Wee Jasper Camping; choose a stunning spot
We absolutely love creek side camping, and in this post, we’re sharing a ripper, easy to access camp site not far from Canberra that is hugely popular. The Wee Jasper Camping is a series of bush camps that are run by the Reflections Caravan Park group, along the beautiful Goodradigbee river and associated creeks.
Where are the camp sites?
You can camp at four camp grounds run by Reflections. The first is where the office is, called Billy Grace. Just nearby is Fitzpatrick Trackhead, and then you have Swinging Bridge, and the Micalong Creek further away on a gravel road.
Do you need a 4WD?
No, and its very popular for people with 2WD’s. The road beyond Billy Grace is gravel, but in decent condition, and we saw a number of 2WD vehicles beyond here at the two other camp sites.
Are they caravan friendly?
Yep, and again, we saw a lot of these set up over the Easter long weekend. Some spots are tight, and a couple need some clearance, but there are a huge number of places you can get a caravan into at all 4 sites.
Costs and booking
Being a caravan park, you should expect to pay more than a national park to camp here. However, if you sign up for the Reflections membership (its free), they give you $25 off, which is pretty decent. Our total cost for 3 nights over Easter was about $140, or $43 a night (with the $25 discount), which is pretty reasonable.
We’d probably not pay that under normal circumstances, but being able to lock in a spot over a very busy part of the year is priceless, and a must if you are on a Big Lap of Australia, as there’s nothing worse than not having somewhere locked in and struggling to find a spot.
Fires and dogs
You’re allowed fires here, providing its in season (they send you an SMS to confirm), and you bring your own, raised fire pit. This just has to be off the ground, and we saw a huge number of different types being used. You cannot hire them, so if you want a fire, bring a fire pit!
Dogs are also allowed here, and we saw a huge number of them at different camp sites. They’re not allowed in the national park spots scattered around, which explains why this is so popular for dog owners!
What amenities are there?
Billy Grace has hot showers and toilets, as does Micalong Creek. There’s also dump points, and that’s about it. The other two campgrounds have toilets, and I have no doubt you’ll probably see showers at some point too.
How busy does it get?
This camping option gets hugely busy. I spoke to one of the staff, who said over Easter they’ll have around 700 people camping across all of the campgrounds, with around 250 at Micalong Creek.
We walked through the main part of Micalong Creek camping area (in front of the toilets, on the West side of the bridge), and it was quite full. Yes, you’d fit more people in, but there was a lot of hustle and bustle for a small place. We were very lucky to camp as far as you can on the Eastern side, and it was relatively quiet.
I’d imagine on the weekends this place would be busy, but on any long weekends (particularly Easter or Christmas) expect its going to be really busy. They do announce on their social media pages when its full, so keep an eye out.
What’s the nicest campground?
We were told that Micalong Creek is the most popular campground, and its pretty magic if you get yourself a nice spot.
We thought that Swinging Bridge was a bit too close to the road (although it would matter less if it wasn’t busy), and Billy Grace looked really decent too.
If you’re going to Micalong Creek, our suggestion (if you are fully self contained) is to head as far to the East side of the bridge as you can, and to camp there in the corner, next to the ‘no camping beyond this point’ sign.
We had a truly magic spot, with great creek access, and limited neighbours and noise.
Of course, if it’s a quieter weekend this might not be a problem and there’s lots of nice spots.
What can you do nearby?
Wee Jasper is a small community, with caves nearby, and then you’ve got the stunning Brindabella National Park with its huge number of 4WD tracks. We headed out one day to explore some of them, and thoroughly enjoyed the region.
Overall, this is a stunning part of the world, and the camping is up there with the better spots we’ve found in NSW, if you went on a quieter weekend!
