It was pleasantly cool last night and a mild 21 degrees when we set off from Glen Innes for Grafton, 160 kilometres away, via the Gwydir Highway.
The road was to take us from the Northern Tableland, across the Great dividing Range and down to the coastal flats around Grafton and Maclean - sugar country. We were therefore not surprised to experience a twisty, turning road with many ups and downs. However the road was excellent for the most part. The countryside was green and the passages through the rain forests were a delight.
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| 041214 Coming down the Great Dividing Range through the rain forest in Gibralta National Park |
We came across a spectacular view from Raspberry lookout which overlooked the Mann and Guy Fawkes River valleys. It was hazy because of a heavy moisture content in the air, and in some respects it was good to see it in this condition. The ridges showed signs of bushfires and there was some evidence of them alongside the road from time to time.
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| 041214 Looking east from Raspberry Lookout on the Gwydir Highway between Glen Innes and Grafton |
The view from Heffron Lookout was similarly veiled in the haze.
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| 041214 View from Heffron Lookout - Heffron Premier of NSW when the current road from Grafton to Glen Innes was constructed in 1960 |
The cattle on the rolling hills looked fat and contented, such a change from what we have seen in the past. We were of course in dairy country but there were plenty of beef cattle roaming the pastures as well.
Eventually we drove out of the forest at the foot of the range, to be met by a view of the Mann River. What a sight it must be when in flood.
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| 041214 The Mann River |
It was not too long before we came to Grafton and saw our first sight of the Clarence River and nearby, the inevitable sugar cane.
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| 041214 Our first view of Grafton |
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| 041214 The Clarence River near Grafton |
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| 041214 Our first sighting of sugar cane as we aproached Grafton |
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