Located partway between Sydney and Brisbane, Woolgoolga is a banana and blueberry-growing town on the Mid North Coast of New South Wales. It was first settled by Europeans in the 1870s and evolved into a logging and saw-milling town before the arrival of Sikhs during World War II to support labour shortages. Today, Woolgoolga is home to the largest Sikh population in Australia.
Things to do in Woolgoolga
Be sure to spend a day at Woolgoolga Beach and enjoy swimming, snorkelling and surfing. From the southern end, you can hike the Woolgoolga Headland for sweeping views across the coastline, all the way to the rugged cliffs of Yuraygir National Park. The Woolgoolga Headland is one of the best spots to watch whales migrating along the coastline between May and October.
Want to learn more about Woolgoolga’s multiculturalism? Visit the Sikh Heritage Museum of Australia, which shares the traditions and religious life of the Sikh people. Learn about the teachings of the Ten Gurus and how Sikhs fought during the World Wars, as well as the migration of Sikh people to Woolgoolga. The museum is located adjacent to the whitewashed Guru Nanak Sikh Gurdwara.
A short drive inland from Woolgoolga is the Wedding Bells State Forest, a heavily logged tract of bushland that has become a popular mountain biking destination. You can follow the trail that winds past an old gold mine and along the banks of a tranquil creek or discover the area’s industrial past on the Woolgoogla Tramway Trail.
Getting around Woolgoolga
Woolgoolga is around 25 minutes’ drive from Coffs Harbour and 30 minutes from Coffs Harbour Airport, which has flights to Brisbane, Sydney and Melbourne. Regular buses connect from Coffs Harbour to Woolgoolga and the town is small enough to explore on foot.