Mount Warning - New South Wales
Elevation 1156m.
Situated 14km west of Murwillumbah in the North Coast Region of New South Wales, Mount Warning has the honour of being the first place on the Australian Mainland that the sun hits each morning. That is when the top of the 1156 m peak is not draped in cloud. The other name for the remnant plug of the 23 million year old shield volcano, translated from the local Bundjalung Peoples name “Wollumbin”, is “Cloud Catcher”.
Wollumbin or Mount Warning formed as the central vent, or magma chamber of a shield caldera volcano that covered an area of around 4000km2, stretching out over the landscape as far as Beenleigh in the north, Kyogle in the west, Coraki in the south and well into the Pacific ocean where it can be found as reef structures today. The crater rim of this volcano, the largest Shield Caldera in the southern hemisphere would have been over 2000m high.
The volcanic cone has eroded away over the last 20 million years leaving the hard rock of the central plug of the volcano and the fertile plains of the Tweed Valley. Surrounding the central vent, are the remnant lava flows and rock layers deposited by eruptions of the volcano. These form parts of the local ranges including the McPherson Range, Border Ranges and the Scenic Rim.
The Bunjalung People have inhabited the area around Mount Warning for thousands of years, and the mountain has great significance to them. They enjoyed a warm sub-tropical climate in an area where landscape varied from towering mountains to the bountiful sea and provided an abundance of food and materials to meet all of their needs. The Bunjalung People living in the Tweed Valley had no particular need to be nomadic, having no need to travel for hunting or food-gathering.
Wollumbin is said to be a Warrior Chief of the mountain and the spirits of the mountains were warriors. The Bunjalung People see wounds the warriors received in battles as scars on the side of the mountain and the thunder and lightning are the effects of their battles. When you look toward Wollumbin from the north, you can see the face of the Warrior Chief in the mountain's outline.
Under Bundjalung law, only specifically chosen people are allowed to climb Wollumbin. Out of respect for their law and culture, the Bundjalung ask that you consider choosing not to climb Mount Warning.
There are no shortage of places to stay near Mount Warning. There are Bed & Breakfast, Resorts, Retreats, Hotels, Motels, Guesthouses, Self Catered, Camping, Cabins and Caravan Parks are available. The surrounding towns of Murwillumbah, Uki and Tyalgum are all well catered for accommodation and dining opportunities.
Whatever your style, you'll find a great place to stay near Mount Warning.
There are several tour companies that operate in the Mount Warning area, from both Byron Bay and Tweed Heads.
Things To See and Do <
There are so many Things To See and Do around Mount Warning.
A visit to the Information Centre in Murwillumbah will help with what is in the area.
Murwillumbah Visitor Information Centre
Cnr Tweed Valley Way and Alma Street
Murwillumbah
New South Wales, 2484
Phone (02) 6672 1340
Fax (02) 6672 5948
Email: info@tweedtourism.com.au
www.tweedtourism.com.au
Walks
To reach the Mount Warning walking track leave the Pacific Highway at Murwillumbah and following the Kyogle Road west for 12 kilometres. Turn onto Mount Warning Road and proceed a further six kilometres to the Breakfast Creek picnic area at the Park entrance.
The climb up the Mount Warning track, although not physically hard, is a long and arduous 8.8km. To reach the 1156m peak You must ascend the steadily zig-zagging path, with its multitude of manmade and natural steps, until the last short, but very steep climb, assisted with a chain, to the summit, where very well built platforms give You a 3600 view of the valley and caldera rim. There are several excellent resting points along the climb, most with very nice views. Allow 2 to 2½ hours to climb to the peak, and around the same to descend. Faster and fitter walkers will easily make the climb under 2 hours. Sunrise from the peak is said to be best in winter, when the air is clearer and there is less likelyhood of a ground fog or ocean fog. Of course winter is colder at the peak, so take very warm clothes to put on after You cool down from the climb. The other advantage of wintertime is that You don’t have to start quite so early to reach the summit for sunrise. It is recommended that You do not start the climb after 1pm in winter and 2pm in summer.
Out of respect for their law and culture, the Bundjalung ask that you consider choosing not to climb Mount Warning.
The climb takes You through several types of forest. The lower slopes clothed with subtropical rainforest of lush palms and forest giants, including the Giant Stinging Trees, Figs, Booyongs, Carabeens and Flame Trees. Higher on the slopes the forest changes to temperate rainforest, dominated by Coachwood, Corkwood, Brush Box, Mountain Walnut and Mountain Wattle. The summit itself is a small area of heath shrubland. Rainforest animals are diverse and mostly nocturnal, but the Pademelon Wallaby is often seen by day. Birds likely to be seen or heard include the Paradise Riflebird, Regent and Satin Bower Birds, the Cat Bird, the Scrub Turkey and various fruit eating Pigeons. Rare and endangered birds include the Wompoo Pigeon, Albert’s Lyrebird, Rufous Scrub Bird and Marbled Frogmouth.
