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Bushwalking track notes, photographs, maps and more for Heathcote to Waterfall Overnight Walk are found in each of the tabs below
Heathcote to Waterfall Overnight Walk
Time: 2 Days Walking time
Please allow extra time to rest and to explore
1 km SW of Heathcote
Length: 10.8 km Walk Length
As this is a One Way walk, the 10.8 km only includes the walking distance from the start to the end point
Heathcote National Park
Climb: 503 m Total Climbing
This walk has a total cumulative climb of 503 m, this is the total of the elevation gains made in each of the walks uphill sections
There is car access and parking near the start and end of this walk There is a train station near the start of this walk
Style: One way
Track: Hard

Following Heathcote Creek, this walk is a great overnight walk, often used to introduce new walkers to overnight hikes. A well-signposted and defined track leads you to a campsite with a reasonable level of facilities. There are great views of Heathcote Creek along the way, and many of Heathcote's varied environments to enjoy. Definitely worth the time to head down to Lake Eckersley, which is perfectly placed for lunch on the first day. (open in app)


Today's Fire rating
LOW MODERATE (No fire ban)
  Bushwalking track notes photographs, maps and camping spots for Heathcote to Waterfall Overnight Walk

Map of Walk

Location

                Sponsor of Heathcote to Waterfall Overnight Walk bushwalking tracknotes
Map of Heathcote to Waterfall Overnight Walk
Problem loading PDF Try here
Map Controls - Show Contours | Hide Path | Hide Distances | Hide Names
Map Scale 1 km
Heathcote Railway Station
End of Freeman Rd
End of Freeman Road service trail
Int of Scout Camp and Freeman Road bushtracks
Int. of Mirang Track and Friendly Tracks
Int. of Mirang and Mirang Pool Tracks
Int of Pipeline Track and Mirang Rd Servicetrail
Battery Causeway
Int of Lake Eckersley and Pipeline Tracks
Battery Causeway
Int of Bullawarring and Goanna Tracks
Int of Battery and Mooray Tracks
Int of Heathcote Creek and Battery Tracks
Kingfisher Pool camping ground
Int of Lake Toolooma Servicetrail and Heathcote Creek Track
Int of Waterfall Gully and Lake Toolooma Servicetrail (west)
Int of Bullawarring Track and Lake Toolooma Servicetrail
Int of Bullawarring Track and Warabin Servicetrail
End of Warabin Rd
Starting point for this hiking track: Heathcote Railway Station

Base maps are used under licence and is © Department of lands   Panorama Avenue Bathurst 2795   www.lands.nsw.gov.au

Maps that cover the walk area (please always carry maps of the area)

Print a map and track notes here
 Port Hacking 1:25 000 Map Series NSW-91294N 
 Appin 1:25 000 Map Series NSW-90291S 
 Campbelltown 1:25 000 Map Series NSW-90291N 
 Campbelltown 1:50 000 Map Series CW-90291 
 Port Hacking 1:100 000 Map Series 9129 
 Wollongong 1:100 000 Map Series 9029 

Photo Gallery

 
start of the service trail
 
start of the service trail +
 
heading through the bush
 
heading through the bush +
 
Bridge over Pipeline west of Freeman Rd
 
Bridge over Pipeline west of Freeman Rd +

 
Following the pipeline service trail
 
Following the pipeline service trail +
 
views from the pipeline track down to Heathcote Creek
 
views from the pipeline track down to Heathcote Creek +
 
Crossing over the pipeline
 
Crossing over the pipeline +

 
Passing a small picnic area
 
Passing a small picnic area +
 
the Battery Causeway
 
the Battery Causeway +
 
looking upcreek from the Battery Causeway
 
looking upcreek from the Battery Causeway +

 
Looking back at the causeway
 
Looking back at the causeway +
 
views of Heathcote Creek from the track
 
views of Heathcote Creek from the track +
 
following the Bullawarring Track
 
following the Bullawarring Track +

 
The track passing a rock wall
 
The track passing a rock wall +
 
Looking down at the creek from the track
 
Looking down at the creek from the track +
 
Following the track markers
 
Following the track markers +

 
Climbing up onto a rock shelf
 
Climbing up onto a rock shelf +
 
Looking down on Kingfisher Pools
 
Looking down on Kingfisher Pools +
 
Kingfisher Pool Campsite
 
Kingfisher Pool Campsite +

 
The dunny at Kingfisher pool campsite
 
The dunny at Kingfisher pool campsite +
 
heading through the dense bushland
 
heading through the dense bushland +
 
Lake Toolooma service trail
 
Lake Toolooma service trail +

 
climbing up out of the valley
 
climbing up out of the valley +
 
following the service trail towards the houses
 
following the service trail towards the houses +
 
gate at end of Warabin Road
 
gate at end of Warabin Road +

Terrain

Cross sectional view of the Heathcote to Waterfall Overnight Walk bushwalking track

Cross Section of the Heathcote to Waterfall Overnight Walk bushwalking track



Analysis and summary of the altitude variation on the Heathcote to Waterfall Overnight Walk bushwalking track

Summary of the gradients over the the lenght of the Heathcote to Waterfall Overnight Walk bushwalking track

Overview of this walks Grading - Based on the AS 2156.1 - 2001
These details are new. This new feature still requires more testing and refining. Please use the 'Walker Feedback' for report specific issues. Please e-mail Matt if you have any general comments. Hope you find it helpful.

