Cooyar: Swinging Bridge, The Palms National Park and Muntapa Tunnel

Cooyar is a small town on the New England Highway in the Toowoomba Region, with three things worth the drive: a long suspension bridge over Cooyar Creek, a short rainforest walk at The Palms National Park and the Muntapa Tunnel, a disused railway tunnel on the Great Dividing Range. It sits about 90 km north of Toowoomba, so it suits a slow day out on the way to or from the Bunya Mountains.

The town itself is quiet. Plan on a picnic by the creek and two short walks rather than a full day of attractions.

Swinging Bridge Park

Swinging Bridge Park sits on a bank high above Cooyar Creek at 2 Fergus Street, and the suspension bridge is the reason to stop. The park has a playground, outdoor exercise equipment, an electric BBQ, seating, a shelter and open space, so it works as a lunch stop with kids.

There are no toilets in the park. The nearest are a short stroll away at Cooyar Memorial Park.

The park is also a short stay rest area for overnight campers, with power and a limit of 48 hours in any 14 days. Pets are allowed on a leash.

The Palms National Park

The Palms is a small patch of remnant rainforest in the hills east of Cooyar, built around an almost exclusive stand of piccabeen palms growing in a waterlogged hollow. Around the palms are subtropical rainforest and dry vine forest, then open eucalypt forest on the drier ground.

The Palms Circuit

The circuit is 650 m return and takes about 15 minutes. It loops around the palm forest on tracks and boardwalks, past a large strangler fig, bunya and hoop pines and buttressed trees. It is classed as a Class 3 track on the council’s walks map.

In summer, look up for grey-headed flying-foxes roosting in the palms above the creek. On the ground, noisy pittas and black-breasted button-quails turn up.

Muntapa Tunnel

Muntapa Tunnel is 287 m long, the longest straight railway tunnel in Queensland. It sits 640 m above sea level, is no longer used by trains, and is the only railway tunnel that crossed the Great Dividing Range summit between the inland and coastal sides. Signs at the site explain its history.

The Muntapa Tunnel Walk is 1,050 m in total and takes about 15 minutes. Two tracks lead from the trailhead, one to each end of the tunnel. Metal stairs drop down to the tunnel from the northern track, and the southern track has a lookout for photos of the tunnel. The surface is natural soil and crushed rock.

Part of the walk is shared with vehicles, so watch for cars.

Planning your visit

• How long: about half a day covers the bridge park, The Palms (15 minutes of walking) and the tunnel (15 minutes of walking), plus the driving between them.
• Cost: the council and park pages list no entry fees for the bridge park, the walk or the tunnel.
• Toilets: at Cooyar Memorial Park, near the bridge park.
• Dogs: on a leash at Swinging Bridge Park; not allowed in The Palms National Park.
• Camping: Swinging Bridge Park is a short stay rest area (48 hours in a 14 day period). The Cooyar Showgrounds are listed too; the council says to contact the Cooyar Agricultural Society for details.

Getting there and parking

Cooyar is about 190 km from the Brisbane CBD, about 2 hours 50 minutes by car, and about 90 km, 80 minutes, from Toowoomba. From Toowoomba, drive north on the New England Highway through Crows Nest.

For The Palms, turn east off the New England Highway just north of Cooyar. The park is 8 km north-east of town along a sealed but narrow road, at Palms Road. The council says it is also a good stopover when driving between Cooyar and Yarraman.

For the tunnel, head south-west from Cooyar on the New England Highway, turn right onto Oakey-Cooyar Road, then onto Narko-Nutgrove Road and follow the signs to the Muntapa Tunnel. The last section is an unsealed road that runs over the top of the tunnel to the park on the ridge. From Oakey it is about 40 km. The council’s walks guide is at tr.qld.gov.au, and Swinging Bridge Park has its own council page. Details can change, so check before you go.

You might also like

• Lake Perseverance, Crows Nest – a picnic stop on the New England Highway between Toowoomba and Cooyar.
• Bunya Mountains National Park – the council suggests The Palms as a stopover on the way there.
• Ravensbourne – more national park walks and a lookout on the range near Toowoomba.
• Jondaryan Woolshed – heritage woolshed on the Darling Downs.

Browse more Toowoomba region posts and nature walks.

Quick answers