Contentious CharacterCredit: Destination NSW
Contentious Character is part of Trail 1: Wine, Water, Wonder on the Southern Tableland Trails
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Less than two hours southwest of Sydney, the Southern Tablelands is home to rolling farmland, historic towns, cool climate wineries and produce-driven restaurants. The pace of life is a little slower here, but that’s how the locals like it. It means there’s more time to share a yarn over the bar of an old stone pub, lose track of time in search of antique treasures, follow a hiking trail along dramatic limestone clifftops or feel the unhurried joy of a long lunch stretching out over the afternoon.
The five new Southern Tablelands Trails take in the best of the region, with something for everyone to enjoy. Foodies, adventure-seekers, family travellers and those in search of authentic country experiences, can follow the trails as a day trip, use them as inspiration to plan their own adventures, or just hit the road to discover somewhere new.
Trail 1: Wine, Water, Wonder
Centred around the mysterious Lake George, this trail will give you a taste of the good life. Join the locals for coffee at the community minded Some Café in the tiny village of Collector before cruising along the aptly named Vineyards Road. Stroll between the vines and meet the passionate winemakers at Lerida Estate, Lake George Winery, Contentious Character and Lark Hill Winery. Feeling suitably serene, head into the town of Bungendore to refuel at The Gathering Cafe or pick up locally made pieces at Leather and Trading before rolling into the sleepy town of Tarago, where you’ll find vintage treasures, tasty eats and Yarralaw Springs, where the cellar door is made entirely of straw bales.
Trail 2: Vibrant Villages & Passionate Producers
Connect with the locals , chat over a beer and savour delicious local produce on this trail through the regions charming villages. Kick off your road trip at The Albion Hotel, in the heart of the village of Grabben Gullen, with a menu focused on seafood caught fresh by the local Fishing Club. In Crookwell, you can meet a member of the Lindner family, who have been making socks for almost 300 years. The amiable hosts at the Laggan Pantry will serve you an exceptional six-course meal made with produce grown in their kitchen garden and greenhouse. And in the historic town of Taralga, taste a tipple at one of two pubs dating back to the 1870s.
Trail 3: Wild Hume: Nature & History
Take things up a notch and feel your heart race along the Wild Hume trail, the most adventurous of the five. You’ll start slow, exploring the historic towns of Tallong and Marulan where the pretty streets are lined with 19th century buildings and bustling cafes. Then it’s time to hit the accelerator with a few laps of the Pheasant Wood Circuit, a professional standard racing track, before discovering Bungonia National Park where you can tackle Grade 3 hikes, lose yourself below ground in winding caves or set up camp in the remote bush where you’ll feel the peace of total solitude. Finally, embark on a self-guided Heritage Walk of Goulburn, Australia’s first inland city, where grand colonial buildings hint at an opulent past just waiting to be uncovered.
Southern Tablelands - Tablelands Trails Sizzle Credit: Destination NSW
Southern Tablelands - Tablelands Trails Sizzle
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Southern Tablelands - Tablelands Trails Sizzle Credit: Destination NSW
Southern Tablelands - Tablelands Trails Sizzle
Bungonia National Park Credit: Destination NSW
Bungonia National Park is part of Trail 3: Wild Hume - Nature & History, in the Southern Tablelands Trails
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Bungonia National Park Credit: Destination NSW
Bungonia National Park is part of Trail 3: Wild Hume - Nature & History, in the Southern Tablelands Trails
Trail 4: Off the Beaten Track
Take the slow road from Queanbeyan to Braidwood on a trail that invites you to feel free to linger in unexpected places. Step back in time and take the back road to Captains Flat, a historic town where heritage walks, sensory gardens and pristine nature await. Depending on your schedule and fitness levels, there are a number of walks to choose from in Lowen Forest Park and Berlang State Conservation Area. Make sure you talk to the publican at the Erlington Pub in Majors Creek – she’s also the village’s mailman and Justice of the Peace. Then take some time to explore Braidwood’s abundant charms, like chic cafes, delicious delis and stylish art galleries. If you’re spending the night, check in to the luxe Mona Farm just outside town.
