Girraween National Park

Girraween National Park is located on the Queensland-New South Wales border, halfway between Stanthorpe and Tenterfield and 115 miles (186 km) southwest of Brisbane. Girraween, meaning ‘place of flowers’, is a place of massive granite outcrops, large angular tors with precariously balanced boulders, and spectacular wildflower displays in the (southern-hemisphere) spring. The park is open 24 hours a day, and camping is allowed after satisfying the required permits and fees. A nearby guesthouse hosts an astronomical observatory with a 18-inch (45 cm) telescope. The night skies are particularly dark, averaging class 2 in the Bortle scale, and a stargazer told EarthSky that “on top of a Bald Rock Mountain, the location opens up to a complete view of the sky. You can see the Milky Way from start to finish when there’s a new moon.”