(an old post of mine from 2007)
People live in Sydney are just so lucky. There are so many magnificent walking tracks weaving in well preserved national parks and bushlands. After a whole week of busy work, you can easily clear your mind and your lung with an enjoyable walk into the bush during the weekends – keeping away from people, leaving your cares at home, without actually leaving the city – that’s the beauty of living in Sydney.
I’ve been addicted to bushwalking half year ago. Almost every beautiful Sunday morning I study the Sydney street directories to search for the target tracks I would be walking on. It’s so exciting to see the green tentacles of mother nature threading their way among building blocks, roads and railways. And looking for those dotted lines (walking tracks) to see where are they stretching to is just so fun as well.
To save time and petrol, I haven’t tried those tracks so far away from home yet, though I’m planning to. I probably can say I walked through most of the tracks in Lower North Shore area, and my most favourable tracks are all around Middle Harbour. Here are some wonderful tracks I’d love to recommend. Follow a few of them, I’m sure you’ll be bushed up too!
1 North Willoughby to Castle Cove (Harold Reid Foreshore Track --> North Arm Track --> HC Press Park)
It’s about 3 to 4 hours return depends on your speed, easy to medium going. This is the track I walked most, probably 4 to 5 times, the reason – it’s simply beautiful and close to my home. Starts from Sugarloaf Creek, the whole track is built along water – Crag Cove, Castle Cove and Sugarloaf Bay. Even though, from time to time, the scenery changes a lot, from shadowy forest to rocky seashores to marshy swamps. The birdlife is plenty, most of them I couldn’t recognise. Personally I believe two of the most exciting highlights are bird’s view the mangrove swamps and tranquil Castle Cove from Harold Reid Reserve, and some gigantic palm trees at a patch of flat grassland.
2 Two Creeks Track (Lindfield Oval --> Garigal National Park --> Roseville Bridge & Echo Point Park)
It’s about 4 to 5 hours in return, and medium going. This is possibly the most picturesque of all tracks I’ve ever been – the views across upper reaches of Middle Harbour are just spectacular. The Two Creeks Track drops swiftly away from the quaintly named Seven Little Australians Park and quickly descends into what can only be described as your cliched leafy glade territory. There are wooden bridges over babbling brooks, small waterfalls tumbling over black rocks worn smooth with age, a spooky but excitingly modern tunnel under the Eastern Arterial Road and a worthwhile climb up and into the Garigal National Park. The track follows the line of Gordon Creek until it joins Middle Harbour and then follows the main river around to Roseville Bridge and the Roseville Marina at Echo Point Park.
The Two Creeks Track passes by sandstone outcrops, magnificent wildflower displays, scenic water views and tidal wetlands. Each of these environments supports a different plant community. Within these communities there are a rich variety of textures, colours and shapes.
3 Forestville to St Ives (Carrol Creek Track --> Governor Philip Walk --> Middle Harbour Track --> The Cascades Track)
This is probably the most tranquil track I’ve ever walked. 6 hours along the way back and forth, I totally met 2 people. The first three sections of the track are all meandering along creeks. The highlight is birdlife along Carrol Creek. Not mentioning birds we can meet everyday, like cockatoos and magpies, there are various birds whose names are unknown to me. I saw a duck-like wading bird, with hooked beak tip and fan-like tail feather, standing on a boulder in the stream, seeing me passing by without moving a bit.
Water in the creek is so lively after some rain. It bounces and rushes all the way from valleys of Garigal National Park to join calm Middle Harbour.
4 Hunters Hill to Macquarie Park via Lane Cove National Park
This is a highlighted section of so called Great North Walk. The Great North Walk was a bicentennial project which opened in 1988 and runs 250km from Sydney Cove to Newcastle. From Boronia Park in Hunters Hill the well-marked trail skirts the edge of the Lane Cove River and emerges from comfortable undergrowth at the Buffalo Creek Reserve and the Magdala Park soccer fields in East Ryde before plunging under Epping Road into the southern reaches of the Lane Cove National Park. There's quite a climb over the rocky hills behind the Northern Suburbs Memorial Gardens Crematorium. From there the trail heads up into the trees and traffic suddenly drops away. Sometimes you are high above the river but at other sections the path drops down to the waterside, bringing with it a sudden musty but comforting coolness.
Diving into one of the above tracks, I’m sure you’ll be addicted too. But before departure, you’d rather tell your family and friends where you’re going, wear a pair of good hiking boots, prepare plenty water and food (if the track is long), and study your map well.
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