North Solitary Island is one of the largest islands found off the New South Wales

New South Wales

New South Wales is a state of :Australia, located in the east of the country. It is bordered by Queensland, Victoria and South Australia to the north, south and west respectively. To the east, the state is bordered by the Tasman Sea, which forms part of the Pacific Ocean. New South Wales...

 coast and inside the continental shelf

Continental shelf

The continental shelf is the extended perimeter of each continent and associated coastal plain. Much of the shelf was exposed during glacial periods, but is now submerged under relatively shallow seas and gulfs, and was similarly submerged during other interglacial periods. The continental margin,...

. It is located 40 km north-east of Coffs Harbour

Coffs Harbour, New South Wales

-History:By the early 1900s, the Coffs Harbour area had become an important timber production centre. Before the opening of the North Coast Railway Line, the only way to transport large items of heavy but low value, such as timber, was by coastal shipping. This meant sawmillers on the North Coast...

 and about 13 km east-south-east of Wooli. The island is divided into two sections by a channel. An automated lighthouse

North Solitary Island Light

North Solitary Island Light is an active lighthouse on North Solitary Island, a large island off the coast of New South Wales, Australia. The light is located on the summit of the island which is on the northern section of the island....

is found on the northern section of the island.

Around 500 metres north of the island is North West Rock which is home to the fish aggregation site called Fish Soup.

The island is part of the Solitary Islands Marine Park established 2 January 1998 and managed by the NSW Maritime Parks Authority.