who, like many early settlers, used the property as a base while sending his progeny north to work large cattle runs. His son Thomas essentially created the Australian cattle dog when, in pursuit of good working dogs, he crossed the blue merle Scotch collie with the native dingo. The result became known as a 'blue heeler' for the colour of its coat combined with its tendency to nip at the heels of cattle, thus moving them forward in a controlled manner.

Turn right at the intersection for a pleasant alternate route to Scone along Back Muswellbrook Rd. This was the first road north from Aberdeen. A village named Redbank was surveyed along this route (about 10 km north) and a few houses built but it declined when The Great North Road, which traversed the Murrurundi Gap, was established to the east forming the basis of the present New England Highway and fostering the development of Scone.

There are several horse studs along this route (Yarraman and Wakefield). 11 km brings you to a T-intersection. Turn right into Moobi Rd which leads into Scone.