Bald Rock National Park is on the boundary of Jukambal, Bundgalung and Kamilleroi Country. I acknowledge the Traditional Custodians who met and continue to meet in this area and their connection to Country. I pay my respects to their Elders past and present.
Bald Rock National Park, some 30km north of Tenterfield, is basically the same park as Girraween National Park but only on the New South Wales side.
To access both, you usually have to do a one-way trip of around 60km. There are some 4WD tracks that supposedly connect the two parks internally but I’m pretty sure they’re closed off.
Compared to Girraween, there aren’t as many walking tracks at Bald Rock National Park but it’s this side of the park where you’ll find the popular Bald Rock Summit walk.
We camped three nights at Bald Rock, and I can’t say that I got bored.
CAMPING AT BALD ROCK
Unlike Girraween, which has two massive campgrounds, the Bald Rock camping area is small and restricted to 14 well-marked campsites. There’s relatively little privacy but it’s shady and has a pleasant forest feel.
READ MORE: Girraween National Park Camping Guide
Before the pandemic, camping at Bald Rock was on a first-come first-serve basis but now you need to pre-book your site.
We camped at Bald Rock just before New Year’s Eve and the campground wasn’t even full over our three nights. This also meant that it was fairly quiet, except for one afternoon where a guy was annoyingly buzzing a drone above the trees in the campground.
Perhaps what puts people off camping at Bald Rock is the price. And I agree, at $12 per person (adult) per night (2017), it’s rather steep when you consider that there are no showers and only composting toilets.
That said, there’s a picnic table on each site, always a luxury when you’re not used to having one in Queensland.
Be aware that all campsites have this fairly sharp gravel pebble base, and while that didn’t bother us too much with our sturdy canvas tent, less robust, plastic tents may not fare as well. You may want to bring a tarp to put under your tent. There are no separate tent pads here.
There’s a couple of water taps that draw water from a rainwater tank.
Like in other national parks, you should boil or treat the water first. I think we only used it for cooking or washing up as we had our own drinking water.
In summer, there’s a steady stream of day visitors but fortunately, the day use area and parking isn’t that close to the campground so you won’t really hear them too much.
In terms of weather at Bald Rock, I expected this area to be stinking hot over December/January (as Girraween is known to be boiling at this time) but it was pleasantly cool.
In fact, it was so cool that I took my fleece jacket out a couple of times. According to NSW Parks & Wildlife Service, the average temperature in summer is 25°C to 28°C, and unless you’re summiting Bald Rock, you’ll be quite comfortable here (unless it’s a mega-hot summer).
BALD ROCK CAMPGROUND AT A GLANCE
PROS: Easily accessible (2WD); bush setting; walks within easy distance from the campground; clean, hybrid compost toilets; vehicle-based camping and a few sites suitable for camper trailers or caravans; most sites have shady areas; BBQ shelter; most sites have picnic tables
CONS: The cost; no real views of anything other than tall trees (but I found this peaceful); can be a bit echo-y given the forest setting; sharp pebble base on each site
COSTS: $24 per night/per site (2024) + $8 parks entry fee per day; pre-bookings only
PERSONAL ENJOYMENT RATING: 3/5
MORE INFORMATION
In addition to your camping fees, you’ll also need to pay a daily parks entry fee ($8) unless you’ve organised an annual NSW parks pass.
Remember that you’ll need to pre-book your site now. You may still be able to pay for the parks entry fee at the campground registration station but I’m not quite sure.
Find more information about camping at Bald Rock on NSW Parks & Wildlife Service.
MORE POSTS ON CAMPING IN THIS AREA
If you want to explore the Girraween part of this amazing granite scenery, here’s what you need to know about camping there.
Not far from Bald Rock, the Border Ranges on the Scenic Rim offer two campgrounds. Read my campground review.
Mount Kaputar National Park in NSW has some fantastic hiking trails and campgrounds come with hot showers. Find out more about camping here.
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