Under this standard, a walk is graded based on the most difficult section of the walk.
Length 11km
Time 2 Days
.


Grade 4/6

Track: Hard
AS 2156.1 Gradient Short steep hills (3/6)
Quality of track Rough track, where fallen trees and other obstacles are likely (4/6)
Signs Minimal directional signs (4/6)
Experience Required Some bushwalking experience recommended (3/6)
Weather Weather generally has little impact on safety (1/6)
Infrastructure Limited facilities, not all cliffs are fenced (3/6)
*This summary of grading information is new and still in testing

Some more detail of this walks Grading
Here is a bit more details explaining the grading looking at sections of the walk.
Gradient
4.8km of this walk has gentle hills with occasional steps and another 3.6km has short steep hills. The remaining (2.3km) is flat with no steps.

Quality of track
3.9km of this walk follows a clear and well formed track or trail and another 3.8km follows a formed track, with some branches and other obstacles. Whilst another 1.8km follows a smooth and hardened path and the remaining 1.3km follows a rough track, where fallen trees and other obstacles are likely.

Signs
6km of this walk is clearly signposted and another 3.6km has directional signs at most intersection. The remaining (1.3km) has minimal directional signs.

Experience Required
Around 5km of this walk requires some bushwalking experience, whilst the remaining 5km requires no previous bushwalking experience.

Weather
This whole walk, 11km is not usually affected by severe weather events (that would unexpectedly impact safety and navigation).

Infrastructure
Around 9km of this walk has limited facilities (such as not all cliffs fenced), whilst the remaining 2.3km is close to useful facilities (such as fenced cliffs and seats).

Track Notes


Catch the train to Heathcote Station
Public transport (train) available to this Bushwalk Check out the facilities at Heathcote Station
You can phone 131500 (the transport info line) for up to date running times.
Use these links to plan your train trip to the end of the walk.
Plan your trip from --> Castle Hill|Chatswood|Dural|Epping|Gosford|Hornsby|Katoomba|Manly|Parramatta|Penrith|Strathfield|Sutherland|Sydney|
Drive to Heathcote Railway Station
You can drive or ride to this start of this Bushwalk There is free parking available.
You can drive or ride to the start of this walk
Use these links to plan your trip to the start of this walk.
Plan your trip from --> Castle Hill|Chatswood|Dural|Epping|Gosford|Hornsby|Katoomba|Manly|Parramatta|Penrith|Strathfield|Sutherland|Sydney|

(0 km) Heathcote Railway Station to End of Freeman Rd
Path: Easy - Wheelchair accessible - road
Length = 1.03 km Time = 17 mins
Climb = 4 m Descent = -24 m
From the station, this walk follows the footpath towards the highway, passing the left side of the car park, until it reaches the highway, which it crosses at the traffic lights. The walk continues along Oliver Street for a while before coming to the intersection with Boundary Road. Here, this walk turns left, following the road for a short distance before taking the first right onto Freemans Road and continuing past the large scout camp, to the end of the road, where it comes to the intersection with the management trail at the corner of Bella Vista Street.

(1.03 km) End of Freeman Rd to Int. of Mirang and Mirang Pool Tracks
Track: Moderate - bushtrack,servicetrail
Length = 1.67 km Time = 37 mins
Climb = 49 m Descent = -134 m
Veer left: From the intersection, this walk follows the management trail, crossing under the high tension power lines and bending around to the right a short distance, before coming back around to the left and passing a management trail (which heads behind some houses). The walk continues down the hill, passing another trail on the left as the hill steepens and comes to an intersection with a rough bush track, opposite the power line tower at the bottom of the trail.
Turn right: From the intersection, the walk follows the bush track on the opposite side of the management trail to the power line tower. The walk passes a burnt-out car shell before turning down the long steep hill and winding down to the 'T' intersection with a wider track.
Turn right: From the intersection, the walk follows the track heading down along the side of the hill and through the thick bush. After a short while, the track comes to a large concrete pipeline, crossing it at the metal platform to the intersection with the management trail.
Continue straight: From the intersection, this walk follows the 'Mirang Pool' arrow along the asphalt trail down the long hill. After a short while, the trail bends around to the left, turning back towards the pipeline, and continues downhill until it flattens out and crosses a bridge at the pipeline. From here, the walk continues along the management trail, following the pipeline (with Heathcote Creek down the hill on the right) for a while before coming to the signposted intersection with the Mirang Pool track.

