Dorrigo has some of the most spectacular waterfalls in NSW, in fact we think they are some of the best in the whole country. From huge falls you can swim in, to ones you can walk behind, and even one right by the roadside, the variety is incredible.
Some are reached by short, paved walkways, and some are epic rainforest adventures, so however much time you have to go waterfall chasing, there will be the perfect option for you.
We visited all eight waterfalls in Dorrigo, as well as every waterfall between Armidale and Bellingen too, so you can relax knowing that we’ve covered them all and you won’t miss a thing.
Here is everything you need to know about all of Dorrigo’s waterfalls.
Dorrigo Waterfalls
These are the top waterfalls to visit near Dorrigo:
1. Red Cedar Falls - the tallest of them all
We’ll start with the big one, Red Cedar Falls is the tallest waterfall in Dorrigo and it’s an absolute jaw-dropper.
When I rounded the corner and saw it for the first time, I couldn’t believe how spectacular it was. If you’re looking for wow factor, you can’t go past Red Cedar.
There’s a great, albeit small, swimming hole at the base of the falls, which has to be one of the most idyllic places to take a dip in NSW - providing that the waterfall isn’t running so powerfully that you can’t get in - which did happen to me.
Even if that’s the case though, just sitting on the rocks will give you a great power shower!
It sort of feels right that this is the hardest of the falls to get to, but even then it’s not too difficult. There are two possible routes you can take (one is 6.8km and one is 8.9km), and we outline both in this detailed post.
2. Crystal Shower Falls - the one that hides a night-time secret
Chances are you’ve already heard of this waterfall as it’s the most popular one in the park. When you first set eyes on it you’ll understand why. It cascades down a tall cliff which is literally covered with ferns and greenery and the whole rainforest setting is breathtaking.
You can walk right the way behind the falls and due to a new walkway it’s not even slippery! You can also view the falls from up high on the picturesque suspension bridge.
There are two routes you can take to get there, the shortest being 3.2km and the longest 6.1km, both routes are paved and contain a few hills, but nothing major.
But here’s where we’ll let you into a little secret, if you’re up for an adventure, return to the rainforest at night.
After cover of darkness you’ll find hundreds of little twinkling blue lights….. that’s right, it’s a secret glow worm colony! Everything you need to know about visiting by day and by night is in this post.
3. Tristania Falls - the one along Dorrigo’s best walk
If it didn’t lie so close to the famous Crystal Shower Falls, Tristania would be an attraction in its own right. As it is, you’ll probably get it all to yourself.
It’s located along the Wonga Track, one of the most magnificent walks in all of Australia, and Tristania Falls is just one of its incredible features.
It cascades down the steep cliff side, under the track, and beyond. It’s surrounded by lush jungle and hanging vines which all add to the spectacular setting. The view opposite is also a winner, with layer upon layer of mountains.
We were lucky enough to visit on a misty day when the low hanging cloud gave it the feeling of being an active volcano!
Tristania Falls is 2.6km into the Wonga Track, so the quickest route to get there would be 5.2km return, but it wouldn’t make sense to do that when the whole circuit is just a little more at 6.1km.
You can see more detail on track to get there in our detailed guide to the Wonga Walk.
4. Dangar Falls - the best one for swimming
Whilst you can swim at several of the waterfalls on this list, none have the huge, deep swimming hole you’ll find at Dangar Falls. Dangar Falls lies outside the national park boundary and is just 2km from the town, making it a popular spot to visit.
It’s a wide and powerful waterfall which is an absolutely breathtaking place to swim. As with all the waterfalls in the area, the water is cold year round but it doesn’t take long to get used to it!
You can get down to the falls in around 10 minutes, although the sign says 20. It’s all flat or downhill on the way and then you have a short climb back up afterwards.
If you don’t want to go all the way down, you can view the waterfall from the top too, but really this is somewhere you want to see from the base.
Visiting Dangar Falls is easily one of the best things to do in Dorrigo.
5. Casuarina Falls - the one that is lovely to picnic beside
Casuarina Falls is a gorgeous waterfall that flows into a deep blue pool and you’ll very likely get it to yourself. It’s another great place for an ice cold dip mid hike!
There are plenty of rocks to sit on and enjoy a picnic in front of the falls and the whole atmosphere is relaxed and serene.
The walk to get there is 2.3km, and if you walk it as a circuit you will also pass another beautiful blue swimming hole - Dorrigo is just full of them!
As well as this, you’ll pass another waterfall which has incredible turquoise water shortly before you reach Casuarina Falls - unfortunately you can’t get down to it but it’s still wonderful to see from above.
You can learn more about the walk to get to Casuarina Falls, in our guide to all of Dorrigo’s walking tracks ranked.
