Dec 09 – Camping in Wollondilly River Station
December 14, 2009
We have found a fabulous new camp site in Wollondilly which is in a beautiful part of NSW. The Wollondilly River Station is set in a valley about 2.5 hours South West of Sydney, and is accessible only by unsealed roads. As you enter the valley you drive along steep, windy roads built into the sides of the hills for about half an hour working your way down until you reach the bottom of the valley which is set in dry bush alongside the Wollondilly River.
Arriving at The Wollondilly River station around 9pm we set up our campsite by the edge of the river in a remote spot. Being such a nice campsite along the river the campers are well spread out making you feel like you really are the only ones there. We were organised with our own cooking equipment and had plenty of supplies as this campsite has no amenities other than a couple of portable loos on the main track.
Making my favourite Chorizo tomato pasta for everyone after setting up the tents for the night, we lit a fire and soon enjoyed some toasted marshmallows under the stars. Graeme and Dan had a tinker on the guitar and we sat back in a relaxed frame of mind glad to have escaped the confinement of Sydney. As I settled into my swag, I fell asleep admiring the millions of stars above us.
Waking up in the morning was an absolute pleasure as we had never heard some many birds in one place. We heard Noisy Friar birds, Galah’s, Parrots, Reed Warblers and Magpie’s to name but a few. It turned out that Brian the owner of The Wollondilly River Station knew someone who had discovered at least 170 species of bird life in that area so far! Before breakfast Graeme and I decided to take the kayaks up the river for a bit of a paddle and saw turtles, Water Dragons and ducks plus discovered many more species of birds. With water levels low the river was not flowing so it was an easy paddle compared to Middle Harbour and the Hawkesbury River!
After a delicious breakfast of bacon and eggs cooked over the fire we said goodbye to The Wollondilly River Station. We then set off for Burrinjuck Dam travelling via Wombeyan Caves and Laggan, stopping off in Laggan to say hi to Graham at The Old Mill. Driving out of the valley past the Wombeyan Caves and up the other side of the valley we admired the spectacular views vowing to make another visit to this part of NSW very soon.
