The walk from Evans Lookout takes a very scenic route down into the valley before returning along the scenic Cliff Top walk. The track takes in a wide variety of vegetation as it changes altitude. Be sure to keep your eyes open for the colourful fungi along the track, and the ferns attached to the cliff wall. If it is a hot day there is opportunity to cool off with water near junctions rock.
Cross sectional view of the Evans Lookout to Junction Rock bushwalking track
Analysis and summary of the altitude variation on the Evans Lookout to Junction Rock 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
6 hrs 30 mins
.
Grade 4/6
Track: Hard
AS 2156.1
Gradient
Very steep (4/6)
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 (such as cliffs not fenced, significant creeks not bridged) (4/6)
*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
5km of this walk has short steep hills and another 5km is very steep. The remaining (90m) has gentle hills with occasional steps.
Quality of track
6km of this walk follows a formed track, with some branches and other obstacles and another 4.9km follows a rough track, where fallen trees and other obstacles are likely. The remaining (250m) follows a clear and well formed track or trail.
Signs
6km of this walk has directional signs at most intersection and another 4.8km has minimal directional signs. The remaining (250m) is clearly signposted.
Experience Required
Around 7km of this walk requires some bushwalking experience, whilst the remaining 3.5km 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
6km of this walk has limited facilities (such as not all cliffs fenced) and another 4.3km has limited facilities (such as cliffs not fenced, significant creeks not bridged). The remaining (310m) is close to useful facilities (such as fenced cliffs and seats).
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(0 km)
Evans Lookout car park
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Evans Lookout Track: Moderate - bushtrack
Length = 82 m
Time = 3 mins
Climb = 0 m
Descent = -20 m
From the information sign at Evans Lookout car park, this walk follows the 'Evans Lookout' sign down the steps. The track passes a stone shelter on the right as it reaches the railed lookout.
Evans Lookout
Alt = 951 m
Evans Lookout, Blue Mountains National Park, looks over the spectacular Grose Valley, with its deep gorges, green forest and prominent cliff lines. The fenced lookout is at the end of Evans Lookout Road. There is a rock shelter hut and toilets.
(0.08 km)
Evans Lookout
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Beauchamp Falls Track: Hard - bushtrack
Length = 1.48 km
Time = 54 mins
Climb = 32 m
Descent = -298 m
Turn sharp right: From Evans Lookout, the walk heads down the steps, passing the 'Grand Canyon' sign. From the bottom of the cliff stairs, the walk tends left onto the spur where it continues downhill and weaves past some boulders to a signposted intersection. Veer right: From the intersection, the walk heads down the stairs into the gully following the Neates Glen and Grose Valley signs. The walk winds down the hill for approximately 100m to a railing. From here, the walk continues down the other side of the gully, winding down the hill for a short while. The walk then continues down the right-hand side of the gully to drop onto the creek with a signposted rock in the middle. Veer left: From the intersection, the walk follows the signs to 'Rodriguez Pass' around the canyon side, with the creek on the left. After about 200m, the track crosses the creek. The walk follows the white arrows painted on the rocks winding down between, around and under large boulders for approximately 100m. The track then heads out of the pass, keeping close to the cliff line before winding down the hill to Beauchamp Falls.
Beauchamp Falls
Alt = 683 m
Beauchamp Falls, Blue Mountains NP, is a beautiful set of falls, split by the rock in the centre of the creek. The falls are created by Greaves Creek, which comes out of the Grand Canyon, above. The falls are approximately 10m tall, with rocks at the base.
(1.56 km)
Beauchamp Falls
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Govetts and Greaves Flats Track: Hard - bushtrack
Length = 1.78 km
Time = 58 mins
Climb = 10 m
Descent = -309 m
Continue straight: From Beauchamp Falls, this walk heads down the hill keeping the valley on the right. The track winds through and around boulders to then meander with the hillside. The track winds for some time before descending more steeply, passing a section of rock overhangs which litter the ground with blocks of sandstone. The track passes this area and continues more steeply to a railed section of stairs which drop to a creek, which it crosses to the other side. Continue straight: From the creek bank, this walk crosses to the other side of the creek. The track then turns left, heading downstream, following blue signposts and white arrows down the valley. The track soon passes a boulder with a large plank underneath it, set up as a seat, before passing a large mossy boulder. Approximately 300m on, the track passes another large mossy boulder with a white arrow at the bottom of the stairs. The track then continues down the hill, crossing the creek to a small clearing next to the creek, in which the track turns right and undulates across the hillside. The track drops into a few creek beds before climbing down a few stairs to an intersection at a campsite on the right.
