Places we love

Victoria Park Nature Reserve

By the year 1900, the rainforest of Far North Coast of NSW had been subjected to almost complete destruction. Victoria Park is one of the last surviving remnants of the original rainforest also known as the Big Scrub or Red Scrub due to the rich volcanic soil. The original rainforest extended across the entire Lismore, Byron Bay, Ballina, and Mullumbimby regions.

Victoria Park provides a short rainforest boardwalk and is wheelchair and pram accessible. The walk takes between 15 and 30 minutes to complete unless you loved it so much that a second loop was needed, as our sons, Bailey and Brendan decided. birdsong. Today only 11 viable remnants survive which reflect the character of the original rainforest. Half of these are under 37 acres. The Victoria Park Nature Reserve is one of these smaller areas with a portion set aside for the boardwalk. While the remainder of the reserve consists of two small triangular patches of roughly 10 acres where an ongoing regeneration program is conducted jointly by the NPWS and the Richmond River Naturalists' Club.

As soon as you enter the shady green cool of the lush rainforest, dappled light filters through the dense canopy. Giant Morton Bay fig trees and majestic black beans tower above while Bangalow palms and ferns grow up from below. Despite the small size of the area an unusually wide variety of animals occur in the reserve, and at last count, there were 152 Tree species recorded in this one small reserve.

Take a moment to absorb the serene quiet of the rainforest, and you might catch a glimpse of the shy red-legged pademelon or the colourful wompoo fruit-dove and at least two species of possum.

The informative displays show how the Wildjabul people, of the Bundjalung nation, relied on the local plants and animals for food, medicine and ceremonies. You will also learn how the curved sheath of the Bangalow palm was utilised to carry water, and the sap of the strangler fig used to heal wounds. When thoughts turn to lunch, enjoy a relaxing barbecue at the shaded picnic tables, to a backdrop of lush rainforest. The accessible facilities make the picnic area an ideal spot for older people and groups with plenty of room for the children to run wild in their natural habitat.

A perfect spot for a relaxing day out with the family in the Northern Rivers. Please remember to take your rubbish home with you. The route is signposted, and the reserve is most easily accessed via the town of Alstonville then travelling south 7 km along the Wardell Road and turning onto the Rous Mill Road for a further kilometre.