Fast facts
- Historic former gold-mining town popular with anglers and fossickers
- Situated on the beautiful Gwydir River in the Gwydir River Valley
- 600 km north-west of Sydney, with a population of 1,300
Why go there
Bingara is situated along the Fossickers Way, a route that provides travellers with a relaxing alternative to the New England or Newell highways. It offers a wealth of attractions, including birdwatching, bushwalking, fossicking and fishing.
History
Prior to European settlement, the Wirrayaraay tribe of the Gamilaraay Nation occupied the land. The first European to discover the area was the explorer Allan Cunningham, en route to the Darling Downs in 1827. The town of Bingara was founded in 1840 and gold was discovered in the area in 1851.
Things to do
- Fossick for gold, garnets, agates, quartz and petrified wood.
- Go trail-riding along the Gwydir River.
- Enjoy a picnic along with the view at Batterham Lookout.
Events
- The Bingara Orange Festival is held every year in July. An avenue of orange trees was planted in Bingara as a memorial to its fallen soldiers in the two world wars. Since the 1960s the school students of Bingara have harvested these oranges every July.
Don’t miss
- The Historical Society Museum, housed in one of Bingara’s first hotels.
- The Murray cod hatchery, set up by local anglers.
- A movie at the gorgeous Roxy Theatre in the main street of Bingara. Built in 1936, it has been faithfully restored to its original splendour.
- The Myall Creek Memorial, which marks the place where a group of local Aboriginals were murdered in an unprovoked and premeditated act on 10 June 1838.
