The Dorrigo Plateau is a

plateau In geology and physical geography, a plateau (; ; ), also called a high plain or a tableland, is an area of a highland consisting of flat terrain that is raised sharply above the surrounding area on at least one side. Often one or more sides ha ...

in the

Northern Tablelands The Northern Tablelands, also known as the New England Tableland, is a plateau and a region of the Great Dividing Range in northern New South Wales, Australia. It includes the New England Range, the narrow highlands area of the New England regio ...

and

New England New England is a region comprising six states in the Northeastern United States: Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, and Vermont. It is bordered by the state of New York to the west and by the Canadian provinces ...

regions of

New South Wales ) , nickname = , image_map = New South Wales in Australia.svg , map_caption = Location of New South Wales in AustraliaCoordinates: , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name = Australia , established_title = Before federation , es ...

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a Sovereign state, sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous List of islands of Australia, sma ...

. The plateau forms part of the

Great Dividing Range The Great Dividing Range, also known as the East Australian Cordillera or the Eastern Highlands, is a cordillera system in eastern Australia consisting of an expansive collection of mountain ranges, plateaus and rolling hills, that runs rough ...

and is sometimes referred to as the Dorrigo and Guy Fawkes Plateau. The highest peak on the plateau is Barren Mountain, at an elevation of .

Location and features

The plateau is defined by that area bounded in the south by the Dorrigo Escarpment, in the west by the New England Tableland, in the north by Hyland State Forest, Blicks River, Glen Fernaigh Creek and

Nymboida River The Nymboida River, a perennial stream of the Clarence River catchment, is located in the Northern Rivers region of New South Wales, Australia. Course and features The Nymboida River rises in the northern foothills of the Barren Mountain, on t ...

, and in the east by

Bielsdown River Bielsdown River, a perennial stream that is part of the Clarence River catchment, is located in the Northern Tablelands of New South Wales, Australia. Course Bielsdown River rises on the Dorrigo Plateau within the Great Dividing Range, below ...

up to the junction with Mathews Creek, then up to the head of Mathews Creek, then by the watershed extending generally south southeast to Dome Mountain. Located on the eastern edge of the plateau is the town of Dorrigo, north of the

Sydney Sydney ( ) is the capital city of the state of New South Wales, and the most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Located on Australia's east coast, the metropolis surrounds Sydney Harbour and extends about towards the Blue Mountain ...

and from the

coastal The coast, also known as the coastline or seashore, is defined as the area where land meets the ocean, or as a line that forms the boundary between the land and the coastline. The Earth has around of coastline. Coasts are important zones in n ...

city of

Coffs Harbour Coffs Harbour is a city on the Mid North Coast of New South Wales, Australia, north of Sydney, and south of Brisbane. It is one of the largest urban centres on the North Coast, with a population of 78,759 as per 2021 census. The Gumbaynggirr ...

. Richard Craig was the first European to arrive at the plateau, following the traditional indigenous route to

Armidale Armidale is a city in the Northern Tablelands, New South Wales, Australia. Armidale had a population of 24,504 as of June 2018. Estimated resident population, 30 June 2018. It is the administrative centre for the Northern Tablelands region. It ...

from the Grafton area. Using his skills as a horseman, Craig travelled along the western side of the Nymboida River. Craig's track became a road, now roughly following the same path as the present Grafton to Armidale Road and travelling through the present day villages of , Billy's Creek, Dundurrabin, Tyringham and , the latter with an elevation of . Timbergetters followed Craig through the sub tropical rainforest and many sawmills grew due to demand for timber, initially the highly prized

Australian Red Cedar ''Toona ciliata'' is a forest tree in the mahogany family which grows throughout southern Asia from Afghanistan to Papua New Guinea and Australia. Names It is commonly known as the red cedar (a name shared by other trees), toon or toona (also a ...

(''Toona australis''). Today, the main access road traversing the plateau from east to west is the

Waterfall Way Waterfall Way is a country road in the Northern Tablelands region of New South Wales, Australia, linking Raleigh on the state's North Coast to Armidale. The route passes through some of New South Wales' most scenic countryside and has become ...

. The Dorrigo Plateau and surrounding

Guy Fawkes River National Park Guy Fawkes River National Park, a national park comprising , is located on the eastern edge of the New England Tablelands and the western edge of the Dorrigo Plateau, in north eastern New South Wales, Australia. Access to the national park via ...

area was created by successive

basalt Basalt (; ) is an aphanite, aphanitic (fine-grained) extrusive igneous rock formed from the rapid cooling of low-viscosity lava rich in magnesium and iron (mafic lava) exposed at or very near the planetary surface, surface of a terrestrial ...

lava Lava is molten or partially molten rock (magma) that has been expelled from the interior of a terrestrial planet (such as Earth) or a moon onto its surface. Lava may be erupted at a volcano or through a fracture in the crust, on land or un ...

flows from the Ebor Volcano covering the original granite base. Weathering from high rainfall caused an escarpment to form as the more ancient rocks underneath remained intact.

References

External links

Northern Rivers Geology Blog - Dorrigo Plateau
{{New England NSW , state=autocollapse Northern Tablelands New England (New South Wales) Plateaus of Australia

Location and features

See also

References

External links