Where

Wallarah National Park in North Coast

Distance

2.8km one-way

Time suggested

1hr

Grade

Hard

What to
bring

Hat, drinking water, sunscreen

Please note

• Remember to take your binoculars if you want to bird watch or whale watch.
• There is limited mobile reception in this park

Scenic trail is to mountain bikers what a good flight of office block stairs are to a jogger. Can you keep cycling for the entire 2.8km, no matter how steep the trail becomes? Set yourself the challenge.

The track is also an alternative access route to Pinny Beach and a great hiking trail. From Scenic Drive, the track begins in open forest and then takes you down a steep hill, across a small creek, and ends in coastal heath with scenic views of the coastline. Look out for glimpses of palm gully rainforest along the way and the woodland-dwelling blue wren. In summer, you’ll appreciate the cooler shaded gullies.

Even if you can’t ride the trail the first time, Wallarah is free to visit and always open, so just keep coming back as you build your strength and skills.

For directions, safety and practical information, see visitor info

Visitor info

Maps and downloads

Learn more

Don't just stand there

Do you like to surf, or are you more into fishing? Are you the type who loves to hike, or do you prefer cycling? Are you an ocean-gazer or a forest-walker? Wallarah allows you to do any or all of these activities, so bring your gear and enjoy this natural playground.

Happy wandering

There are various vegetation communities in Wallarah, including heathland, spotted gum and ironbark forest, open smooth-barked apple forest and palm gully rainforest with a canopy dominated by cabbage-tree palm. Follow the various walking tracks through the park to experience these. Keep an eye out for blooming wattle and the intriguing scribbly gum, whose attractive artwork is, in fact, the tunnelling journey of scribbly gum moth's larvae. By the way, the purple-flowered vine you'll see growing throughout the park is known commonly as happy wanderer.

Living Aboriginal culture

Bahtabah Local Aboriginal Land Council represents the Aboriginal community in the area that is now covered by Wallarah National Park. Physical evidence of Aboriginal people's lives in the area has remained in the form of middens found just south of Swansea. Only a few middens have been recorded, though it is probable that sand mining along this coast over the years has destroyed a large portion of middens that were there prior to European settlement.

Wild and free

Wallarah has an awesome collection of birds and animals due to the diversity of vegetation and habitats in the park. During the day, look out for sea eagles soaring along the coast, honeyeaters in the springtime flowering heath, lizards lolling on warm boulders, pods of dolphins in the ocean and passing whales during the winter months. At night, you may see the predatory powerful owl, a microbat, or the threatened squirrel glider that glides for up to 50m between trees. Bring along your binoculars to get a closer look at these natural beauties.