Weddin Mountains is a national park located in New South Wales, Australia, west of Sydney. It is a small, crescent-shaped range, with a high point some , running roughly north south with steep cliffs on the eastern side sloping more gradually down to the plain in the west. Weddin mountains is a small patch of remnant vegetation which escaped clearing due to its ruggedness. Many aircraft pass overhead on their way from Sydney to Adelaide, is part of the Lachlan Fold system and is Wiradjuri country.

History

Bushrangers

Ben Hall, who plundered the Forbes-Grenfell area in the 1850s used the Weddin Mountains as a refuge. He holed up in a cave on the north-west side of the park with his gang, which included Johnnie Gilbert and Frank Gardiner. The property was occupied in the late 1920s and during the Depression it was set up as a farm. Times and the land were hard and the buildings represent this. The sheds have walls made from flattened corrugated iron so that it stretched further. One of the sheds is full of old wire, iron sheets, bottles, everything you can imagine. All the old machinery is still there, sitting where it was when the family sold the property to the Government in the 1980s. A unique place, showing how the less well off farmers did it in the early and mid 1900s. of animals recorded in Weddin Mountains National Park, the vast majority of which are birds. The species list includes three types of wallaby, one of which is the endangered brush tailed rock wallaby.

Access and facilities

Weddin Mountains National Park is most often approached from Grenfell. Travelling west from Grenfell on the Mid Western Highway there are sign posts to Holy Camp and Ben Halls Cave. The Google Earth route from Grenfell guides drivers along Euladrie road which ends at a farm two kilometres from the park with farmland in between.

Ben Halls Cave

Near Seaton's Farm is Ben Halls camping and picnic area with well designed fireplace/barbecues, large enough to permit the use of camp ovens, your own barbecue or for an open fire as well as having its own BBQ plate. Coordinates . The last are dirt road. It is one of the entrances to the park with a pit toilet, parking area, picnic tables and fireplaces. Camping is allowed. There is a small water tank filled from the toilet roof but don't rely on it. From here it is possible to walk to Eualdrie and Peregrine lookouts.