Tamworth is a large regional centre located at the southern end of the New England Tableland. Tourism is a major factor in the infrastructure of this town, which caters for many tens of thousands of tourists annually. Events such as the Country Music Festival draw very large crowds early in the year and there are many attractive areas about Tamworth to appeal to the traveler.
Tamworth is centred in a geologically interesting region. A major crustal fault passes through the area, splitting folded, ancient marine sedimentary and volcanic rocks to the west from ancient, very deep water marine sedimentary and volcanic rocks to the east. Two geological tours have been devised to acquaint you with the rocks and their story in this area. Both take you through some memorable, typically rural Australian countryside.
Tour 1 travels to the west of Tamworth, toward Keepit Dam. This tour takes you through Devonian to Carboniferous (300 - 350 million year old) sedimentary rocks which were deposited in a moderately deep to shallow ocean. You will see mudstones, a spectacular conglomerate, fossiliferous limestone and volcanic rocks which were deposited on the margin of a volcanic island chain.
Tour 2 travels to the southeast of Tamworth toward Chaffey Dam. This tour crosses the Peel Fault, a major crustal fracture. You will be able to contrast the very different, deep water oceanic rocks on the eastern side of the fault with those visited on tour 1. A highlight of the tour are the large outcrops of serpentinite (serpentine), jasper, some spectacular 400 million year old conglomerates, and some unusual green sedimentary rocks with distinctive graded bedding.