Strap on your stinger suit, fire up an e-bike, and leave the mainland behind—Magnetic Island is calling. Step off the ferry and straight into a sun-drenched tropical playground where World War II history meets wild koalas, stunning granite headlands, and secluded golden bays. If you are ready to trade the everyday for a rugged coastal adventure on Queensland's ultimate island escape, here is everything you need to know about tackling the iconic Forts Walk.
The Forts & Florence Bay
📍 MAGNETIC ISLAND NATIONAL PARK
Distance6.2 km
Duration03:03 hrs
Elev Gain+308 m
Elev Lost-308 m
Date
05 January 2024
Starting Point
Forts Junction
Difficulty
Moderate
Pace / Gear
4.0 km/h — Light day pack, plenty of water
Highlights
The Forts, Florence Bay
🗺️ Interactive Route MapPinch or use wheel to zoom
Just a short 20-minute ferry ride off the coast of Townsville lies Magnetic Island, a sun-drenched tropical sanctuary where pristine coral reefs meet rugged granite headlands and dense eucalypt forests. Floating comfortably within the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park, "Maggie" is renowned for hosting one of Australia's largest free-roaming koala populations alongside an incredible network of coastal walking trails.
From the fascinating World War II ruins and 360-degree lookouts of the iconic Forts Walk to secluded, palm-fringed bays like Radical and Balding, the island offers an unmatched blend of wildlife encounters, wartime history, and coastal adventure.
Magnetic Island
Townsville
Making the most of our time on the island, we opted for a fun and fast way to explore by hiring electric bikes from Magnetic Island Roaming. Capable of hitting speeds up to 50 km/h while remaining fully road-legal, these nifty ebikes let us zip around the winding coastal roads and easily access the island's top highlights. While zipping along at those speeds on two wheels can take a little getting used to—and might feel a bit unnerving at first—they ultimately turned getting from trailhead to beach into an absolute blast.
Our electric bikes and a traditional moped for scale
One of the absolute highlights of Magnetic Island is The Forts Walk, the island's most popular trail, which showcases its finest attributes, including sweeping views over the beautiful Florence Bay. If you fancy a refreshing dip in the bay after exploring the historic wartime ruins up top, do remember to swim safely: dangerous stinging jellyfish ("stingers") are more prevalent during the warmer months, and sharks can be present in the waters at any time of the year.
⚠️ Swimming Safety Warning
If you fancy a refreshing dip in the bay after exploring the historic wartime ruins up top, do remember to swim safely: dangerous stinging jellyfish ("stingers") are more prevalent during the warmer months, and sharks can be present in the waters at any time of the year.
While marine stingers may be present throughout the entire year in tropical Queensland, the risk associated with potentially dangerous jellyfish are higher during the ‘marine stinger season’ that typically runs from November through to May.
During these months, it is strongly advised to swim only within enclosed stinger nets or wear a protective lycra stinger suit.
After collecting our bikes and having the briefest of test rides (just enough to make sure we stayed upright), we rode them to the trailhead at Forts Junction, a handy little hub on the eastern side of the island along the main road linking Arcadia and Horseshoe Bay. It is easily reachable by bus if you prefer public transport, too. At the start of the trail, you will find a couple of informative display boards and an all-important water fountain—vital, given how intensely hot Magnetic Island can get, so always make sure you pack plenty of water if you are tackling the tracks during the summer months.
The Forts Junction
From the hub, the initial stretch of the walk is fairly gentle, leading you towards Arthur Bay Lookout before gently climbing to a water tank tucked away on the hillside. This provides a brilliant opportunity to top up your water bottles from the large storage tank—a welcome pit stop, seeing as much of the track leading up to the historic forts is completely exposed to the sun and steadily uphill.
Arthur Bay Lookout
Arthur Bay
Views from The Forts Track as you climb towards the top of the hill
After passing the water tank, the track starts to climb more seriously until it reaches a flat, more open area which was once home to the soldier's encampment. Several side tracks lead to interesting areas, all marked by boards or posts.
The encampment area is one of the best locations to find the resident Magnetic Island koalas, basking in the trees. Magnetic Island has one of the most visible populations in Australia, though they can still be elusive. We tried and failed to spot one while we were passing through.
The fort complex was constructed in 1943 during World War II to protect the Townsville harbour and town from a feared Japanese invasion of Australia as Japanese forces moved south through the Pacific islands. Townsville was the major supply depot for Allied troops in the southeast Pacific and a staging post for troops moving north into the war zone. Fortunately, the war ended before the guns were ever fired in anger.
The gun emplacements at the forts
Views over Cleveland Bay
The main focus of the site comprises the weathered concrete structures perched atop the hill, which formerly served as the observation post, command post, and range finder for the heavy gun emplacements. While the main Forts Walking Track leads right up to these fascinating historical structures, exploring them is technically optional. Reaching them requires a fairly steep final climb, but the effort is richly rewarded with sweeping, panoramic views right across the island and the chance to wander through genuine wartime history.
The climb to the forts is quite steep
Magnetic Island
The observation post
The view from the observation post
Looking towards the observation post and Cleveland Bay from the command post
Magnetic Island viewed from the command post
Florence Bay
Panorama from the forts - its strategic importance is clear to see
The command post
A newly built track to Florence Bay starts on the north side of the forts complex and descends some 200m through the bush to Radical Bay Road and then to Florence Bay itself. The bay is the perfect place to take a break after hiking to the forts. It has a small coral reef tucked inshore, making it a popular diving and swimming spot. Florence Bay’s status as a Marine Park also ensures that the ecology of the bay remains largely intact.
The Florence Bay Track - it involves many steps
Florence Bay
Florence Bay
Florence Bay
Getting ready for a dip in Florence Bay
Florence Bay – note the full-body stinger suit
Colourful seaweeds in Florence Bay
A Bluespotted Fantail Ray
After a refreshing swim, resplendent in our skin-tight stinger suits, it was time to wrap up the forts hike with the least interesting section along Radical Bay Road back to Forts Junction. The road offers very little shade, meaning it can trap the heat intensely, and there is a fairly steep climb waiting for you towards the end—you will certainly thank yourself if you managed to save a bit of water from the beginning of the trek. Eventually, we made it safely back to Forts Junction and our trusty e-bikes, thoroughly sweaty but deeply satisfied after a brilliant day out exploring.
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