Bellingen Shire – from waterfalls to the sea

The Bellingen Shire includes three main towns, the small friendly township of Dorrigo in the highlands (762 m above sea level), the main town Bellingen at the bottom of the mountains, and Urunga on the coast. The area includes both farmland and national parks.

We arrived from the west and used a Dorrigo campground as a base for a few days.

A steep, winding road takes you from Dorrigo down to Bellingen. The regenerative braking in our Kona EV resulted in the battery having almost as much charge in it after the 30 km drive, as at the start in Dorrigo.

Bellingen is an interesting place with lots of little restaurants and cafes to choose from, a small but interesting gallery, and small local growers’ market. There is obviously an active environmental movement, reflected in some of the street art.

We liked the grand old emporium building which also had a wonderful sourdough bakery/cafe down one side.

Continuing down to Urunga, there is a 1 km boardwalk through the mangroves where the Bellinger and Kalang Rivers join and then meet the sea. We only managed a short visit here, as we had to run to escape heavy rain.

After our stay in this area, we travel north to the Springbrook area in SE Queensland.

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