Paddling in Kwiambal National Park

Kwiambal sits on Kamilleroi Country in northern New South Wales, about 30 kilometres from Ashford and roughly 70 kilometres north of Inverell.

It is a small, secluded park where two rivers do most of the work — carving granite gorges, forming plunge pools, and creating the kind of clear, wide water that draws paddlers and swimmers alike. The Severn River is the heart of paddling here.

Wide, clear, and calm enough for casual flatwater paddling, it runs through the park alongside beaches and rock pools that double as rest stops. The park map marks a dedicated canoe and kayak launch point, so access is straightforward.

Summer — when temperatures push well into the mid-30s Celsius and above — is the obvious season, and the cool river is the main reason to be on the water rather than off it.

Winter brings cold nights, potentially below zero, and a much quieter park; conditions are less inviting for paddling, though the solitude is real.

The Macintyre River also flows through the park, and together with the Severn it shapes the river topography that defines Kwiambal's character — granite gorges, twisting channels, and waterfalls that run hard after heavy rain.

The park sits within the NSW national parks system, and fishing is noted as an activity here.

Check with NSW National Parks and Wildlife Service for any park-specific rules before you launch — protected areas can carry conditions that go beyond the standard state fishing licence. This is not a destination for whitewater.

It rewards paddlers who want to move slowly through clear inland water, pull up on a river beach, and have most of it to themselves.