- For the less physically inclined there is the excellent 15 minute Lyrebird walking track that leads You to a raised platform amongst the palms and rainforest.
There are Lawn Bowls Clubs and Golf Clubs in the Mount Warning area. Other sporting activities are catered for within the region.
Whatever your favourite sport, you'll find plenty of options in the Mount Warning area.
Korrumbyn Creek Picnic Area is located about 1.5kms down the road from the commencement of the walking track and has BBQs and toilet facilities. There are several other good picnic spots around the area as well.
National Parks
Mount Warning and its flanks cover the major part of the World Heritage Listed Mount Warning National Park and Woolumbin National Park which covers 2210ha. Also in the surrounding Nightcap National Park, Border Ranges National Park, Springbrook National Park and Lamington National Park there are species of the sub-tropical and temperate zone flora that overlap in a unique environment to provide spectacular rainforest scenery with natural streams and brooks, and homes for the abundant birdlife and wildlife., Whian Whian State Conservation Area, while near the coast are Ballina Nature Reserve, and Broken Head Nature Reserve.
There are regular Markets held in the area, visit the New South Wales Markets page for more info.
There are many Great Restaurants, Cafes, Hotels and other Dining Options in the Mount Warning area. Often the hardest thing is deciding where to eat. Whatever your favourite foods, you'll find plenty of options near Mount Warning.
Local History
The Bunjalung People have inhabited the area around Mount Warning for thousands of years, and the mountain has great significance to them. They enjoyed a warm sub-tropical climate in an area where landscape varied from towering mountains to the bountiful sea and provided an abundance of food and materials to meet all of their needs. The Bunjalung People living in the Tweed Valley had no particular need to be nomadic, having no need to travel for hunting or food-gathering.
Wollumbin is said to be a Warrior Chief of the mountain and the spirits of the mountains were warriors. The Bunjalung People see wounds the warriors received in battles as scars on the side of the mountain and the thunder and lightning are the effects of their battles. When you look toward Wollumbin from the north, you can see the face of the Warrior Chief in the mountain's outline.
Under Bundjalung law, only specifically chosen people are allowed to climb Wollumbin. Out of respect for their law and culture, the Bundjalung ask that you consider choosing not to climb Mount Warning.
The first European to see the mountain was Lieutenant James Cook in 1770, as his ship the Barque Endeavour sailed along the Australian coast. He recorded seeing “...a remarkable sharp peaked Mountain lying inland…” from a point of land he named Cape Byron. A few hours later he was forced to turn east to avoid the dangerous reefs that are offshore from Fingal Head, these he named Danger Reefs. Next morning Cook recorded:
“…We now saw the breakers [reefs] again within us which we past at the distance of 1 League, they lay in the Lat de of 38°..8' [later changed to 28°..8'] & stretch off East two Leagues from a point under which is a small Island. There situation may always be found by the peaked mountain before mentioned which bears SWBW from them this and on this account I have named Mount Warning it lies 7 or 8 Leagues inland in the latitude of 28°..22" S° the land is high and hilly about it but it is conspicuous enough to be distinguished from everything else. The point off which these shoals lay I have named Point Danger to the northward of it the land which is low trends NWBN but we soon found that it did not keep that direction long before it turnd again to the northward.”
John Oxley was the first European to see the Tweed Valley in 1823, when his party explored 7 miles upstream of the Tweed River. He entered into his journal:
"A deep rich valley clothed with magnificent trees, the beautiful uniformity of which was only interrupted by the turns and windings of the river, which here and there appeared like small lakes. The background was Mt. Warning. The view was altogether beautiful beyond description. The scenery here exceeded anything I have previously seen in Australia."
In 1827 Captain Patrick Logan became the first to explore the interior of the ranges now on the Queensland side of the border, he named them the McPherson Ranges after Major Duncan McPherson who was a colleague of both Logan and fellow explorer, Allan Cunningham.
The surrounding areas were settled over the next hundred years, starting with timber getters in 1844, and early pioneer farmers and dairymen cut blocks out of the subtropical forest to utilize the fertile volcanic soils. The first school in the Tweed Valley opened in 1871, and by the 1890’s the river port of Tumbulgum was the centre of population. Murwillumbah became the main centre, when the first Local Government municipality was declared in 1902. The Tweed Shire, which amalgamated the Municipality of Murwillumbah and Shire of Tweed, was declared in 1947. The Tweed Valley has become a large source of sugarcane, dairy products and vegetables because of its good rainfall and fertile soils.
Reserved for public recreation in 1928, Mount Warning was dedicated as a National Park in 1966. In 1986 Mount Warning National Park was included in the World Heritage Register as part of the Central Eastern Rainforest Reserve, protecting it for future generations. The Wollumbin State Forest was changed to Wollumbin National Park and State Conservation area in 2003.
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