This is a six mile loop trail in the Bobbin Head area of Ku-ring-gai Chase National Park near Sydney, New South Wales. To get there, take the Bobbin Head Road to the North Turramurra entrance and once inside the park, turn right onto Sphinx Road where there is a car park and the famous Sphinx Memorial. This is a stone monument of a giant Sphinx carved by an injured WW1 soldier whilst convalescing in a hospital. It took him eighteen months to complete this memorial to fallen comrades and is the starting place for the trail. Note that the car park costs $12 (at the time of writing) per vehicle per day and it closes at 5.30 pm. Bobbin Head trail leads through amazing forests of tall red bloodwoods and smooth-barked apple gums, both of these trees are endemic to eastern Australia, up to Bobbin Head and the Empire Marina Bobbin Head. This is a privately owned marina just north of Sydney, there is a great cafe here for hikers and boaters to refuel. To get to the marina, which is an optional short side track, there is a gate between the marina and the trail. Be aware that this gate closes at 4 pm, and hikers can exit at any time but won’t be able to get back onto the trail after this time. Before arriving at Bobbin Head, where there are toilets and picnic facilities, check out the historic Halvorsen’s boatshed, a conserved former working boatyard owned by the Halvorsen family who occupied this site between 1939 and the 1970s. The family built 237 vessels during the Second World War for the Allied forces. This well-marked trail with its changing elevation affords some lovely views of Cowan Creek and the different rock formations along its shores. The trail is graded as being of medium difficulty, for more information on how we grade trails, please click here. Not suitable for wheelchairs or pushchairs; there are many steps and steep gradients. Dogs are not allowed on the trail and NSW National Parks are no smoking areas. The collection of firewood is also not permitted. Expect this trail to take around 3.5 hours to complete, although again, caution is advised on trail times as this depends on multiple variables. For more info, click here.
