Cowarra State Forest Guide
Burrawan Forest Drive, between Wauchope and Port Macquarie. Guulabaa – Place of Koala. Not a national park.
Unofficial operator’s manual
Independent, unofficial, not Forestry Corporation, not NPWS · Content reviewed 24 Sep 2026
Check before you leave: is the forest road open, is the place you came for actually open, and where you will sleep. Forestry Corporation publishes the road notices. Guulabaa publishes the opening hours. Koala Conservation Australia publishes the breeding-centre hours. This page does not copy today’s answer.
- Burrawan Forest Drive
- Guulabaa
- Place of Koala
- Place of Koala
- Working forest
- No named camp
Plan the day
Plan your visit
How long · dogs · fires · last towns
Open →
Guulabaa
Hub · Big Koala · the businesses there · 8.30–5 on their page
Open →
On foot
No published length · tracks still marked opening soon
Open →
Camping
No named camp · carpark is not a bed
Open →
Maps
Notices, Guulabaa, and their own pages
Open →
Where to stay
Town bed, or Swans Crossing in Kerewong
Open →
Not the national park
This is a State forest, not the national park
Cowarra State Forest is a Forestry Corporation of NSW working forest on Burrawan Forest Drive, between Wauchope and Port Macquarie. It is not a national park. Guulabaa means “place of koala” in Gathang, the language of the Biripi people. On Guulabaa Way at Lake Innes you will find Forestry Corporation’s decks, plus Koala Conservation Australia (the Port Macquarie Koala Hospital), WildNets, Hello Koalas, and Bunyah Local Aboriginal Land Council. This guide points you to them. It does not sell their tickets, and it is not them. Forestry Corporation has not named a public campground here. Do not sleep in the Guulabaa carpark. A night is a town bed, or Swans Crossing in Kerewong State Forest. This site is an unofficial operator’s manual in the State Forest Guide Australia network. Check Forestry Corporation before you drive.
A named first-come camp on this coast is Swans Crossing, in Kerewong. It is not a bed we hold from here.
What kind of forest day?
Guulabaa
Place of Koala · Hub is free
Guulabaa is on Guulabaa Way. Timber decks, the Big Koala, and the businesses that share the site. Their visit page says 8.30am–5pm daily. Check it the morning you go.
Koala breeding centre
Partner · not a national park
Koala Conservation Australia runs the wild breeding visitor centre here. Their hours are not the same as Guulabaa’s opening hours. Read their page. Buy any ticket from them.
No named camp
Picnic and carpark are day use
Do not sleep in the Guulabaa carpark. A night is a town, or Swans Crossing in Kerewong State Forest. That camp is also first-come.
I typed the Koala Hospital
Partner on this forest
The Port Macquarie Koala Hospital works from Guulabaa. This page is Cowarra State Forest, managed by Forestry Corporation. It is not a national park.
Best for
A day at Guulabaa when the place you came for is open, with water in the car and a town bed already sorted.
Skip if
You need a reserved camp tonight, or you thought the Koala Hospital was a national park. You need a tap you can count on. You plan to sleep in the carpark.
Named places
The Hub, the businesses, the picnic
What their own pages actually name. Pictures are AI illustrative — not a field photograph.
- Guulabaa – Place of Koala
The visitor place on Guulabaa Way, off Burrawan Forest Drive, Lake Innes. The Hub decks are free. The other businesses share the same site. Not a camp.
- WildNets
A private treetop-net business at Guulabaa. Book on wildnets.com.au. Buy the session from them, not from this page.
- The Big Koala
A 2.5 metre sculpture at the carpark, part of the Hello Koalas Sculpture Trail, painted by Pauline Roods. Guulabaa says visiting it is free.
- Wild koala breeding facility
Koala Conservation Australia, the Port Macquarie Koala Hospital, runs the breeding visitor centre here. It sits in this State forest. It is not a national park.
- Bunyah café and Bilbay gallery
Bunyah Local Aboriginal Land Council runs the café at The Hub, and Bunyah Bilbay cultural centre. This page points you to them. It is not their office.
- Guulabaa picnic area
A free grassed picnic beside the main carpark. Day use. Not a tent site, and not a place to sleep.
How long
Times below are ours. Nobody has published a walk hour for this forest.
Half day
The Hub, the Big Koala, and one of the businesses if they are open. Picnic, then drive out. Don’t add a camp.
Full day
WildNets if you booked it, plus the café if it is open, plus the grass. Bring water. Leave before the closing time on their page.
Overnight
A town: Port Macquarie, Wauchope, Lake Innes or Lake Cathie. If you wanted a named first-come camp, that is Swans Crossing in Kerewong, and it fills too.
On foot
No published walk length
Guulabaa’s about page still says the bush walking tracks are opening soon. The visit page calls them short and easy, and does not give a kilometre. Not independently walked.
Cowarra State Forest Guide
Cowarra State Forest Guide downloads
Printable planner and itineraries with the site name on them. Packing, Friday Plan B, half/full/overnight shapes. Official Forestry Corp / RFS links on every file.
- Planner — packing, last towns, dogs, fires, Friday Plan B
- Itineraries — half day at Guulabaa, a longer day if WildNets or the café is open, overnight in a town or at Swans Crossing
- Koala mark + www.cowarrastateforest.com.au on every sheet
Free direct download — no email required. Maps · Itineraries · Privacy.
Part of the State Forest Guide Australia network
This unofficial Cowarra State Forest guide is in that network. Not government. Not a national-park directory.
Browse state forests → stateforestguide.com.au
Sister state forests
FAQ
Is Cowarra State Forest a national park?
No. It is a Forestry Corporation of NSW working forest on Burrawan Forest Drive, between Wauchope and Port Macquarie. The Koala Hospital works from Guulabaa. National Parks does not run it. Where do I camp?
Can I reserve a camp here?
No. Forestry Corporation has not named a public campground in Cowarra. The carpark and the picnic are day use. A bed you can hold is in a town. Camping
Can I bring a dog?
Guulabaa’s visit page says dogs are welcome in State forests if they are under control, and to clean up after them. Ask WildNets and the breeding centre before a dog goes inside. Watch for 1080 signs. Dogs on Plan your visit
How long do I need?
Times below are ours. Half a day is the Hub and one of the businesses, if they are open. A full day is Guulabaa plus a picnic. Overnight is a town, or Swans Crossing in Kerewong. How long
What time does Guulabaa open?
On 24 Sep 2026 their visit page said 8.30am–5pm daily. The breeding centre keeps shorter hours. This page will not tell you they are open today. Hours
Is this site official?
No. Independent unofficial operator’s manual in the State Forest Guide Australia network. Not Forestry Corporation. Not Guulabaa. Not the Koala Hospital. Not WildNets. Not NPWS.
The forest page and the Guulabaa note come from Forestry Corporation. Hours, the Hub, the picnic, dogs and the drive come from guulabaaplaceofkoala.com.au, read on 24 Sep 2026. Breeding-centre hours also come from Koala Conservation Australia’s Guulabaa page that day, and the two pages do not say the same thing. Camping and dogs use Forestry Corporation’s statewide pages. Check again the morning you go.
Not independently walked. Hours, roads and fire rules change. Check with Forestry Corporation of NSW, and with Guulabaa, WildNets or the koala centre if that is why you are going.