Jibbon Head & The Balconies - The Royal National Park

This map was created using GPS Visualizer's do-it-yourself geographic utilities.

Please wait while the map data loads...

Route: Bundeena, Jibbon Beach, Jibbon engravings, Jibbon Head, Jibbon Loop Track, The Cobblers, The Balconies, Wedding Cake Rock Track, Bundeena

Date: 22/05/2021
From: Bundeena

Parking: Bundeena
Start Point: Bundeena
Finish Point: Bundeena
Region: Royal National Park

Route length: 5.0 miles (8.1km)
Time taken: 02:50
Average speed: 2.4mph
Ascent: 278m
Descent: 271m

Points of Interest: Jibbon Beach, Jibbon Engravings, The Cobblers, The Balconies

Royal National Park (or 'Nasho' to some) is located just south of Sydney. The 150km2 national park is the oldest in Australia having been founded in 1879. In fact, only Yellowstone in the US is older internationally, having been founded a few years earlier. While most of Royal National Park consists of open areas of bush, the coastal cliffs are spectacular and make for some fine hiking. Being close to the city means the national park can be easily accessed by public transport.

From our parking space close to the Wedding Cake Rock Track, we headed northwards into Bundeena towards Jibbon Beach. The beach, a superlative stretch of sand, derives its name from the indigenous Dharawal word djeebahn, which means ‘sandbar at low tide'. There is a 3,000-year-old midden (essentially a waste tip) that stretches the entire length of the beach.

Jibbon Beach

Jibbon Beach looking across Port Hacking towards Cronulla

Jibbon Beach

The shell midden along the beach

Port Hacking

Jibbon Beach

At the far end of the beach is a rock shelf with some steps carved into it, cut by European settlers who lived in the bush right up until the 1970s. A path leads through the Banksia trees to a clearing marked by some information boards and steel sculptures. This clearing was an ancient Dharawal campsite - the Aboriginal people who call the area home.

The Aboriginal campsite

Heading back into the bush again, we followed a well-signed path to a large exposed slab of rock with a viewing platform. Here you will find some well-preserved Aboriginal carvings which are over 1,000 years old. The engravings include depictions of Daringyan the stingray, Biame the Creator and Marloo the kangaroo - all of which have cultural significance.

The engravings site

Biame the creator

Daringyan the stingray

We returned to the track which took us past Little Jibbon Beach to Jibbon Head and a panoramic view of Port Hacking from Port Hacking Point. It's hard to believe that this slice of nature is geographically part of Sydney - home to some 5 million people.

Port Hacking Point

Little Jibbon Beach

The eastern side of Port Hacking Point

Shelly Beach

A path follows the coast giving intermittent views of the sea through clearings in the bush. At Shelley Beach, an overgrown path leaves the Jibbon Head Track, heading for the cliffs. While there is no path to speak of here, the flat rocks of the clifftops are a delight to walk along with interesting views at every corner. While many of the cliffs here are un-named, Cormorant Rock is marked out on some maps though it is difficult to determine exactly what it is.

The loop track heads inland a short distance

Cliffs of Royal National Park

Royal National Park

Looking south along the coast

The route along the cliff top is largely trackless

Cormorant Rock

Cormorant Rock

Eventually, we found our way to The Cobblers, a flat cove beneath the cliffs accessed by an awkward, eroded path.

Royal National Park

Approaching the Cobblers

The Cobblers

The Cobblers

The flat, sea-worn rocks of The Cobblers

After a short climb back up from the cove, we reached the top of the Balconies, the beginning of a long stretch of bare cliff top, which has created a series of irregular layers of sandstone that jut out over the Tasman Sea. For us, the majority of the Balconies is a trip for another time as we were starting our route back to Bundeena.

Starting back toward Bundeena

We left the clifftop through the bush along an overgrown path. Typically this isn't an issue though the leaves and branches brushing against you always stir thoughts of Australia's wildlife - snakes and spiders to be more precise.

The path leads to one of the many fire tracks that criss-cross the state and we were suddenly faced with large groups of tourists. The fire track is the main hiking route to one of Royal National Parks most-photographed spots - Wedding Cake Rock. Again, one for another time for we were heading in the opposite direction.

A distant Sydney

Looking over Port Hacking

The fire trail back to Bundeena

The wide fire track took us back to a parking area just off the streets of Bundeena where we had left our car earlier in the day. You can extend this hike to Wedding Cake Rock and Big Marley Beach, which are two great additions, however, the best way to see Royal National Park is the full Coast Track - you can read about that here.

Caves Beach & The Wallarah Coast

This map was created using GPS Visualizer's do-it-yourself geographic utilities.

Please wait while the map data loads...