(3.34 km)
Govetts and Greaves Flats
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Junction Rock Track: Hard - bushtrack
Length = 1.52 km
Time = 30 mins
Climb = 31 m
Descent = -60 m
Continue straight: From the intersection to the camp area, this walk heads downstream along the creek flats, below on the right of the track. The track then leaves the creek flats to wind and undulate higher on the hillside for approximately 600m, passing a few clearings with fireplace on the left. The track passes a brown arrow with 'Horse Track' scratched into it, and soon after comes to an intersection with a sign, with an arrow pointing back to 'Grand Canyon'. Continue straight: From the intersection, this walk heads downstream following the sign to 'Junction Rock'. The track soon passes a small clearing before climbing higher on the creek bank. After some time undulating, the track comes back onto the creek flats and continues to a section of cliffs on the left. The cliffs are passed by the track across the rockshelf next to a pool in the creek. The track soon turns left to Junction Rock, in the middle of the creek after the rock shelf.
Junction Rock
Alt = 361 m
Junction Rock, Blue Mountains NP, is a rock situated in the middle of the Govetts Leap Brook and Govetts Creek junction. The rock is signposted, giving directions to Evans Lookout, Neates Glen, Acacia Flats and the Blue Gum Forest. Junction Rock is a great place for lunch and a swim in summer.
(4.87 km)
Junction Rock
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Bottom of Govetts Leap falls Track: Moderate - bushtrack
Length = 2.35 km
Time = 1 hr 15 mins
Climb = 390 m
Descent = -22 m
Turn left: From Junction Rock, the walk follows the 'Govetts Leap' sign, soon crossing the brook. The track then follows the brook for approximately 150m, to another creek crossing. The track continues, with the creek now on its left, for approximately 60m, before crossing back to the other bank. The track continues for approximately 1km with the creek to the right, and undulates steeply in sections between magnificent waterfalls. A section of track traverses a rock shelf for a short stretch, before continuing to wind up and down (with the creek to the right) to a few sets of steeply-cut stairs. From these, the walk continues to wind over hills to a creek crossing. The track then heads up the spur, winding between views of waterfalls, before tending left further up the hill. The walk leads up the winding steps for some time, until crossing the creek at the bottom of a waterfall cascading off the large cliffs - Govetts Leap falls.
Govetts Leap (falls)
Alt = 894 m
Govetts Leap, is a waterfall in the Blue Mountains National Park. The fall is fed by Govetts Leap Brook which runs over the cliff into the Grose Valley. The falls are best viewed from Govetts Leap and Barrow Lookouts. Leap is a scots dialect word for cataract or waterfall.
(7.22 km)
Bottom of Govetts Leap falls
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Govetts Leap Lookout Track: Hard - bushtrack
Length = 606 m
Time = 42 mins
Climb = 305 m
Descent = -61 m
Continue straight: From the bottom of Govetts Leap Falls, this walk heads north-west, following the blue signs up the hill. The track zigzags its way steeply up to a wall of rock covered by moss, ferns and grasses. The track passes along the base of this cliff to a metal staircase, passing through the rock. The track continues to wind steeply below the cliffline, passing two lookouts before coming to the signposted intersection. Continue straight: From the intersection, this walk follows the sign to 'Govetts Leap carpark' up the stairs. The walk zigzags up the hill before tending left to the signposted intersection. Turn left: From the intersection, this walk heads across the grassed area towards a platform structure. The walk climbs some stairs onto Govetts Leap Lookout, with its great views and sandstone monuments.