Mirang Pool camping ground Alt = 81 m
This campsite is nestled in Heathcote National Park, with walk-in access from Heathcote Station. The campsite is near Mirang Pool on Heathcote Creek - there is a signpost at the top of the stairs, leading down to the pools from the management trail above. There are no facilities provided at the campsite, and you will need to carry in your own water and fuel stove.

(2.7 km) Int. of Mirang and Mirang Pool Tracks to Int of Pipeline Track and Mirang Rd Servicetrail
Track: Moderate - servicetrail
Length = 343 m Time = 8 mins
Climb = 13 m Descent = -24 m
Continue straight: From the intersection, this walk follows the 'Lake Eckersley' arrow along the management trail, keeping the pipe line to the left, as it heads through the bush. After a while, the trail does a large 'S' bend, crossing the pipeline twice as before passing through a gate and up to the intersection with the Mirang Road service trail.

(3.04 km) Int of Pipeline Track and Mirang Rd Servicetrail to Battery Causeway
Track: Moderate - servicetrail
Length = 1.02 km Time = 21 mins
Climb = 46 m Descent = -32 m
Continue straight: From the intersection, the walk follows the asphalt management trail, keeping Heathcote Creek and the valley to the right as the trail rounds a bend and heads up run parallel with the pipeline as the trail becomes gravel. From here, the walk continues along the management trail, keeping the pipeline on the left for about 750m. The walk then crosses over the pipeline using a timber bridge and 160m further along the management trail the walk passes a picnic table and crosses Heathcote Creek at the concrete Battery Causeway. (Here you may notice the 'Bullawarring Track - Waterfall 7km' sign[1] up to your left).

(4.06 km) Battery Causeway to Lake Eckersley
Optional sidetrip: Track: Moderate - servicetrail,bushtrack
Length = 503 m Time = 11 mins
Climb = 14 m Descent = -42 m
Veer right: From the intersection, this walk follows the management trail, heading up the hill with the creek down to the right. The trail does a sharp 'U' turn to the left, and continues up the hill to the signposted intersection of the 'Lake Eckersley Track'.
Turn right: From the intersection, this walk follows the bush track beside the signpost, heading down through the bush and away from the pipeline. As the track winds down the hill, it bends around to the left, winding through the dense scrub for a short while before bending back to the right and continuing down the rocky path to the edge of Woronora River.
(Retrace your steps back to the main track, then turn right to continue along this walk.)

(4.06 km) Battery Causeway to Int of Battery and Mooray Tracks
Track: Hard - bushtrack
Length = 3.52 km Time = 1 hr 22 mins
Climb = 218 m Descent = -193 m
Veer left: From the intersection (on the western side of the causeway), this walk follows the somewhat over grown 'Waterfall 7km' arrow[2] on the 'Bullawarring Track' signpost, along the narrow track that initially heads up the hill away from the creek then bends left, keeping the valley to your left. The walk then follows this narrow track south, keeping Heathcote Creek down the hill to your left, as the track climbs up the side of the hill to flatten out high above the creek. From here, the track continues along the side of the ridge, with occasional views of the creek in the valley to the left, as the walk winds through thick bushland until coming to the signposted intersection of the 'Goanna Track'[ref img=114136.
Continue straight: From the intersection, this walk follows the 'Waterfall' arrow on the Bullawarring Track signpost, winding along the bush track on the side of the hill for a long time, occasionally passing a rock platform with views of Heathcote Creek. The walk winds up and down a few steep rocky sections and crosses the dried-up creek in Python Gully. At this point, the track continues around the edge of the valley before descending quite steeply to Heathcote Creek, where it comes to the signposted intersection of the Mooray Track.

(7.58 km) Int of Battery and Mooray Tracks to Kingfisher Pool camping ground
Track: Moderate - bushtrack
Length = 926 m Time = 21 mins
Climb = 48 m Descent = -32 m
Continue straight: From the intersection, this walk follows the 'Waterfall' arrow on the Bullawarring Track signpost, heading along the bush track which follows Heathcote Creek. The track winds through the bush with small ups and downs, until it comes back down to the side of the creek, crossing at the rocks.
Continue straight: From the intersection, this walk follows the 'Waterfall' arrow on the 'Mooray Track' sign, heading down and across the creek at the rocks, following the painted track markers up the other side and along the bush track to a large open clearing. From here, the track follows the track marker though the clearing and along the bush track for a short while, coming to some large boulders. Here, the track turns right and then immediately left at the painted marker, climbing up onto the top of the rock platform. From the top of the platform, the walk follows the bush track, heading away from the creek for a short distance before turning left at the bush track and continuing to the Kingfisher Pool camping ground.

