Where the heck is Tooraweenah?

Well, Tooraweenah is a sleepy little town at the southern gateway of the Warrumbungle National Park.

My travelling mate John and I had been reading good reports on the caravan park at Tooraweenah, so this trip to Queensland seemed the appropriate time to check it out.

First night away from home we pulled up at West Wyalong showgrounds. Nice powered sites and clean tidy amenities. And plenty of room for puppy to run. This was also a first time stopping place for us.

We travel with our dog so at times it is a little difficult finding a dog friendly park.

Next day, up early as it was very cold that night. After breakfast, bacon and eggs, of course, we set sail northwards.

The Newel Highway can be a busy Highway but on this particular day it was really pleasant. Plenty of time to look around at the wonderful scenery. Near Peake Hill there is open cut mining happening again. Apparently a large seam of gold has been detected so the landscape is quite different now. All heaps of overburden and many large machines working away.

Up through Dubbo and Gilgandra we went, big hills abounded, but the trusty ute pulled that big van like no bodies business.
Halfway between Gilgandra and Coonabarabran was the turn off to Tooraweenah. Down the hill lay a sleepy little town. Historic Tooraweenah dates back to 1880. One can take a self guided tour around the town, taking in the original old buildings and imagining life as it were 130 years ago.

A short drive away is the beautiful Warrumbungles. The scenery is amazing. A little further on is Sliding Springs, home of Australia’s largest observatory. All well worth a look .

We located the park and were met by the owner as we entered the gate.

Geoff was very friendly and even asked where we would like to park the van. He told us his wife Sara, would be over later to do the paperwork, just settle in and relax he said.

After a short while , Sara came over to see us. She had a tray of freshly baked scones, with jam and cream. Oh ,how yummy they were.
What a wonderful way to greet guests. We chatted for a while, Sara invited us to damper by the campfire a little later in the evening.
This park certainly was something else. It is amazing how good it feels to be greeted by friendly helpful people. Not all parks are like this.

The park also had a fenced dog run for those people with pets. It meant our dog could run around off the lease and be safe from any traffic. Another thoughtful gesture.

As pets are not allowed in National Parks, the owners of the park will care for pets while their masters go trekking through the hills.
We really did not want to leave this place, but had to be in Brisbane a few days later.

One sure thing though, we will be staying a few nights on our way back to Victoria.

Have you stumbled across a beautiful and special place while travelling? Where was it? Why did you love it so much? Tell us in the comments below…