Nightcap National Park is a national park in the Northern Rivers of New South Wales. It's a UNESCO World Heritage Site, as part of the Gondwana Rainforests of Australia.

Understand

Climate

Nightcap has the climate that reflects a climate more like that of the southeast or the central parts of Queensland rather than a NSW climate. Temperatures usually range between 18°C and 29°C during summer and 6°C and 19°C during winter. The annual rainfall is around 2,500 millimetres, the highest in the state, and the rainiest month is February while late-winter tends to be more dry.

Visitor information

• NSW National Parks and Wildlife Service website
• Alstonville office, 7 Northcott Cres, Alstonville (Russelton Industrial Estate), ☏ +61 2 6627 0200, npws.richmondriver@environment.nsw.gov.au. M–F 8:30AM–4:30PM. (updated Mar 2024)

Get in

The nearest major town is Byron Bay, and the park is around 33 km from Byron. From Byron, use Ewingsdale Rd, Myocum Rd, Coolamon Scenic Drive until the town of Federal. Once you're in Federal, turn right and then immediately turn right again onto Federal Drive. After about 4 km, turn left onto Repentance Creek Road, and after 4.4 km, turn right onto Coopers Creek Road, which eventually heads into the park.

See

• 1 Minyon Falls, Minyon Falls Loop Rd, Whian Whian. The most important attraction and point of interest in the park, and also one of the most spectacular waterfalls in the state. The falls have a drop of over 100 meters, and its lookout is pretty easy to access via a sealed albeit narrow road. (updated May 2022)

Do

• Big Scrub loop walking track. (updated May 2022)
• Goorgana walking track. (updated May 2022)
• Minyon Falls walking track. (updated May 2022)
• Pholis Gap walking track. (updated May 2022)
• Protesters Falls walking track. (updated May 2022)
• Mount Matheson loop. (updated May 2022)

Buy, eat, drink and sleep

There are no places to buy, eat, drink or sleep in Nightcap National Park.

Go next

• Back down to Byron Bay