Kingfisher Pool camping ground Alt = m
This campsite is located at a small clearing, just east of the junction of Heathcote and Kingfisher Creeks in Heathcote National Park. The campsite is above the creek on a flat clearing. The creek usually provides plenty of water (treat before use, and check with rangers before setting out) and an opportunity for a swim. At the campground, there is also a small pit toilet and picnic table. Open fires are not permitted, so bring your own fuel stove. Fees are payable in advance for the permit required to stay at this campsite.

Overnight stay Goto day 2 notes

Day 2


(8.5 km) Kingfisher Pool camping ground to Int of Heathcote Creek Bushtrail and Lake Toolooma Servicetrail
Track: Moderate - bushtrack
Length = 830 m Time = 15 mins
Climb = 15 m Descent = -15 m
Continue straight: From the campsite, this walk heads away from the water for about 20m back to the main track, where this walk turns left to head east through the thick scrub for a while. There is an occasional view of the creek as the track heads along to a 'Y' intersection with another bush track that has been blocked off. Here, this walk turns left and continues along to the signposted intersection with a management trail.

(9.33 km) Int of Lake Toolooma Servicetrail and Heathcote Creek Track to End of Warabin Rd
Track: Moderate - bushtrack,servicetrail
Length = 750 m Time = 20 mins
Climb = 88 m Descent = -3 m
Turn left: From the intersection, this walk heads north, crossing the creek and heading along the service trail for a very short period, before coming to an intersection with a bush track going off to the right.

Turn right: From the intersection, this walk follows the 'Bullawarring Track - Waterfall' sign[3] south-east away from the power lines, following the narrow but clear track for several hundred metres (ignoring faint tracks to the left). The track then lends slightly to the left and heads up the hill to an intersection with a service trail.
Continue straight: From the intersection, this walk follows the narrow track and painted arrow[4] in the middle of the rock step, heading east up the rocky steps. The walk climbs up some rough rock steps with some carved foot-holes in the rock outcrop, to the top of some short cliffs. From here, the walk follows the rock platform at the top of the short cliffs, and the painted arrows, to the bush track which continues up the long rocky hill. The walk continues up a long set of wooden steps to the signposted intersection with a service trail.
Turn right: From the intersection, this walk follows the service trail, heading up the gentle hill towards the houses for a short while before coming to the end of Warabin Street.

(10.08 km) End of Warabin Rd to Waterfall Station
Path: Easy - Wheelchair accessible - road
Length = 725 m Time = 14 mins
Climb = 22 m Descent = -10 m
Veer right: From the end of Warabin St, this walk follows the road up the hill and past the intersection of Yanagang Street, continuing up to the next intersection. Here, the walk turns left into Koorabin St, then passes over the Princes Highway and comes to the Waterfall Station entry ramp.

Catch the train to Waterfall Station
Public transport (train) available to this Bushwalk Check out the facilities at Waterfall Station
You can phone 131500 (the transport info line) for up to date running times.
Use these links to plan your train trip to the end of the walk.
Plan your trip from --> Castle Hill|Chatswood|Dural|Epping|Gosford|Hornsby|Katoomba|Manly|Parramatta|Penrith|Strathfield|Sutherland|Sydney|
Drive from Waterfall Station
You can drive or ride from this end of this Bushwalk There is free parking available.
You can drive or ride from the end of this walk
Use these links to plan your trip from the end of this walk.
Plan your trip to --> Castle Hill|Chatswood|Dural|Epping|Gosford|Hornsby|Katoomba|Manly|Parramatta|Penrith|Strathfield|Sutherland|Sydney|

Getting there

Plan your trip to the start of the walk and back from the end of the walk

Public Transport links currently not working, sorry
Public Transport Timetables

To the start of the walk

From
Castle Hill
Chatswood
Dural
Epping
Gosford
Hornsby
Katoomba
Manly
Parramatta
Penrith
Strathfield
Sutherland
Sydney
From the end of the walk

Sorry there are no
public transport options
from the end of this walk

Driving Directions
Map Car Shuffle
To the start of the walk

Drive from:
From the end of the walk

Drive to:


Near by


Campsites in the park
Kingfisher Pool camping ground
Lake Eckersley camping ground
Mirang Pool camping ground


Nearest know Outdoor Stores near the start of this walk
Store Address Phone Distance (straight line)
Engadine Disposal & Outdoor Centre Pty Ltd 1042 Old Princes Hwy, Engadine (02) 9520 3367 2.6 km
Paddy Pallin Adventure Equipment 587 Kingsway, Miranda (02) 9525 6829 10.6 km
Onrope 11 Nelson Ave, Padstow (02) 9709 6299 17 km
Boots Great Outdoors 23 Koonya Cct, Caringbah (02) 9542 8988 12.4 km
Jeffs Camping & Disposals Lvl2/ 444 Hume Hwy, Yagoona (02) 9708 5092 20.2 km