Govetts Leap Lookout
Alt = 975 m
Govetts Leap Lookout is named after the first white man to have come to the spot, William Govett, as an assistant surveyor in June 1831. Govetts Leap Lookout offers scenic views over the Grose Valley and the spectacular Bridal Falls. The lookout is easily accessed from the car park, which has toilets and picnic facilities.
(7.83 km)
Govetts Leap Lookout
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Braeside Walk North Track: Hard - bushtrack
Length = 621 m
Time = 15 mins
Climb = 17 m
Descent = -82 m
Continue straight: From the intersection, the walk heads up the hill, following the sign to 'Evans Lookout' and keeping the Grose Valley below on the left. The track rises for approximately 400m and then heads down the hillside. The walk zigzags down the hill, with stairs, and then crosses a creek with cement steppingstones, coming to a signposted intersection on the other side.
(8.45 km)
Braeside Walk North
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Barrow Lookout Track: Hard - bushtrack
Length = 79 m
Time = 2 mins
Climb = 5 m
Descent = -2 m
Turn left: From the intersection, this walk heads up the winding stairs towards the cliffs. The soon comes to the railed Barrow Lookout, where there is a bench seat.
Barrow Lookout
Alt = 910 m
Barrow Lookout, Blue Mountains National Park, looks down to Govetts Leap falls and across the Grose Valley. The lookout is fenced and has a bench seat to rest.
(8.53 km)
Barrow Lookout
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Evans Lookout toilets Track: Moderate - bushtrack
Length = 2.1 km
Time = 53 mins
Climb = 165 m
Descent = -104 m
Continue straight: From the lookout, this walk heads up the stairs, keeping the valley below on the left. The walk winds up the stairs for quite some time, then flattens out along the cliff top. This walk continues along the flat for approximately 100m before climbing up more stairs for approximately 200m, to a bench seat at the intersection. If the track begins to descend after the bench seat, then you have gone too far. Veer left: From the intersection at the bench seat, this walk heads down the hill, with the valley on the left. The track flattens out for approximately 100m before swinging right, into a gully. The track climbs out of the gully and continues to undulate around the hillside for approximately 500m. The track then descends steeply into 'Haywards Gully' which has a boardwalk bridge. This walk follows the wooden boardwalk for approximately 30m, then continues along a flat, dirt track for approximately 60m. The track then climbs up the hill for approximately 100m to Evans Lookout car park.
(10.62 km)
Evans Lookout toilets
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Evans Lookout car park Walk: Easy - bushtrack
Length = 55 m
Time = 1 mins
Climb = 0 m
Descent = -1 m
Turn left: From the car park, the walk heads to the other end of the car park (towards the lookouts), to the intersection on the left of the information sign.
Hayward Gully
Alt = 931 m
Hayward Gully, Blue Mountains National Park, is named after the first white man, William Hayward, to reach the floor of Govetts Gorge, in 1847. The area is a small gully along the Cliff Top Walk between Evans Lookout and Barrows Lookout. The gully is a quiet place, with a bench seat to enjoy the flora and fauna, and views through the trees into the Grose Valley.
Fire Danger This walk passes Greater Sydney Region fire area which currently has a NONE rating and No Ban in place. (Downloaded 50 minutes ago) Please Note: Each park may have its own fire ban status, this rating is based on information from the RFS and BOM.
Blue Mountains National ParkLink to official closures and fire bans page Attracting over 3 million visitors annually, Blue Mountains National Park holds some of Australia's most spectacular and diverse wilderness areas. Explore the Grose Valley, with its sheer sandstone cliffs, waterfalls and scenic walking, or enjoy the famous views of the Three Sisters. Easy access makes a day trips very worthwhile, but with such diversity it would be great to stay in one of the many B&B's and spend a few days soaking up the region. Region: Sydney & Surrounds Park feesCampingFacilities Current Park Closure information for Blue Mountains National Park Closure information last downloaded Thursday 20th of June 2013 10:00 AM CLOSED AREAS ATTENTION Katoomba Walking Tracks The following walking tracks in the Katoomba area will be closed on Thursday 20thJune 2013 due to helicopter lifting in materials for the repair of the Prince Henry Cliff Walk between Cliff View Lookout and Lady Darley’s Lookout:
Federal Pass (from Katoomba Falls [Cook’s Crossing] to intersection with Dardanelles Pass below the Three Sisters.