6. Coachwood Falls - the one that’s small but mighty
Coachwood Falls might be quite small compared to some of Dorrigo’s other waterfalls but what it lacks in size it makes up for in sheer power.
To see it both from above and from the base was awe inspiring as it bursts through the narrow rocks. It had such an incredible amount of water that you could feel the spray from a quite a distance.
Normally it would be a sublime swimming hole, but when we visited the water was so forceful that all we could do was sit and watch - which wasn’t exactly a consolation prize! You access Coachwood Falls via the amazing Rosewood Creek Circuit (our second favourite trail in Dorrigo).
The final few metres down to the falls is a little sketchy as the path is totally unmaintained and slippery. I used poles which helped get me down safely and it was definitely worth it!
7. Callicoma Falls - the one that’s the least visited
Callicoma Falls is a lovely waterfall but I will caveat that by saying it has the least appealing trail to get there. Whilst it’s very pretty it would still be my last pick in the park, and getting there involves walking through a part of the forest that is rife with leeches.
Whilst leeches can be found all over Dorrigo this was the only trail where it was infested. I had 10 on my skin and more on my boots!
If you still want to visit (and I don’t blame you because I wanted to visit every waterfall too!) then rather than walking the whole Blackbutt Trail which is severely overgrown, I’d recommend parking at the end of the Blackbutt Trail which is a turning off Dome Road. It’s 4km before the Never Never Picnic Area (you can find the spot by clicking here), and from here the waterfall is only 3km return.
It’s still super leechy but you won’t have to walk through giant piles of debris that litter the other side of the track.
8. Newell Falls - the one that’s the easiest win
Newell Falls is located on the road between Dorrigo and Bellingen, just 12 minutes from Dorrigo town centre. It’s an unusual waterfall in that it is pretty big and cascades down under the road! We’ve seen quite a few roadside waterfalls before, but not as big and powerful as this one!
Coming from Dorrigo you’ll see a pull out with some picnic benches on the left just after the waterfall, make sure you pull over here as it’s quite hard to turn around on this road.
From the picnic area you can get some nice photos of the falls and take a good look at it, rather than just a quick glance through the car window.
Just before you reach Newell Falls you’ll pass another waterfall, Sherrard Falls, this is also a great waterfall but there is nowhere to pull over and take a closer look unfortunately.
Further afield
9. Ebor Falls - 40 minutes away
If you’re driving from Armidale to Dorrigo you pass the turn off for Ebor Falls and it’s well worth stopping. Ebor Falls is incredible and its upper and lower falls are quite different from each other. The upper falls are really wide and can be viewed from a path which is less than a one minute walk from the car park.
The lower falls are narrow and normally have their own viewpoint but sadly it got burnt down in the 2020 bush fires. Now the best way to take a look is to follow the short paved path from the upper falls and you get some nice breaks in the bush, which give you a pretty good view.
10. Tea Tree Falls - 1 hour away
We’ve included Tea Tree Falls in New England National Park because it easily combines with a trip to Ebor, and it’s a great hidden gem. If you like your adventures a little off the beaten track then this will be up your street.
The Tea Tree Falls walk will take you through some glorious forest, dripping in moss, before you reach an unmarked side trail down to the wild and wonderful Tea Tree Falls.
The track gets flooded very easily which can make access tricky - be prepared to get wet - but it’s a great little waterfall and unbelievably powerful after rain.
You can read about the full 4km return track (the waterfall is located near the beginning) here, and we tell you how to get to the falls, because strangely, despite the name, this walk doesn’t take you there directly!
11. Five Day Creek Falls - 1 hour away
If you’re keen, you can combine Ebor, Tea Tree and Five Day Creek Falls into a day trip, because Five Day Creek Falls is also located in New England National Park. Incidentally we have called this waterfall Five Day Creek because we couldn’t find a name for it anywhere online so we named it after the creek it’s located on!
It’s another more adventurous waterfall which is located deep in a glorious Antarctic beech forest. It requires navigating a bit of slippery track and then some rock hopping to reach, but as this all takes place on our favourite walk in New England National Park (and we did them all) it’s well worth it.
The whole walk is just under 6km, although you could cut it in half by heading directly for the waterfall - but you don’t want to do that because you’ll miss almost the entire Antarctic beech forest! You can read our detailed trail guide here.
When to visit Dorrigo’s waterfalls
The best time to visit any of these falls is after rain, which shouldn’t be too difficult because Dorrigo is generally pretty wet. Traditionally summer sees the most rainfall and has warmer temperatures for swimming.
Getting to Dorrigo
Dorrigo is 550km from Sydney and will take roughly 6 hours to get to. It’s 30 minutes from Bellingen and an hour and a half from Armidale.
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