Northbrook Mtn bush camp walk

GPS Tracks

Northbrook Mtn Bush Camp from Lawnton Road (GPX)

Remote bush camping on a high ridge overlooking Kipper Creek in wet sclerophyll forest. Northbrook Mountain summit is approximately a 15-minutes walk from the campsite. The summit affords extensive views looking south across the England Creek catchments and is covered in mountain heath, where wildflowers bloom between winter and spring.
Some areas thick with bell miners but away from them plenty of other species.

There is a much nice alternate, albeit less obvious or well trodden route to the lookout near the camp.

Follow the path as normal - once you see the sign AS0361 there is a steep(ish) oot track on the left. If you download What3words the exact location (revisited.sharks.silent). This route is slower going and often quiet steep but considerably more scenic off the 4wd 🚙 track.

If taking it from the lookout, just follow the ridge line at the lookout and you’ll notice a footpath. The Initial descent is tricky but don’t let that scare you off. Once you get going the scenery is great.

No Dogs Permitted

Rainforest

Eucalypt Forest

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Getting there:

From Mount Glorious Road, this campsite is accessed via Lawton Road. Along the 4.7km walk, take in the beautiful subtropical rainforest and wet sclerophyll scenery. A wide variety of birds can also be seen along this track that winds around the base of Northbrook Mountain.

It can be used as a stopover on the longer walk to England Creek bush camp.

Maps:

None found.

Route/Trail notes:

Once again an old logging road.

At approx 1.2km mark look for an old timber loader. It is of heritage note.

Still in a good condition for a 4WD track. The track is up and down all the way to the campsite. A new water tank and roof have been made. But as always use the water there as a last resort and boil before drinking.

Permits/Costs:

https://www.epa.qld.gov.au/parks/iaparks/gds/IAGDS050.jsp?quickParkId=1

Other References/Comments:

None.

GPS Tracks

Northbrook Mtn Bush Camp from Lawnton Road (GPX)

Comments

Enjoyed the walk along the fire trail however it was hard going with a 15kg back pack at times on the ascents to and from the bush camp. Beautiful views at the summit. Highly recommend, particularly if new to overnight hiking 🌼
Annette on 28 Jun, 2023

Walked in late afternoon and then left early the next morning (after watching the sunrise from the summit) so beat walking in the heat of the day. Did get cool at night even in February with a gusty breeze coming up the range, so was glad of the insulated air mattress in the hammock. Great spot, would have been good to see the view with less cloud and haze around.
Pendinghiker on 11 Feb, 2022

Parked at the Lawton Rd entrance point and you just simply follow Lawton Rd pretty much all the way to the water tank (using AllTrails worked well as you have phone signal the whole way). First 2 kms of walk in is down hill, beautiful tree covered fire trail with glimpses of views through the trees, lots of bird sounds and lovely to catch glimpses of them flying around. Now at the end of this approx 2kms down hill you will start going up hill, and up and up for the next approx 3kms with the occasional very small flat area. I'm not very fit and needed to make a few stops along the way, heart rate was high but I'm sure without a fully loaded backpack it would have been much easier for me. You will reach the water tank which at this point I recommend loading your water back up at this point for the night if you are staying at Northbrook Walkers Camp , of course always treat water before drinking. You're not far away from the camp but this saves having to walk back up and down the last few remaining smaller hills later on just to top up your water supply for the night. The trail to take from the water tank is behind you if you're facing the water tank, it has a small green signpost and starts as a small grassy uphill trail, it could be easily missed if you were to continue walking past the water tank. It can also be a little confusing if you were following the directions on the National Parks website as it says to follow along Lawton Rd then turn right onto England Creek Rd and follow it to camp.. this is not correct.. do not turn right onto England Creek Rd!!! The campsite is small with a wonderful fire pit area with flat logs to sit on.. total luxury as far as I'm concerned. Please be sensible with fires and follow leave no trace principals at all times (no brainer really) Each site is really only suitable for a smaller 1-2 man tents. Don't make your booking and think booking one site and having 3 people on a site will work.. you wont fit unless you're all in one tent together and the site will be quite crowded when others show up if they have booked as well. The lookout is about 10-15 minutes walk from the campsite and well worth checking out for sunrise and sunset, take a headlamp as once that sunsets it gets dark quickly. It was very cold the night we stayed and very windy but very peaceful. You will still hear the occasional bike riding along the roads in the distance through the night but nothing to loud. From the campsite at night you will see looking south the twinkling lights of towns through the trees. Remember that approx 3km walk all mostly up hill on the way in.. well now you get to do all this downhill the next day to head home which is a wonderful walk and as your pack is a bit lighter you have a spring in your step and you're feeling on top of the world.. then you hit that part where its now approx 2 kms all uphill to get back to your car which for some reason felt harder than the previous days 3km uphill.. maybe I was just tired after a cold night the night before but I was so happy to finally get back to the car after what seemed like a never ending uphill climb.. lots of stops on the way back up but I'm not the fittest with bad knees and hips so someone with normal fitness will have no issues with this at all. Overall the perfect overnighter that's close to Brisbane, not a long walk which is great but keep in mind its a shorter distance but the hills and carrying a pack will take a little longer. I felt like I was remote camping without really been remote.. Will do it again for sure one day.
Janelle on 15 May, 2021

A nice peaceful night at the bush camp on my own. Lots of friendly pademelons on the track today.
ShavenWalrus on 6 Feb, 2021

saw a hair worm
Miranda Fittock on 15 Jan, 2021

A little up and down but nothing too hard. There is a much nice alternate, albeit less obvious or well trodden route to the lookout near the camp.

