Editing Gardens of Stone National Park

{{Use dmy dates|date=April 2021}}
{{Use Australian English|date=January 2012}}
{{Infobox Australian place
| type                   = protected
| name                   = Gardens of Stone National Park
| state                  = nsw
| iucn_category          = II
| image                  = Gardens of Stone NSW Australia 1.jpg
| caption                = A view of the natural stone [[pagoda]]s in the national park
| image_alt              = 
| relief                 = 1
| coordinates            = {{coord|33|9|16.6|S|150|2|27.5|E|display=inline,title}}
| map_alt                = 
| nearest_town_or_city   = {{NSWcity|Lithgow}}
| area                   = 150.8
| area_footnotes         = <ref name=oeh>{{cite web|url=http://www.environment.nsw.gov.au/NationalParks/parkManagement.aspx?id=N0087|title=Gardens of Stone National Park: Park management|work=Office of Environment & Heritage|publisher=[[Government of New South Wales]]|access-date=8 October 2014}}</ref>
| established            = {{start date|1994|11|30|df=y}}
| established_footnotes  = <ref name=oeh/>
| visitation_num         = 
| visitation_year        = 
| visitation_footnotes   = 
| managing_authorities   = [[National Parks and Wildlife Service (New South Wales)|NSW National Parks & Wildlife Service]]
| url                    = http://www.nationalparks.nsw.gov.au/gardens-of-stone-national-park
}}
The '''Gardens of Stone National Park''' is a [[state park|protected]] [[national park]] that is located in the [[Central Tablelands]] region of [[New South Wales]] in eastern [[Australia]]. The {{convert|15080|ha|adj=on}} national park is situated {{convert|125|km}} northwest of [[Sydney]], and {{convert|30|km}} northwest of {{NSWcity|Lithgow}}. The national park draws its name from the natural stone [[pagoda]]s within its boundaries.<ref name="Plan of Management">{{cite web|url=http://www.environment.nsw.gov.au/resources/planmanagement/final/GardensOfStone.pdf|title=Gardens of Stone National Park: Plan of Management|date=June 2009|work=[[National Parks and Wildlife Service (New South Wales)|NSW National Parks & Wildlife Service]]|publisher=[[Government of New South Wales]]|isbn=978-1-74232-384-8|type=PDF}}</ref>

The Gardens of Stone National Park is one of the eight protected areas that, in 2000, was inscribed to form part of the [[UNESCO]] [[World Heritage Site|World Heritage]]-listed [[Greater Blue Mountains Area]].<ref name=whl>{{cite web|url=https://whc.unesco.org/en/list/917|title=Greater Blue Mountains Area|work=World Heritage List|date=2014|publisher=[[UNESCO]]|access-date=8 October 2014}}</ref> The national park forms part of the [[Great Dividing Range]].

==Features and location==
The most prominent features of the park are the sandstone pagoda landscapes and cliffs and canyons.<ref name=environmentnsw>{{cite web|url=http://www.environment.nsw.gov.au/NationalParks/parkNature.aspx?id=N0087|title=Gardens of Stone National Park: Plants, animals and landscape|work=Office of Environment & Heritage|date=26 March 2013|publisher=[[Government of New South Wales]]|access-date=5 June 2013}}</ref> Limestone outcrops, [[karst]]s and elevated swamps are other unusual features.<ref name="Plan of Management"/>

The park is bounded on the west by the [[Castlereagh Highway]]; to the north by the Glen Davis Road; to the east by the [[Wollemi National Park]]; and to the south by the Newnes State Forest, the [[Wolgan Valley]], and the Wolgan State Forest. The rural localities of {{NSWcity|Capertee}}, {{NSWcity|Ben Bullen}}, and {{NSWcity|Glen Davis}} are located on the edge of the national park.

