Narrabri


A service town on the Liverpool Plains between the Nandewar Range and the vast Pilliga scrub country, where fat stock, cotton and cereals are produced.

Where is it?: New England. Narrabri is 573 km north north west of Sydney on the Namoi River. It sits on the junction of the Kamilaroi Highway and the Newell Highway.

Things To See and Do
Swimming in the mineral waters of the Pilliga Hot Artesian Bore has been a popular recreational activity for many years with its therapeutic value long recognised. The water temperature is 37 degrees year round. wimming in the hot mineral waters of the bore has been a popular recreational activity for many years with its therapeutic value long recognised. The water temperature is 37 degrees year round.

The Australian Cotton Centre is a large exhibition dedicated to the region's main cash crop, with a single standard 225kg bale of cotton being made into 3085 nappies. The centre entertains as well as educates visitors in regards to the Australian Cotton Industry.

Heritage features: Keys Flour Mill (1911); Railway Station (1897); Public School; Police Residence; Post Office (1879); Court House, Wee Wah (c.1880); Aboriginal rock engravings north-east of Narrabri.

Surrounding Area


Mt Kaputar National Park (52 km east): it is said that on a clear day the 360 degree views from its 1,512 metre summit encompass up to a tenth of New South Wales. Activities include bushwalking, abseiling, birdwatching and rock climbing.

Pilliga Pottery consists of a mudbrick workshop and showrooms and a bush cafe serving Devonshire teas. They are open seven days a week, Ph (02) 6842 2239. Head north-east towards Narrabri on the Newell Highway and take the signposted left 23 km from Coonabarabran.


The Australia Telescope Compact Array at the Paul Wild Observatory (administered by the CSIRO) is an array of six 22-m antennas used for radio astronomy. These antennas work together using a technique called interferometry which allows the antennas to mimic a much larger antenna. This gives the telescope the ability to see very fine detail.

Pilliga Forest

Just to the south of town is the Pilliga Forest, a vast, ancient and unique forest covering 500,000 hectares, and the largest remnant temperate forest in Eastern Australia. Commonly known as the Pilliga Scrub, this emi-arid woodland is also home to Salt caves, shallow sandstone caves in the middle of the Pilliga; Dandry Creek Gorge, a sandstone cliff toward the south of the Pilliga.



Timallallie National Park

Timallallie National Park is located in the heart of the Pilliga Forest. The park, along with the rest of the Pilliga Forest, is a refuge for wildlife including over 240 species of birds and a large population of koalas. The National Park is one of the few reserves in the Pilliga Forest with picnic and toilet facilities.

Dripping Rock Boggabri

Dripping Rock, towards Boggabri, is a little piece of paradise, an idyllic spot for a picnic or just to sit and listen to nature. If the weather is right, the large pool is also a nice spot for a swim or a refreshing natural shower. 40km north of Narrabri, near the township of Bellata, on the Newell Highway, there is good fossicking, especially for agates and beautiful petrified wood.

Gin's Leap

Boggabri (39 km north) is a small town on the Kamilaroi Highway. Boggabri's main attraction is Gin's Leap. The widely accepted origins of the current name follow the tragic death of a pair of ill fated young aboriginal lovers, a modern day Romeo and Juliet. The young girl, promised to an elder of her tribe, the Kamilaroi, ran away with a young aboriginal man from another tribe. Hotly pursued by Kamilaroi tribesmen, the lovers jumped to their deaths from somewhere along the top of this rock. Gin's Leap stands as a silent sentinel over the grave sites of four pioneer settlers who died in the 19th century.

About Narrabri
Before the arrival of the Europeans in the early 19th century, Narrabri was the home of the Kamilaroi people, who still constitute a significant part of the local population. Narrabri derives its name from an early property in the district called the Narrabry Run. The name, from the local Aboriginal language, means 'forked waters'.

The town was surveyed in 1859 and grew slowly from simple beginnings. After the Robertson Land Act of 1861 was declared, the area was slowly opened up to smaller selectors and wheat-growing began in 1873. The railway arrived at Narrabri West in 1882 and a settlement began to develop around it. Narrabri was declared a municipality in 1883.

A major soldier resettlement scheme was implemented at Edgeroi (24 km north) after World War II, bringing greater prosperity to the district and a resurgent population.

| Content © 2013 Phoenix Group Co. | Sales: phone 1300 753 517; email | Editorial: phone 0412 879 698; email | W3Layouts