A list of the nearest UHF CB repeaters I found to Heathcote to Waterfall Overnight Walk.
Channel Call sign
(more info)
Site Distance and dir from Heathcote to Waterfall Overnight Walk
Click to re-center search
1 SYD01 12/14 Ormonde Parade HURSTVILLE 16 km (to the NNE)
3 VMG3 Mine commsite WESTCLIFF COLLIERY 23 km (to the SW)
7 SYD07 7 Glamorgan St BLACKTOWN 35 km (to the NNW)
5 SYD05 Sydney Adventist Hospital 185 Fox Valley Rd WAHROONGA
Emergency use only
40 km (to the NNE)
4 RIV04 Fire Service Rusden Road MT RIVERVIEW 53 km (to the NW)

Weather and Park info

Fire Danger
This walk passes Greater Sydney Region fire area which currently has a LOW MODERATE rating and No fire ban in place.
(Tomorrow the Fire Danger Rating is LOW MODERATE, No fire ban.) (Downloaded 7 years ago)
Please Note: Each park may have its own fire ban, this rating is only valid for today and is based on information from the RFS Please check the RFS Website for more information.

Weather and Climate
Weather and Climate summary detailed weather and climate information here
°C (feels like °)
km/h from the
% humidity     (as at )
A graph displaying the average daily temperature range for the year

Heathcote National Park Link to official closures and fire bans page

Region: Sydney & Surrounds
Park fees Camping I am not aware of any closures in this park at the moment.

Walker Feedback

Comments
Add NewSearch
troiks - Good Walk Registered | 2009-02-17 13:15:02
My girlfriend & I did this walk as a training exercise. We had fully laden packs even though we had no intention of camping.

This is a good beginners walk because the track is in quite poor condition in some places so it does test you. We took a few wrong turns in the scrub, make sure you read the trail notes properly:) & got a bit lost coming up from lake eckerley so we had to trailblaze through the scrub.

A good one day walk to see if this is your thing
Veeta - Perfectly accessable walk IP:211.30.1.xxx | 2009-10-02 10:23:32
This was a great walk. I left at 2pm from Heathcote and made camp at sundown (6) at Kingfisher. The water makes a very refreshing and relaxing end or start to a day.

I too got lost and had to retrace and search for the trail. :oops:

Thoroughly enjoyed it and love this website- a great resource. Congrats.
Veeta - Perfectly accessable walk IP:211.30.1.xxx | 2009-10-02 10:24:12
This was a great walk. I left at 2pm from Heathcote and made camp at sundown (6) at Kingfisher. The water makes a very refreshing and relaxing end or start to a day.

I too got lost and had to retrace and search for the trail. :oops:

Thoroughly enjoyed it and love this website- a great resource. Congrats.
Bill - Most enjoyable IP:211.29.181.xxx | 2010-01-24 03:37:39
Did this walk yesterday and the day before with my 11 y.o. son. Track notes were excellent - thanks!
The track from Battery Causeway to Kingfisher Pools is clear but overgrown in many places, so the estimated times were a bit quicker than we experienced. Course it might have also been that it was about 40 degrees which also slowed us down!
Highly recommend the side trip to Lake Eckersley - perfect for a swim and a really magical place.
This is the second overnight trip I've done with the Wildwalks track notes - thanks for a great service!!
admin - re: Most enjoyable Super Administrator | 2010-01-27 03:23:08
Bill wrote:
so the estimated times were a bit quicker than we experienced.
....
This is the second overnight trip I've done with the Wildwalks track notes - thanks for a great service!!

Hi Bill,
thanks for the feedback. I am looking at ways to improve 'intra' walk time estimates. The are sometimes to short rougher terrain, thanks for letting me know about this one.
Thanks to for your kind words about Wildwalks, glad to hear you like it.
Matt :)
Andrew - good 'test' overnight walk IP:202.53.198.xxx | 2010-02-01 03:38:50
Did this walk last weekend (30/31 Jan) with a group - some of us had prior overnight hike experience, some none at all.

Most of the track was pretty easy to follow, the occasional ribbon in the trees (especially near the start) was helpful.

We did get a bit "lost" on day 2 at where the trip notes say "(Ignore minor, faint tracks on the left.)". We thought maybe the "long rocky hill" referred to the service road, which (very near where our track met the service road) certainly looked like a "long rocky hill".
Anyway we went to the end of the service road (not too far) and reviewed maps more carefully, and upon back-tracking found the arrow and "w/fall" painted markers. Probably we'd taken one of the "minor, faint" branches off to the left of the track we were supposed to be on.