==History==
The Newnes Plateau region was proposed for conservation in 1932 as part of a Greater Blue Mountains National Park by the National Parks and Primitive Areas Council.<ref name="Plan of Management"/> Lobbying for protecting the area increased after the establishment of Wollemi National Park in 1979.<ref name="worldheritage">{{cite web|url=http://www.worldheritage.org.au/resources/national-parks/gardens-of-stone-national-park/|title=Gardens of Stone National Park|last=Blue Mountains Conservation Society|year=2011|work=Greater Blue Mountains World Heritage Experience|publisher=NSW National Parks & Wildlife Service|access-date=4 June 2013}}</ref> The National Parks Association proposed its extension westwards in 1984, which developed into a detailed proposal of an {{convert|18030|ha|adj=on}} park in 1993, which was ultimately successful.<ref name="Plan of Management"/> The Gardens of Stone National Park was established in 1994;<ref name="worldheritage"/> however, the initial park only covered {{convert|11780|ha}}, omitting areas which contain coal deposits. It was later enlarged to {{convert|15080|ha}}.<ref name="washington">{{cite journal|url=http://www.bluemountains.org.auwww.bluemountains.org.au/documents/campaigns/LinnSocPagodaPaperWash_Wray.pdf |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141013211238/http://www.bluemountains.org.auwww.bluemountains.org.au/documents/campaigns/LinnSocPagodaPaperWash_Wray.pdf |archive-date=2014-10-13 |url-status=live|author1=Washington, Haydn G.|author2=Wray, Robert A. L.|year=2011|title=The Geoheritage and Geomorphology of the Sandstone Pagodas of the North-western Blue Mountains Region (NSW)|journal=Proceedings of the Linnean Society of New South Wales|volume=132|pages=131–43|issn=0370-047X|type=PDF}}</ref> Environmentalist groups seek to protect more of the surrounding area, which includes pagodas, canyons, heathland and elevated swamps.<ref name="worldheritage"/>

==Flora and fauna==
A total of 423 native plant species have been recorded in the park in 30 different plant communities. Most of the park is covered in open forest or woodland dominated by eucalypts. In the west of the park, there are ironbark (''[[Eucalyptus fibrosa]]'' and ''[[Eucalyptus crebra|E. crebra]]'') and yellow box (''[[Eucalyptus melliodora]]'') woodlands that grow on clay loam and are a habitat for the rare [[regent honeyeater]] and [[turquoise parrot]]. There is white box (''[[Eucalyptus albens]]'') woodland in the southwest and scribbly gum (''[[Eucalyptus rossii]]'' and  ''[[Eucalyptus sparsifolia|E. sparsifolia]]'') woodland on the park's eastern borders.<ref name="Plan of Management"/>

The plant and animal communities of the pagoda formations are fragile and easily irreversibly damaged by human activity. Collection of bush rocks for gardens and landscaping removes habitat for reptiles.<ref name="Plan of Management"/>

{{wide image|border=no|Pearsons lookout (1).jpg|1000px|A view of the Capertee Valley, covering parts of the Gardens of Stone National Park, seen from Pearsons Lookout. The flat-topped formation in the centre is Pantony's Crown.|align-cap=center}}

==See also==
{{stack|{{portal|New South Wales|Environment}}}}
* [[Protected areas of New South Wales]]

== References ==
{{Reflist}}

==External links==
{{commons category|Gardens of Stone National Park}}
*{{cite web|url=http://www.nationalparks.nsw.gov.au/gardens-of-stone-national-park|title=Gardens of Stone National Park|work=[[National Parks and Wildlife Service (New South Wales)|NSW National Parks & Wildlife Service]]|publisher=[[Government of New South Wales]]}}
*{{cite web|url=http://www.environment.nsw.gov.au/resources/planmanagement/final/GardensOfStone.pdf|title=Gardens of Stone National Park: Plan of Management|date=June 2009|work=[[National Parks and Wildlife Service (New South Wales)|NSW National Parks & Wildlife Service]]|publisher=[[Government of New South Wales]]|type=PDF|isbn=978-1-74232-384-8}}
*{{cite web|title=Greater Blue Mountains World Heritage Area: Strategic Plan|url=http://www.environment.nsw.gov.au/resources/parks/StategicPlanNPWS.pdf |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090615212431/http://www.environment.nsw.gov.au/resources/parks/StategicPlanNPWS.pdf |archive-date=2009-06-15 |url-status=live|type=PDF|work=[[National Parks and Wildlife Service (New South Wales)|NSW National Parks and Wildlife Service]]|publisher=[[Government of New South Wales]]|date=January 2009|isbn=978-1-74122-960-8}}
*{{cite web|url=http://www.environment.nsw.gov.au/nationalparks/parkHome.aspx?id=N0087|title=Gardens of Stone National Park|work=Office of Environment & Heritage|publisher=[[Government of New South Wales]]}}
*[http://www.dingogap.net.au/navigation/scenery/gardensofstone_main.html Dingo Gap photos of GOS NP]

{{National Parks of New South Wales}}
{{Blue Mountains topics}}

{{authority control}}

[[Category:National parks of New South Wales]]
[[Category:Protected areas established in 1994]]
[[Category:Parks and reserves of the Blue Mountains (New South Wales)]]
[[Category:1994 establishments in Australia]]
[[Category:Central Tablelands]]