Trail 5: Recharge in the Great Outdoors
This region is known for its tapestry of colour and this trail lets you drink in the natural beauty of the changing seasons. It’s also a fun one for the whole family, with farm visits, trout fishing and water sports. Start big, at the Big Merino in Goulburn, then continue exploring the great outdoors at nearby Markdale, a working sheep and cattle farm, followed by a stroll to the stunning five-acre Edna Walling Garden. Visit the aquatic playground of Wyangala Dam for kayaking, wakeboarding or water-skiing; for a longer escape, pitch a tent lakeside. Then, it’s on to Crookwell, where you can choose to hand feed alpacas, catch a trout or toast the sunset at Kingsdale Wines.
For more information on the Tablelands Trails and to plan your visit now, go to www.visitnsw.com/things-to-do/southern-tablelands-trails. Share your Tablelands Trails experience on social media using @visitnsw #feelnew #feelNSW
The Erlington Hotel, Majors Creek Credit: Destination NSW
The Erlington Hotel is part of Trail 4: Off the Beaten Track in the Southern Tablelands Trails
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The Erlington Hotel, Majors Creek Credit: Destination NSW
The Erlington Hotel is part of Trail 4: Off the Beaten Track in the Southern Tablelands Trails
Crookwell Alpaca Farm Credit: Destination NSW
Crookwell Alpaca Farm is part of Trail 5: Recharge in the Great Outdoors, in the Southern Tablelands Trails
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Crookwell Alpaca Farm Credit: Destination NSW
Crookwell Alpaca Farm is part of Trail 5: Recharge in the Great Outdoors, in the Southern Tablelands Trails
More Inspirational Stories
Mulwala Water Ski Club, MulwalaCredit: Destination NSW
Mulwala Water Ski Club located in the Riverina Murray region in Mulwala, offers an outdoor bar and casual relaxed dining overlooking Lake Mulwala. Learn to water ski on a world-class, private, twin lake the Max Kirwan Ski Park.
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Cool off with an adventure: NSW is a watersports playground
Mulwala Water Ski Club, Mulwala Credit: Destination NSW
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Hot sands, wild rivers, bays with towers of coral and waves that curl like a rockabilly quiff – NSW is a paradise for adventure on and under the water. For adrenaline-chasers, there are world-class waves and whitewater runs, foils and jet boats built for speed, and reefs home to sharks and turtles. For the quiet adventurers, try paddleboard expeditions, fishing for rainbow trout and bass in pristine rivers, and colourful snorkelling spots.
Your next adrenaline hit
Surfing may be the famous action-hero of the NSW watersports scene, but the state’s rivers, lakes, bays and beaches also host a huge diversity of aquatic adventures to get the heart racing. Take in Sydney Harbour’s icons, while spinning, splashing and thundering past in a jet boat with Oz Jet Boating or Thunder Jet Boat. In Western Sydney, Penrith is a hub for adventure. Penrith Whitewater Stadium, purpose-built for the 2000 Olympics, is uniquely set up for both beginner paddling and intense raft adventures, as well as kayak courses where you can test yourself against Olympic times; Cables Wake Park teaches you to wakeboard via zipline (jumps and obstacles included); and Jet Pack Adventures lets you feel like a water-powered Iron Man.
In Brooklyn, on the Hawkesbury River, Jet Ski Safaris will take you around the bends of the river at 30 knots, while Fliteschool Manly and OzFoiling (with multiple locations on the Mid North Coast) will teach you how to cruise the coastline via eFoil, a motorised surfboard that glides above the water like an elegant seabird. Outside of Sydney, on the Murray River, encounter one of the greatest and oldest waterski clubs in the world at Mulwala Water Ski Club.
Find a wave
With reliable breaks on some of the world’s most picturesque beaches, NSW is a premium spot on the international surf circuit. Surfers with their own board and years of experience behind them can find world-class waves all up the coast while newbies can join in on a surfing lesson, all you have to do is choose which one and which beach. You can also practice on a perfectly shaped, perfectly reliable wave (with multiple options suitable for beginners or experts) at URBNSURF, Olympic Park’s surf park, and finish off with a meal at RAFI, the onsite Applejack-run restaurant and bar that overlooks the waves.
