Where

The Rock Nature Reserve - Kengal Aboriginal Place

Distance

6km return

Time suggested

2hrs 30min - 3hrs 30min

Grade

Grade 3

Trip Intention Form

It's a good idea to let someone know where you're going. Fill in a trip intention form to send important details about your trip to your emergency contact.

If you're planning to loan a Personal Locator Beacon (PLB) from one of these locations, wait and fill out your trip intention form in person.

Price

Free

Opening times

The Rock Nature Reserve – Kengal Aboriginal Place is always open but may have to close at times due to poor weather or fire danger.

What to
bring

Hat, sunscreen, drinking water

Please note

• Remember to take your binoculars if you want to go birdwatching.
• The weather in the area can be extreme and unpredictable, so please ensure you’re well-prepared for your visit.

Leaving directly from the carpark near the information point, this pleasant and accessible walk takes visitors to the top of the dramatic The Rock formation. It begins gently, crossing small gravelled slopes between graceful red gums.

As you climb higher, the path begins to wind around recessed cliffs hiding cool woolly ragwort plants – a threatened species native to the area that blooms with yellow flowers. Wallabies scatter through the undergrowth, lizards bask in the warm sun, and you may see glossy black cockatoos or wedge-tailed eagles circling overhead. Birdwatching only gets better the further you climb.

This hike becomes steep towards the end, so make sure you bring some sturdy shoes and plenty of water. The payoff is notable, though, with a spectacular scenic vista across bush and rolling farmland from the top of The Rock, providing an excellent opportunity for photography. Just a short trip from Wagga Wagga, this is one of the best lookouts in the region. Galore Hills is often visible to the west, and on clear winter days the snow-capped peak of Mount Kosciuszko rises in the distance. The nearby The Rock picnic area offers a great place to stretch your legs afterwards, too.

For directions, safety and practical information, see visitor info

Visitor info

Getting there and parking

Best times to visit

Weather, temperature and rainfall

Maps and downloads

Learn more

Geological significance

The reserve sits on the boundary between two major biophysical regions: the Riverine Plains and the western slopes of the Eastern Highlands. This geographic mix gives the area a terrific diversity of landscapes and animal habitats. The Rock itself, unique in the district, is the result of a pressure uplift of sedimentary materials, and is the highest point of a hogback ridge running north to south (The Rock is at the northern end). The summit stands 364m above the surrounding plains.

Living Aboriginal culture: Kengal

The dual name of the nature reserve (since 2005) acknowledges a Wiradjuri cultural presence that stretches back many generations. The Rock is also known as Kengal (meaning ‘sloping hill’), a Dreaming place, lookout, and ceremonial site for the Wiradjuri People and their descendants. It was once used for male initiation rituals. Traditional lore has it that Kengal was created by Baiame, the creator who also taught the Wiradjuri People how to make fire and spears. When settlers arrived in the area, stories go, Baiame left his male and female dingo (Mirrigan) companions, who lay in wait for Baiame’s return, forming The Rock.

'The Hanging Rock’

Charles Sturt first saw The Rock in 1829, though the area wasn’t settled further by Europeans until 1874. They called the remarkable geological feature ‘The Hanging Rock’ because of an overhang on its eastern face. This collapsed in 1874, however, leading to the adoption of its current name – simply, ‘The Rock’. For much of its modern life, the feature has sat on Crown land, and from 1891 its lower slopes were quarried for road base material to provide ballast on a Sydney-Melbourne rail line.