Having the camp site close to the end gives the (dis?)advantage of being able to decide not to camp, as did one of our first-timers who decided that hiking/camping wasn't really their thing.

"Lake" (?) Eckersley side trip provided a nice spot for lunch. Kingfisher Pool was great for a swim to cool off after setting up camp.
admin - re: good 'test' overnight wa Super Administrator | 2010-02-01 05:43:39
Andrew wrote:
We did get a bit "lost" on day 2 at where the trip notes say

Hi Andrew
Hope you guys had fun.
Thanks for the feedback.
Sorry for the extra detour. I reviewed our notes & photos and updated the notes. I think it should be clearer to follow the narrower track now. (I do not have a photo of the "w/fall" painted marker though. - please have a read and let me know if it better now.
Andrew wrote:
(dis?)advantage of being able to decide not to camp

It is a funny feeling, that itchiness to get home when close to the road. I suffer from that sometimes on longer walks.
Andrew wrote:
"Lake" (?) Eckersley

A wider section of the river, is that you point here?? -

Again thanks for the feedback
Happy walking
Matt :)
Andrew - re: re: good 'test' overnigh IP:220.233.189.xxx | 2010-02-03 10:12:58
admin wrote:
Sorry for the extra detour. I reviewed our notes & photos and updated the notes. I think it should be clearer to follow the narrower track now. (I do not have a photo of the "w/fall" painted marker though. - please have a read and let me know if it better now.

Yeah that looks much better. The w/fall marking is pretty faint, probably best to leave it out.

admin wrote:
Andrew wrote:
"Lake" (?) Eckersley

A wider section of the river, is that you point here?? -

Again thanks for the feedback
Happy walking
Matt :)


Yeah some of the group were protesting that it wasn't a lake by their definitions. We all agreed it was a nice spot anyway :)

Thanks for the notes, got us out of the house for a weekend :)
admin - re: re: re: good 'test' over Super Administrator | 2010-02-03 21:23:52
Andrew wrote:
Yeah that looks much better.

Great - thanks Andrew for your feedback and review.
The use of the word Lake is similar to the use of Mount. I like in the 'shadow' of Joe's Mountain (Hornsby) that reaches and alt of 165m towering almost 100m above the valley floor.
Matt :)
Mick - GPS IP:148.195.135.xxx | 2010-03-02 00:41:08
Did the track on the weekend, with all the recent rain there is heaps of vegetation at the moment. A few mice kept us entertained during our nights sleep. For more info and track details visit

http://www.everytrail.com/view_trip.php?trip_id=516180
Nicole - Heart breaker IP:220.233.225.xxx | 2010-04-11 02:55:28
Hubby and i took this trip yesterday. I am in sooo much pain. We left heathcoat at 10 am and couldnt find the campsite. Poorly marked trails. found later on that some track signs were broken off and tossed into bush. We got to waterfall very much disheartened that we didnt get to camp. did see the odd snake slithering along side of us and got attacked by leaches while resting on a rock. At the end of the trail we saw a sign pointing to Kingfisher pool 1.6kms. I was not about to get lost in the dark again trying to find it so we came home. Needs more markings as many parts of the track is very much over grown!!! was very disappointing. Prefered 6 foot track to cox's river and back!
admin - re: Heart breaker Super Administrator | 2010-04-11 12:33:58
Nicole wrote:
Poorly marked trails. found later on that some track signs were broken off and tossed into bush.

