Armidale Yowie Sightings: New England Hairy Man Stories
The New England highlands around Armidale are cold, high and full of gorges, and they carry a long tradition of "hairy man" stories. Settler diaries are said to mention tall, upright creatures following stock routes and leaving strange prints in clay, and modern campers still describe heavy footfalls and howls echoing out of the valleys at dusk.
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The gorge country of Oxley Wild Rivers, Cathedral Rock and Guy Fawkes River national parks is spectacular by day and very dark by night. We cover the tablelands' reported encounters in our Supernatural Sydney guide.
The History of Yowie Reports in New England
The New England Tablelands sit above 1,000 metres, a cool, misty divide between the coast and the western plains. To the east, escarpments drop into rainforest gorges toward Dorrigo and the Clarence; to the west, granite outcrops and stringybark ridges make for harsher country. Farmland, forest and remote parks form a patchwork where sound carries for kilometres, the wind drops without warning, and the stillness feels older than settlement.
The Yowie Sightings
The oldest story comes from a journal fragment said to have been found near Wollomombi, dated 1889, telling of a shepherd "haunted by a thing that walks upright, large as two men". It mentions cattle breaking fences and "a groan like a man's but deep as thunder".
In 1974, a local couple driving home after dark on Dangars Falls Road reported a tall, fur-covered figure in their headlights that turned toward the car and crossed into the scrub in two strides. They described a smell "like rotting hay". Police reportedly found nothing, but residents said they heard knocks and screams from nearby gullies that week.
In the 1990s, bushwalkers camping on the Cathedral Rock plateau said they heard rhythmic knocks from opposite ridges around midnight, and one saw a "shadow moving upright across the moonlight". In the morning they reported limbs broken above shoulder height and rocks arranged in a rough circle.
How to Get to Armidale and the Gorges
Base yourself in Armidale or Ebor. Waterfall Way connects Armidale with Wollomombi Falls, Cathedral Rock and Guy Fawkes River national parks. For Dangars Falls, NPWS directions from Armidale run south via Dangarsleigh Road, then Dangars Falls Road: about 19 km in total, with roughly 10 km unsealed but suitable for 2WD in all weather. Heavy fog and frost are common in winter.
Know Before You Go
- No day-use vehicle permit is needed for the Dangars Falls picnic area, but some other areas of Oxley Wild Rivers National Park need one. Check NPWS for fees and current alerts, including closed areas.
- Gorge lookouts have big, sheer drops. Stay behind barriers and on marked tracks, especially in fog.
- Respect farms along the routes: stay on public roads and don't enter paddocks or stock routes on private land. Respect Traditional Owners and leave no trace.
- Nights get very cold, often below zero in winter. Tell someone your plans and carry warm gear, water and a torch.
- Keep it quiet after dark: no calling, playback or spotlighting.
Armidale Yowie FAQs
Have Yowies been reported around Armidale?
Yes. Reported accounts include an 1889 journal story near Wollomombi, a 1974 roadside sighting on Dangars Falls Road and 1990s reports from Cathedral Rock. None have been proven.
How far is Dangars Falls from Armidale?
About 19 km, partly on unsealed road that NPWS says is suitable for 2WD in all weather.
Is there a fee at Dangars Falls?
NPWS says no day-use vehicle permit is required for the Dangars Falls picnic area, though some other areas of the park do require one.
When is the best time to visit?
Late autumn to early spring brings the clearest, stillest nights, along with frost and fog, so pack warm.
More Along Waterfall Way
- Yowie Sightings in NSW: Where the Legends Come From
- Guy Fawkes River National Park Yowie stories
- Bellingen and Dorrigo Yowie sightings
- Waterfall Way swimming guide