Follow the path as normal - once you see the sign AS0361 there is a steep(ish) oot track on the left. If you download What3words the exact location (revisited.sharks.silent). This route is slower going and often quiet steep but considerably more scenic off the 4wd 🚙 track.

If taking it from the lookout, just follow the ridge line at the lookout and you’ll notice a footpath. The Initial descent is tricky but don’t let that scare you off. Once you get going the scenery is great.

Andrew on 13 Sep, 2020

Really enjoyed this walk, walked to the campsite and spent the night. A few things I loved, the seating at the campsite, the water supply with the rain water tank, the short walk to the lookout site and the fact that there was phone reception. I did use purification tablets for the water from the water tank just to be safe and the water turned out fine. The walk took about 2 hours one way with a few breaks and a 15kg pack on which made the hills a bit of a struggle but was definetly worth it
Andrew.P on 29 Aug, 2020

Certainly doesn't take 4.5 hrs. We did it in 3hrs 10 mins return. That included a meal break at the top. The bush camp is easy to find. Just take a left at the water tank, and another left at the camping sign. Keep going straight ahead to the summit. Can't miss it.
Jeff on 23 Aug, 2020

Excellent overnighter. Late afternoon walk in. Long steady decline followed by not quite as long incline, not uncomfortable in the cool air. Very pleasant campsite, lots of birds in the morning. Walk back up was more taxing in the warmth of the day - I wouldn't be very keen to do it mid-summer with a pack.
Pi on 31 Jul, 2020

Picked this one thinking it would be quieter than other more popular tracks for the first day of easing restrictions. Lucky we got there early as by the time we left people were parking all over the road. The hike is a little longer if you walk to the summit (and who wouldn't?). The lack of signage at the water tank is pretty bad, go left at that fork! Then go left again, happy that the bush camp sign is there. Wouldn't mind camping there once we're allowed to again! Although not really looking forward to the hike back uphill!
sarasvati on 2 May, 2020

Really nice walk, took us about 2 hours return. We walked along the fire roads to the camp site, up to the top of Northbrook Mountain, then down the faintly marked track to the next mountain which links back with the fire road. Would be keen to go back and stay the night at the camp site, would be fantastic waking up to that view!
Vonsnrub on 12 Jan, 2020

Check out sunrise on the lookout it’s worth it!!
Sasha Thiedeke on 23 Mar, 2019

The trail is in good condition with few obstacles, if any. This walk is not hard, but often has a long, consistent gradient that some may find somewhat taxing. The abundance of birds of different sorts is quite pleasant, and it makes the relatively uninteresting bulk of the walk enjoyable. The bush camp is adorable and quaint, and my favourite part of this whole walk was finding the visitors' book and the visitors' drawing book. Some people have written lovely little stories and accounts and drawn great pictures. Truly, browsing these was a highlight of my Australian bush experience. Someone even drew the Guru, the buff alpha male who can climb Mount Beerwah in 20 minutes. Northbrook Mountain Bush Camp is undoubtedly one of my favourite spots to crack open a cold one with the boys.
meadharry on 17 Feb, 2019

My wife and I decided to continue on from the Northbrook Mountain lookout as it appeared on maps.me there was a track that loops back to Lawnton Road and we thought that would be more interesting than simply retracing our steps. Well it was definitely more interesting. If you decide to take this route be prepared for anything other than a defined, well-marked trail. We ended up doing quite some bush bashing through lantana and over and around and down some significant boulders. At times the track was obvious. At other times it was very hit and miss requiring further investigation to pick up for want of a better word, the trail. Without maps.me I doubt we’d have found our way and being late in the afternoon on a winter’s day, it isn’t a place you want to be when running out of light. The last section heads downhill before rejoining Lawnton Road is quite steep and slippery. But it’s eminently doable and certainly makes the hike more interesting. Just be prepared and it will add a little adventure to what is otherwise a straight forward walk.
Marko63 on 29 Jul, 2018

Nice walk on a winters day
drewmac on 17 Jun, 2018

First hike and camp with an overloaded backpack. Quite a steep walk in and out. Saw a juvenile brown snake (eek). The camp grounds were in excellent condition with log seating around a fire pit. The views from the peak were lovely. We had drinks and nibblies up there in the late arvo and then ran up early in the morning to see the sunrise. Magical. This is a beautiful spot.
Jess on 5 May, 2018

First hike!
Jack on 15 Feb, 2018

Not the most interesting of hikes on the way to/from the mountain/campsite, but the destination itself more than makes up for that. As described, the walk is along a fire trail maintained for vehicular access so very easy to follow etc. Prepare to feel the burn walking up the hill on the second half of the walk, in both directions. Northbrook Mountain and the campsite nearby are stunning, with particularly beautiful views available on the summit. Will definitely be visiting again!
walkingwithtim on 20 Jan, 2018

Approx 2hr walk each way to the campsite from Lawnton Road along well used fire trail. Downhill for half of the trail & uphill for the rest - moderately steep road so reasonable fitness required if carrying packs and if hot & humid. Old logging platform can be seen along the way but not much left of it. Really nice shady campsite located on top of a hill away from the fire trail with some views through the trees. A short 15 minute walk along a rough track from the campsite takes you to a lookout with sweeping southerly views. Beautiful & quiet. Well worth the trip.
dortwilder on 10 Dec, 2017

BRILLIANT: thoroughly enjoyed. Ive done a very detailed description of it on my you tube channel Gizmos' Adventures. worth watching if you plan to visit here.
Such a beautiful place. you will need plenty of water you will have to carry. don't rely on tank water.
gizmobazz on 19 Nov, 2017