Hi Nicole
Sorry to hear of the discouraging time that you had. If you don't mind, can you let me know where the signs were missing, so that I can update the notes, and let the rangers know.
Hopefully your next walk will be better.
Thanks
Matt :)
Pete - Nicole's Hubby's notes IP:220.233.225.xxx | 2010-04-12 02:36:11
We found the sign that was meant to be a Python's Gully just past the rock river crossing. I can't believe someone went through that much effort to move a large wooden sign!
We also couldn't see a Bullawarring Track signpost at the battery causeway, so we didn't realize that we were supposed to take a different track from the causeway to the Goanna track. We went to Lake Eckersley, and had to trail blaze back up the hill because the trail was so overgrown we couldn't find it!
Also we didn't know we were supposed to walk back to the causeway to continue the walk (is that correct?). Instead we continued south along the pipeline road. We found a metal bridge over the pipeline which had a sign saying Goanna track and followed that up the hill.
We finally got to the intersection of the Goanna Track and Bullawarring Track, so we continued following the sign to Waterfall.
The trail from here is very much overgrown so we copped a lot of face whipping from the shrubs and this also slowed our progress down to about 2km/hr and it was almost dusk. The Mooray Track sign was missing so we kept following the track till we reached the crossing at the rocks.
It was starting to get dark at this point so thankfully the white painted track markers were reasonably visible on the rocks, and the occassional pink tree marker helped us find out way. We saw the immediate right hand turn marker, but it is from here that I am not sure if we ended up on the wrong track. We couldn't find an immediate left turn marker! I'm not sure if this was due to a combination of overgrown trees and it being dark, but we had powerful headlights on, and are not sure if we simply missed it or if it was obscured. We did end up climbing up several rock formations, but nothing quite like what has been described in these notes.
We couldn't see any signs to Kingfisher pool camping ground, and the trail got very dense and difficult to find. We were getting ready to call for search and rescue (thankfully our phones had service) but every now and then we'd find a white line painted onto a rock, or a pink ribbon to show us the way. We heard several animals travel through the bush (assumed they were kangaroos when they didn't answer our calls) so we kept walking extremely slowly up the long hill, almost blindly with the overgrowth. I had a stick in one hand to move the spider webs, and a knife in the other in case something came at us from the bush that we weren't expecting. After bout 2 hours there was a "W" paint marking on a rock leading us to the right. We ended up at a powerline tower, so after checking the map we realised that we'd probably missed the campsite somehow, and possibly ended up on another trail. There was a sign pointing to "waterfall" so we followed that through some dense bush for a while and came to a dirt road. We weren't sure where to go from there so we went north up the road and came to a locked gate. We went past that and started seeing house lights. Eventually we came to another gate and saw a sign pointing downwards to the south to get to the Kingfisher Pool campsite. So we must have come up some other track.

I apologise for the long post, but we were thouroughly tested and would like someone to follow this up if possible. It would be good to have the track cleared and perhaps add a few more tree markers, and distance indicators. As we ended up walking in the bush at night, we could have easily ended up in trouble and I would like to ensure no one else goes through what we did. I would also like to attempt this walk again once it has been confirmed that the trail has been cleared.
I'm not sure how accurate the distance and timing indicators are in these notes as we took far longer, and it seemed a lot further. This could also be because of the overgrowth, but I notice other people have made similar remarks. Thank you very much for this service and we look forward to seeing your reply.
admin - re: Nicole's Hubby's notes Super Administrator | 2010-04-12 09:01:47
Pete wrote:
We found the sign that was meant to be a Python's.....

Hi Pete
Thanks for the comment. Sorry to hear you had such a tough time. Sounds like things have changed alot since we last walked it (about 2yrs ago). I am away at the moment, but will be back in the office next week. I will have a look then, and try to chat with the ranger.
admin - Missing signs?? Super Administrator | 2010-04-19 01:11:04
In response to Pete and Nicole's Comments
I spoke with Bill (ranger for park) at NPWS this morning. He said that a few weeks ago the signs were in place, but reminds us that they are a bit tricky to spot. He is going to get someone to check the signs are still in place. I have updated the notes to mention the signs where reported missing and described the intersections in more detail to help people if they can't find the signs.
Thanks
Matt :)
Pete - MIssing signs?? And overgrown IP:220.233.225.xxx | 2010-04-20 01:48:27
Thanks for the update Matt. I'm not sure if the sign at the causeway was missing or just hard to see. Now with the updated notes, knowing where to look for the sign may help.

We are still keen to try again, but did the ranger mention anything about clearing the trail to make it easier to navigate?
Joanne - 2nd Baulkham Hills ventures IP:144.132.129.xxx | 2010-10-31 03:59:09
Hi there,
Sent 10 scouts on this hike over the weekend, there still seems to be a problem with either the track notes or the signs posts with the same mix up at the intersection of battery and mooray, where they took a track that headed too soon up to Mooray eg further north. They had maps and easily back tracked and found kingerfisher on the next track along. The that track notes are great but always carry a map (as you state on wild walks). They had a great time and getting temporarily displaced yet finding the way is a good learning experience. Thanks for the site, it is a fabulous resourse for finding great places to walk.
admin - re: 2nd Baulkham Hills venture Super Administrator | 2010-11-01 01:12:16
Joanne wrote:
there still seems to be a problem with either the track notes or the signs posts with the same mix up at the intersection of battery and mooray,

Hi Joanne
Thanks for your kind words about wildwalks. Glad your scouts had a good time, and glad they managed to work out their detour. I am hoping to get back in there early-mid next year to update the notes. Thanks for the feedback.
Matt :)
Carla IP:220.244.23.xxx | 2012-11-26 00:07:20
Hi - we just did this walk too.

We did the detour to Lake Eckersley for lunch. A ranger told us not to double back to the causeway, and instead if you keep following the pipe along the service road you will come to a metal staircase over the pipe - this is the Goanna Track, and you can keep following it over the ridge and eventually rejoin the Bullawaring Track at the signposted intersection of the 'Goanna Track' mentioned in the tracknotes.