URBNSURF Sydney Credit: Applejack_Sandy’s_URBNSURF Sydney
URBNSURF Sydney
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URBNSURF Sydney Credit: Applejack_Sandy’s_URBNSURF Sydney
URBNSURF Sydney
Oz Jet Boating, Sydney Harbour Credit: Destination NSW
Experience the incredible speed of the red shark boats as they blast across Sydney harbour at high speed with Oz Jet Boating.
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Oz Jet Boating, Sydney Harbour Credit: Destination NSW
Experience the incredible speed of the red shark boats as they blast across Sydney harbour at high speed with Oz Jet Boating.
Explore NSW’s coral reefs
The pristine, ecologically rich seas of NSW have seen the development of 10 protected marine parks covering more than 100,000 square kilometres, offering a haven to wildly diverse range of sea life. Beyond those areas, in the harbour and the bays of the coastal cities, there are also vibrant ecosystems ripe for snorkel or scuba dive trips. Self-guided snorkelling can be done in most places along the coast and, provided you have the equipment and training, so can diving. Or learn the ropes with a tour. Woebegone Expeditions and Courses will teach you how to explore the reefs of the South Coast with safe, freediving techniques; Region X Snorkel Tours has you jumping off a kayak with a snorkel around Batemans Bay; and Ecotreasures fits in a headland walk between time in the aquatic reserve around Manly. For new divers, you can explore the lower North Coast with Jetty Dive Centre or the tropical far North Coast with Cooly Eco Adventures. While Sydney Underwater Scooters will set you up with a handheld swim-assister and show you the clear waters and underwater fauna of Sydney’s Gordon’s Bay.
Paddling sunrise to sunset
Every river, bay and lake has a different scene and a different story, and cruising on a kayak, canoe or stand-up paddleboard (SUP) lets you discover at your own pace. NSW is also full of explorers and local experts ready to guide you along the way. In Sydney, Sydney Harbour Kayaks and Sydney by Kayak will introduce you to the harbour at its multicolour best with dawn and dusk paddles. Manly Kayak Centre has both hire and guided options for kayaks and SUP, as well as giving you the opportunity to try your hand at SUPBALL, which is like polo but replaces the horse with a SUP. Cronulla SUP and Balmoral Paddlesurf let you explore less famous, but no less beautiful, beaches of Sydney’s south and north respectively.
On the Sapphire Coast combine your next river adventure with a story, like on Navigate Expeditions’ Aboriginal Culture Tour, where you journey into the land’s Indigenous heritage, or a Kayak and Shuck Tour where you visit the oyster farms. On the North Coast, social enterprise and SUP tour guides Wajaana Yaam Adventure Tours offers cultural eco-tourism on a paddleboard around the pristine waters of Solitary Island Marine Park. Not far away in The Tweed, Watersports Guru offers SUP lessons and hire, allowing you to cruise the waters Cudgen Creek while taking in the local birdlife – if you’re lucky you may even see a pod of dolphins.
Reel in a new experience
With pristine rivers and wild oceans, NSW is a dream for fishing for both newbies and those looking for the next big catch. Out on the oceans of the South Coast Kiama Charter Service will help you pull in your first deep-sea fish (go for blue-eye trevalla, gemfish or hapuka). While Port Macquarie Fishing Charters, Reel Ocean Adventures (in Tuncurry) and Evans Head Deep Sea Fishing Charters, provide the boats, deep-sea equipment and vibes on the North Coast. Inland, learn traditional yabbying in the bush at Narrabri Fish Farm, or set up your own line on NSW’s most epic jetties at Coffs Harbour, Lake Macquarie and Lake St Clair in the Hunter Valley. If you know the ways of a fly fisher, the Snowy Mountains and Blue Mountains are the hot spots.
Kayaking, Sydney Harbour Credit: Destination NSW
Friends enjoying a day of kayaking on Sydney Harbour.
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Kayaking, Sydney Harbour Credit: Destination NSW
Friends enjoying a day of kayaking on Sydney Harbour.
Navigate Expeditions, Kalaru Credit: Destination NSW
Guests on a walking tour with Navigate Expeditions in Kalaru
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Navigate Expeditions, Kalaru Credit: Destination NSW
Guests on a walking tour with Navigate Expeditions in Kalaru