Route: Caves Beach, Caves Beach Road, Stinky Point, Spoon Rocks, Quarries Head, Pinny Beach, West Pinny Trail, Southern Headland Trail, Shark Hole Trail, Shark Hole, Middle Camp Inlet, Catherine Hill Bay

Date: 06/03/2021
From: Caves Beach

Parking: N/A
Start Point: Caves Beach
Finish Point: Catherine Hill Bay
Region: Wallarah National park

Route length: 3.2 miles (5km)
Time taken: 02:28
Average speed: 2.3mph
Ascent: 192m
Descent: 192m

Points of Interest: Caves Beach, Spoon Rocks, Pinny Beach, Catherine Hill Bay

We spent some time in 2020 camping along the shores of the Central Coast and enjoyed our stay so much we decided to head back. That time we had a look around the caves of Moonee Beach within the Munmorah State park. There are more caves to be found along the coast and I set out to find them, concocting a route between Caves Beach and Catherine Hill Bay, though part of the Wallarah National Park.

After being dropped off in the large car park, I made my way down to Caves Beach - aptly named after the string natural sea caves that can be explored at low tide. I hadn't actually known too much about the caves so it was lucky that it was low tide when I arrived. I spent a few minutes exploring the caverns before backtracking to the beach and climbing a set of wooden steps to a viewpoint at its southern end which has an excellent view of the caves.

Caves Beach

Waves roll onto Caves Beach

The sea caves of Caves Beach

Inside the largest of the caves

Entrance to the caves

Caves Beach 

Looking south along the coast

Sea caves

A path continues through the bush, running parallel to the coast where it emerges on Cave Beach Road. Another paved track heads downhill below the cliffs to the beach at Stinky Point on the north side of Spoon Rock Bay. The bay has been created by a long rock spit, built by a mining company for coal transportation - a venture which never came to fruition. The spit remains, however, and has created the perfect sheltered beach.

Looking back towards Caves Beach

Spoon Rock Bay from Stinky Point

Heading down to the beach

The path crosses the beach where the spit joins the land and squeezes its way under the cliffs, past boulders that look like they have recently fallen. It then climbs a fire trail a short distance before cutting up the hillside to another lookout. From here, it is easy to see the influence of Spoon Rocks in sheltering Spoon Rock Bay.

Below the sea cliffs at Spoon Rock Bay

Spoon Rocks

The view towards Quarries Head

A recent rockfall on the path to Quarries Head

Spoon Rock Bay

I continued southwards following the coast to Quarried Head, a rocky point overlooking the beautiful Pinny Beach and the Southern Headland, both parts of Wallarah National Park. A muddy track snakes its way down to the beach from here. 

Waves crash against the Wallarah National Park cliffs

Quarries Head

Quarries Head

Pinny Beach

After crossing a footbridge over a small lagoon, I entered the Wallarah National Park for an abrupt change of scenery. Gone were the sweeping coastal views, replaced with lush Australian woodland. The path follows the murky creek for a short distance before turning 180-degrees onto the West Pinny Trail, a broad fire trail that climbs up towards the Southern Headland. A triangular track does a circuit of the headland and is worth the short detour.

Pinny Creek

Pinny Creek

The West Pinny Trail

West Pinny Trail

Views from the Southern Headland

A short distance further is Shark Hole, arguably the beginning of my favourite section of this hike as it enters the Munmorah State Conservation Area. Shark Hole itself is a large sheltered ocean inlet, surrounded by rocky cliffs but its most remarkable feature is the long, deep incision into the rocks. The fissure is only 1.5m wide but up to 7m deep or more and is seemingly accessed by a shaky-looking ladder at the top. I thought about venturing down but decided against it, being on my own.

Shark Hole

Shark Hole

Access to Shark Hole

The path descends steeply around Shark Hole before it peters out. The remaining few kilometres of this hike would be along the rocks and sands of Catherine Hill Bay. The flat coastal rocks are a joy to hike along and the scenery is pretty impressive too.

Shark Hole

Shark Hole

The entrance to the Shark Hole fissure

Heading south towards Catherine Hill Bay

The rocks below Baldy Cliff

The waves crash against the coast

Rocks beneath Baldy Cliff

Catherine Hill Bay

I reached another fissure a short distance later, not half as impressive as Shark Hole but barring the way nonetheless. Bypassing it requires hiking steeply up the grassy slopes, emerging at a more formed trail and then descending again to Catherine Hill Bay Beach where I had agreed to be picked up. Unfortunately, the car park is some 1.5km away at the southern end of the beach and hiking along the sand is hard work. 

Middle Camp Inlet - a fissure in the cliffs

Middle Camp Gully

Catherine Hill Bay, named after a ship that ran aground in 1867, is a historic mining village while the beach has been named as one of 'Australia's 100 Best Beaches'. Its defining feature is the old coal transfer jetty which is a magnet for landscape photographers (though I didn't quite make it that far).

Catherine Hill Bay

It had turned pretty cloudy by the time I reached the southern end of the beach, which was just as well that I was finishing my hike here, having had the best of the weather in the morning. If you feel so inclined, you could continue hiking from here to Moonee Beach and Ghosties Beach, the latter also features an impressive sea cave. For me though, it was back to the campsite for a few well-earned beers.