Toms Cabin
New England National Park
Overview
Toms Cabin offers basic accommodation for walkers and nature lovers, in the heart of New England National Park. Great for a family holiday, or a weekend with friends.
| Accommodation type | Cabin |
|---|---|
| Where | 1388 Point Lookout Road, Ebor, NSW, 2453 - in New England National Park |
| Bedrooms | 2 |
| Maximum guests | 8 |
| Facilities | Picnic tables, barbecue facilities, drinking water, showers, toilets, indoor fireplace, kitchen, plates and cutlery, pots and pans, rubbish bin |
| What to bring | Food supplies, bed sheets, blankets, pillows, towels |
| Please note |
|
Toms Cabin offers basic accommodation for nature lovers who love walking, right in the heart of the park. Great for a family holiday, or a weekend with friends, it provides a comfortable base with rustic charm to explore the natural wonders around you.
Wander to the nearby creek and find a spot to sit and watch the local birds and other wildlife. The kids will love splashing in the creek and you might be lucky enough to see a passing wallaby or lyrebird.
Stroll along Tea Tree Falls walking track to discover ancient beech forest with weeping papillaria moss on the way. Have a picnic lunch or barbecue at Thungutti campground before wandering back to get cosy in front of the fireplace at the cabin.
Wake up early to experience the magnificent sunrise views and the rising mist from Point lookout, or sleep in and wake to the sounds of birdsong in the trees above.
Map
Map legend
Local alerts
For the latest updates on fires, closures and other alerts in this area, see https://www.nationalparks.nsw.gov.au/camping-and-accommodation/accommodation/toms-cabin/local-alerts
Bookings
- National Parks Contact Centre
- 7am to 7pm daily
- 1300 072 757 (13000 PARKS) for the cost of a local call within Australia excluding mobiles
- parks.info@environment.nsw.gov.au
Operated by
- Coffs Harbour office
- Monday to Friday, 8.30am to 4.30pm.
- 02 6652 0900
- npws.coffscoast@environment.nsw.gov.au
- 4/32 Edgar St, Coffs Harbour NSW 2450
Park info
- in New England National Park in the North Coast and Country NSW regions
New England National Park is always open but may have to close at times due to poor weather or fire danger.
Visitor info
All the practical information you need to know about Toms Cabin.
Getting there and parking
On entering New England National Park:
- Continue on Point Lookout Road
- Toms Cabin is located approximately 13km along Point Lookout Road, just before you arrive at Point lookout.
A pin code to access the property will be emailed in your booking confirmation. If you have not received or have lost your code, please contact 1300 072 757.
Road quality
- Unsealed roads
Vehicle access
- 2WD vehicles
Weather restrictions
- 4WD required in wet weather
Parking
Parking is available at Toms Cabin for 2 vehicles.
Best times to visit
There are lots of great things waiting for you in New England National Park. Here are some of the highlights.
Autumn
Enjoy the fresh air walking during the day, and cosy nights by the fire at Toms Cabin.
Spring
Climb up to Wrights lookout and see the colourful display of wildflowers.
Summer
Immerse yourself in the cool air and vibrant green of the Antarctic beech rainforest covered in moss.
Weather, temperature and rainfall
Summer temperature
Average
10°C and 24°C
Highest recorded
32.8°C
Winter temperature
Average
1°C and 12°C
Lowest recorded
-7.1°C
Rainfall
Wettest month
January
Driest month
June
The area’s highest recorded rainfall in one day
286.1mm
Facilities
- Toms Cabin is a bushwalker’s cabin so it has very basic facilities
- Only mattresses are provided. It can get quite cold so come prepared for cold weather.
- There's no electricity but there is solar power for limited lighting and hot water. The lights work on a timer to save battery power. The toilet, shower and lounge room lights run for 20mins, while the bedroom lights run for 2mins. At times the solar power may not function due to consistent cloud cover or system malfunction.
- There are no power points, fridge, DVD player, television, stereo or laundry facilities
- In unusually cold weather (July to August) the water pipes may freeze overnight and there is no water when taps are turned on. The taps usually thaw by late morning.
- Please leave the property clean and tidy or additional cleaning fees may be charged.
Toilets
- Flush toilets
Picnic tables
Barbecue facilities
Wood barbecue and picnic table outside. Firewood is supplied.
Drinking water
Tap water is sourced from a nearby spring and is not treated or monitored. Please boil or treat water before drinking.
Showers
The hot water system for the shower is gas. If there is no hot water, please check that the gas bottles outside are turned on. The pilot light on the hot water system should be lit.
- Hot showers
Indoor fireplace
Kitchen
Small gas stove (stove top and grill), and a sink with cold water. If having trouble igniting the gas stove, please use the manual igniter provided.
Plates and cutlery
Pots and pans
Rubbish bin
Maps and downloads
Accessibility
Disability access level - hard
Wheelchairs can access this area with some difficulty. There are some stairs into the cabin.
Prohibited
Amplified music is not permitted.
Gathering firewood
Firewood may not be collected from the park. Some firewood is provided for the open fireplace and wood barbecue at the cabin.
Generators
Pets
Pets and domestic animals (other than certified assistance animals) are not permitted. Find out which regional parks allow dog walking and see the pets in parks policy for more information.
Smoking
NSW national parks are no smoking areas.