We, and a lot of the posters above, also ended up taking the Mooray Track straight up to Waterfall, instead of staying on the Bullawaring Track.

Python Gully had water in it when we did this walk, which led us to think we were futher along the tracknotes than we actually were.

also, that first intersection with the Mooray Track also has a 'Waterfall' arrow on a 'Mooray Track' sign, again making us think we were further along than we actually were!

although we knew there was a fair chance we were on the wrong (i.e. Mooray) track, there are also a fair number of painted track markers, boulders and rock platforms on that track as well. By the time we were sure we'd taken the wrong track we knew we were then only 1.5kms or so from waterfall, so decided to just walk out anyway instead of doubling back to find the campsite.

still a nice walk, and keen to do it again and take the right track to the campsite.
Molly - Track conditions March 2013 IP:129.78.233.xxx | 2013-03-08 03:22:42
Just to say that the track conditions and signage are pretty good now. While there's still lots of undergrowth, it's not as bad as it was. There hasn't been any trimming or anything, but it looks like a lot of people have been using the track so it's nearly impossible to lose. All the signage is in place at each junction - the only place you could go wrong now is in the descent from Waterfall to the creek, where the path has split a couple of times. As long as you find that rock on the firetrail with 'Heathcote' on it, you'll be fine. Amazing swimming at the moment (deep clear warm water), in the Kingfisher and at the Causeway, as well as over in Lake Eckersley/Woronora.
Naj IP:58.106.252.xxx | 2013-04-07 01:07:02
I am planning to go for this walk have in few weeks, I had experience of camping and walk, just like to know can I use water for drink/cook from pool/?? At camp site, so can avoided to a take extra load. What will be other short walk from camp site (return). Any other suggestion re welcome please.
Admin - Water IP:211.30.210.xxx | 2013-04-08 22:26:35
Hi Naj
If you sterilize the water (boil or other treatment) then it is good for drinking. You can do a loop around Lake Toolooma at the southern end of the walk if you want to extend this one.
Matt :)
Hugh IP:115.64.73.xxx | 2013-04-24 07:13:11
Hi..thanks for this site - a great resource.

I did this walk April 2013 with three kids 14,12,10 and we had a great time. It was their first experience of an overnight camp.

Most of the walk was pretty close to the track notes except:

* we missed the turn off at the causeway completely and instead walked up the road to the detour to Lake Eckersley, then along to the Goanna Track turn off at the metal staircase over the pipe. (see post above for more on this sidetrack).

* we had a lot of trouble finding the creek crossing to the Kingfisher pool campground. I *knew* from the track notes it had to be around there somewhere and luckily we happened to stop at that opening in the track for a rest - the kids went exploring and happened upon the track going east up to Kingfisher. It was merely luck we found it. It'd be good if someone make this intersection more obvious.

* where the 'Bullawarring Track - Waterfall' track meets the service road (@ ~9.33 km) we came onto the road about 100m west of where you intended so the painted arrow on the rock steps was not visible. As there was no way to "continue straight" we ended up walking up and down the service road until we found it. I think the issued here is that there is a earlier track which meets the description "...track then lends slightly to the left and heads up the hill to an intersection with a service trail..." - this was ok in daylight but if you were getting here in the evening I think this would be very difficult to find.

thanks for a terrific site,

H
Jason - Advice and Ranger Contact IP:115.187.249.xxx | 2013-07-31 07:36:44
I'm considering doing this walk at some point in the next few weeks.
You advise contacting a Ranger before setting off - how is this done?
Also, any extra advice (I am not from round here...)
Jason - Did it anyway... IP:115.187.249.xxx | 2013-08-05 06:55:17
Just did the tail end of this walk, with an overnight at Kingfisher. Great spot, but the dunny had been vandalised.
Difficult to spot trails initially, but then, I am not used to the australian bush.
Still a good peaceful escape!
Kappy - Unclear tracks and instruction IP:120.151.131.xxx | 2014-04-22 04:36:01
Did this track over the weekend and the track was good and easy to follow until we got to the intersection, we ended up going up the mooray track across the creek rather then following the bullawaring track and ended up lost in the thick scrubs up on another rock platform, we just backtracked however with a compass and eventually made it back to the intersection and followed the bullawaring track after reading the instructions multiple times that we need to follow the bullawaring track, awesome camping spot however and enjoyed our camp. the other obstacle was at the 9km mark on the 3rd service trail it took us a while to find the way up. otherwise great walk!
Ben - Start on the Friendly Trail IP:59.167.239.xxx | 2014-08-16 12:31:02
This walk should start on the 'Friendly Trail', entered via the perimeter of the Scout Camp/Training Centre:
http://www.openstreetmap.org/node/20919308#map=18/-34.08644/151.00161&layers=C

It's a much nicer walk than scrambling down into the gully from the power line towers.
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