Muswellbrook: Walks along Muscle Creek and art

Muswellbrook offers specific ways to explore nature and culture: walks along Muscle Creek, public artworks and collections at the Regional Arts Centre. When planning a trip, you can focus on the landscape and its stories, or explore art and local culture. These different themes can also help guide your search for suitable accommodation.

Walking Muscle Creek and its stories

The Muscle Creek AR Tour starts at Simpson Park and follows the Muscle Creek Loop. At points marked by footprints, QR codes open stories about the history and environment of Muscle Creek. The route therefore has a storytelling focus: the stops relate both to the past and to the creek's natural surroundings.

A 1.2 km walking track runs along Muscle Creek from Simpson Park to Bell Street. Its named start and end points, as well as its length, make it easy to plan. Along with the AR Tour, it offers two ways to experience the creek: through QR-enabled stories and along a set route to Bell Street.

Muscle Creek also helps protect the Hunter Floodplain Red Gum Woodland, a threatened ecological community. The creek is therefore not only a point of reference for walks and stories, but also plays a role in protecting this plant community.

The Platypus Track starts at the Olympic Park car park on Wilkinson Avenue and runs for 190 m behind the Muswellbrook Aquatic Centre. Its clearly named starting point makes it another specific reference for anyone interested in Muswellbrook's walking tracks.

Artworks with different stories

At the Muswellbrook Railway Underpass, the walkway serves as a practical pedestrian connection and an artistic introduction to the natural elements of the Muswellbrook region. The artwork there depicts the Hunter River and Muscle Creek. Landscape motifs are thus at the heart of a work located in an underpass used by pedestrians.

The Muswellbrook Reconciliation Mural is in Simpson Park. It depicts the history of the Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal populations of the Upper Hunter. Also in Simpson Park is the Simpson Park Mosaic, located beside the community barbecue and created as part of a youth participation project led by Upper Hunter Community Services. The mural and mosaic give the park different cultural connections—from the history of the Upper Hunter's population to the community origins of the mosaic.

Another work is Big Blue in Blue Heeler Country, a two-metre-tall, half-tonne bronze sculpture by Brett Garling. It celebrates the Blue Heeler's working spirit and its role in the pastoral life of the Hunter Valley. The sculpture focuses on the depiction of a dog and its cultural significance.

Collections, art prizes and a playground

The Muswellbrook Regional Arts Centre houses the Muswellbrook Shire Art Collection and the Max Watters Collection. The centre also hosts two annual art prizes: the national Muswellbrook Art Prize and the Mullins Conceptual Photography Prize. The collections and prizes offer different ways to explore art in Muswellbrook. If you want to plan your trip around one of the art prizes, check the event dates.

Highbrook Playground also has a clearly named feature: Larry The Lizard, a giant slide that is 10 m high and 70 m long. The playground also has a learn-to-ride track. The two offerings have different focuses—a remarkably large slide and a place to learn to ride a bike. These are practical ideas for families to consider when choosing activities, without implying that any activity is suitable for every age.

Which side of Muswellbrook suits your trip?

The nature focus is reflected in two creek walks described in different ways; cultural interests range from public artworks to collections and art prizes. By considering these priorities for your trip, you can tailor your search for hotels in Muswellbrook to your own interests.

Discover more destinations

Tumbi Umbi, Moss Vale, Forbes, Lord Howe Island, Pymble, Gordon, Tuross Head

For the broader travel overview: New South Wales.