Learn more
Toms Cabin is in New England National Park. Here are just some of the reasons why this park is special:
Aboriginal cultural heritage
The park straddles the traditional boundaries of the Dunghutti, Anaiwan and Gumbaynggirr People, and covers an area of great spiritual and cultural significance to local Aboriginals. Point Lookout in particular is a sacred location, known to Aboriginal people as 'Berarngutta', which roughly translates as 'prohibited area'. It is considered a men-only place, and today many Aboriginal women choose to continue this tradition and avoid visiting the area.
- Point lookout Point lookout is a must-see destination for visitors to New England National Park, offering panoramic views across World Heritage rainforest to the ocean in the distance.
Amazing wildlife
The park's altitudinal range, from 150m above sea level to 1563m, makes it a superb habitat for a diversity of wildlife. You might see kangaroos, wallabies, gliders, possums and the inquisitive spotted-tailed quoll. Adults and children alike will love watching the resident lyrebird at Banksia Point. Yet with over 100 species of birds in the park, there are plenty of opportunities for birdwatching. You might spot white-throated tree creepers and rufous fantails in the open forests, while in winter flowering banksias attract Lewins honeyeaters and eastern spinebills.
- Point lookout walking track It only takes 20 minutes to negotiate the easy Point lookout walking track, but the views from this sealed track, within New England National Park, are truly stunning.
- Wrights lookout walking track Wrights lookout walking track takes you through a lush world of ferns and wildflowers to a rocky plateau with spectacular panoramic views looking down to Bellinger River.
Historic heritage
In 2010, New England National Park celebrated its 75th anniversary as one of NSW's most iconic parks. Its history is a testament to the vision and dedication of several influential New Englanders, notably Philip A Wright and his son Peter. They were deeply impressed by the beauty and grandeur of Point Lookout and recognised the value of the area as a sanctuary for plants and animals. After you see the spectacular views at Point Lookout, take a moment to learn about the history of the park and the visionary people behind its conservation.
Volcanic landscape
The steep cliffs of the plateau edge at New England National Park are the result of at least 5 basalt lava flows from the Ebor volcano, forming a rim over 300m thick. Active until about 18 million years ago, this massive volcano was centred around The Crescent, a semi-circular ridge in the Bellinger Valley, visible from Point Lookout. Subsequent erosion has created the dramatic profile of the escarpment we see today. The Banksia Point circuit provides a close-up view of a basalt flow, and you can see the layers of cliffs north from Point lookout.
- Point lookout Point lookout is a must-see destination for visitors to New England National Park, offering panoramic views across World Heritage rainforest to the ocean in the distance.
- Tea Tree Falls walking track Roam through eucalypt forest and beneath hanging moss on Tea Tree Falls walking track, linking Thungutti campground and Toms Cabin in New England National Park.
World Heritage rainforests
The rainforests in New England National Park are part of the Gondwana Rainforests of Australia World Heritage Area; the most extensive strip of diverse rainforest anywhere on earth. The World Heritage Area is a direct window into the past and the future, providing a link to the ancient pre-human world and a stunning and irreplaceable record of life on our planet. Discover the ancient Antarctic beech forests below the escarpment edge on trails like Lyrebird walking track.
- Snow Gum walk Snow Gum walk in New England National Park offers a scenic stroll through World Heritage rainforest. Just 1km and suitable for all ages, it’s ideal as a quick family outing.
Plants and animals protected in this park
Animals
-
Superb lyrebird (Menura novaehollandiae)
With a complex mimicking call and an elaborate courtship dance to match, the superb lyrebird is one of the most spectacular Australian animals. A bird watching must-see, the superb lyrebird can be found in rainforests and wet woodlands across eastern NSW and Victoria.
-
Satin bowerbird (Ptilonorhynchus violaceus)
With vibrant blue-violet eyes and curious antics, the satin bowerbird is a favourite for bird watching and easy to spot as it forages for food in open forest. Relatively common across eastern Australia, in NSW they’re found in coastal rainforests and adjacent woodlands and mountain ranges.
-
Rufous scrub-bird (Atrichornis rufescens)
The vulnerable rufous scrub-bird is a small, ground-foraging bird that lives only in isolated rainforest areas of south-eastern Australia.
-
Spotted-tailed quoll (Dasyurus maculatus)
The spotted-tailed quoll is the largest remaining carnivorous marsupial on the Australian mainland. It’s protected as a vulnerable species in NSW.
Plants
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Blueberry ash (Elaeocarpus reticulatus)
The blueberry ash is a rainforest shrub which produces blue olive-shaped berries and spectacular bell-shaped flowers, which often appear on the plant together. It is a tall slender shrub or small tree found in rainforest, tall eucalypt forest and coastal bushland in eastern NSW, south-east Queensland and Victoria.
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Wonga wonga vine (Pandorea pandorana)
The wonga wonga vine is a widespread vigorous climber usually found along eastern Australia. A variation of the plant occurs in the central desert, where it resembles a sprawling shrub. One of the more common Australian native plants, the wonga wonga vine produces bell-shaped white or yellow flowers in the spring, followed by a large oblong-shaped seed pod.
-
Coachwood (Ceratopetalum apetalum)
Coachwood trees are Australian native plants that grow in warm temperate rainforests along coastal NSW. Also known as scented satinwood, the mottled grey bark of the coachwood has horizontal markings and a delicate fragrance.