Type

Picnic areas

Where

Middle Brother National Park in North Coast

What to
bring

Drinking water

Please note

• There is limited mobile reception in Middle Brother National Park
• Remember to take your binoculars if you want to bird watch

Middle Brother National Park may look small from the outside, but inside are two big surprises. Surviving years of local logging, Bird Tree and Benaroon are two of the largest blackbutts in the entire state. Bird Tree picnic area is the ideal place to visit these imposing giants, with a short loop through old growth forest perfect for walking with children and requiring only moderate fitness.

But the trees aren’t the only attraction here. Remember to look up as you walk along the trail as koalas can be spotted sleeping in the eucalypts during the day. Also, a host of different birds like glossy black cockatoos, king parrots, and wedge-tailed eagles live in the area. If birdwatching is of interest to you, there’s much to turn your head here. A night walk is equally rewarding, with owls and ring-tailed possums on the prowl. After your stroll, find a place to picnic at one of the convenient tables, soaking up the atmosphere. It’s easy to spend a whole afternoon here, enjoying the forest sounds and sense of seclusion.

For directions, safety and practical information, see visitor info

Visitor info

Maps and downloads

Learn more

A history of timber harvesting

The Three Brothers Mountains have also become a symbol of shared heritage between Aboriginal people and European settlers. Without knowing it, Captain Cook gave the mountains the same name when he passed through the area hundreds of years ago. More recently, Middle Brother Mountain has a long history of timber harvesting, which links it with nearby towns in the Camden Haven area like Johns River, Batar and Kew. Thankfully, the timber harvesters did not take all of the area's natural treasures, which you can see during a visit to Bird Tree picnic area.

Aboriginal influence

Middle Brother has significant cultural importance to the local Birpai people, the traditional owners of this land. Middle Brother Mountain is part of Aboriginal legend and is connected, through story, to North Brother Mountain in nearby Dooragan National Park. The influence of Aboriginal culture is so large here that Benaroon, the enormous tree that draws many visitors every year, is actually named after the local word for 'blackbutt'.

Plantlife great and small

Middle Brother National Park features two of the largest living blackbutt trees in the state, Bird Tree and Benaroon. But it also plays host to acacia courti, a species of wattle found only in the area of the Three Brothers Mountains. Visit the park in late spring to see the wattle in full bloom.