Federal Pass from Golden Stairs intersection, below Narrow Neck, to the Scenic Railway bottom station.
Prince Henry Cliff Walk between Cliff View Lookout and Lady Darley’s Lookout
Glenraphael Drive at Narrow Neck will also be closed at the national park boundary – 1.5km from Cliff Drive. There will be no access to Narrow Neck for vehicles or pedestrians. Access to and from Scenic World will be open via Furber Steps. ATTENTION Wentworth Falls Tracks
The following tracks will be closed on Friday 21st June due to helicopter lifting materials to the Den Fenella Walking Track for track upgrade work. National Pass Wentworth Pass Vera Falls Undercliff track Den Fenella track Rocket Point
Wentworth Falls Picnic Area, lookouts and the following tracks will remain OPEN:
Valley of the Waters to National Pass junction
Nature Track
Short Cut Track
Princes Rock Lookout
Princes Rock track (Undercliff Track to Wentworth Falls).
Queens Cascade
Fletchers Lookout
Wentworth Falls to Rocket Point Junction Claustral Canyon access change
Access to Claustral Canyon via the usual route across private land at Mount Tomah is no longer possible due to landholders denying access. NPWS has sought alternative access through private land without success. Canyoners should respect the rights of Mount Tomah residents and avoid using private land.
Alternative access and parking from the west side of Mt Bell has been approved. For details please contact the NPWS Heritage Centre, phone 02 4787 8877; open seven days 9.00 am to 4.30 pm. Ingar camping areas - Ingar campground
Vehicle access along Ingar Road may be closed at the end of Queen Elizabeth Drive while private property development works are underway. NPWS requests that visitors respect private property closures.
When the gate is closed Ingar Camping Area will remain open to walkers who access around the private property. Walking distance approximately 13kms. Murphys Glen camping area closed - Murphys Glen campground
Murphys Glen is closed due to road damage and facilities maintenance. Wentworth Falls walking tracks
The Undercliff and Overcliff tracks are closed between Princes Rock access and Lyrebird Lookout due to recent landslides. This means visitors doing the National or Wentworth Pass loops will need to return via the Shortcut Track. The Den Fenella walking track will be closed 7 days per week during upgrade work which commenced 31 January 2013. The Den Fenella lookout remains closed due to structural damage on the bridge. All enquiries to the Blue Mountains Heritage Centre on 02 4787 8877.
Locations affected:Overcliff-Undercliff track, Den Fenella walking track
Unfortunately this walk is no longer possible due to the closure of the Rodriguez Pass track between Grand Canyon and Junction Rock. The ranger I spoke to (12/4/09) said the path was closed due to extensive rock falls at Beauchamp Falls and was unaware of any plans to reopen it.
A similar walk can still be undertaken via Horse Track. NWPS have put new signs up. Horse Track was up until recently sign posted with Track Closed (mostly ignored). New signs indciate experienced walkers only. I found the track easy to follow but you must know what you're doing. You turn off on the descent down from Evans and do not go as far as the Canyon. Track follows a different spur and cuts out Beauchamp (as Rodriguez pass is closed). Horse Track is in a similar position to the non-highlighted dotted line on Map of Walk tab. Take plenty of water on a hot day, maybe even powerade or similar, and usual precautions. Limited to no mobile signal in valley.
Walked this on Monday last with a mate. Fantastic overall, but the climb from the valley floor back up to Evans LO is fraught with unevenly spaced and sized irregular rock steps that seem to go on forever. I'm fit, but had a hard time going up. Still, done in 6.5hrs with an hour's worth of breaks, including a much needed half an hour float in one of the rock pools halfway up to Evans LO - to regain some energy! Highly recommended if you like a bit of a challenge.
Walked Evans lookout circut via Junction rock & Govetts leap. It's what's bushwalking is all about. Took 6 hrs, taking it relatively easy, stopping for lunch and a swim and looking for the track a couple of times. Great creek crossings, waterfalls, scenery. Could be forgiven thinking that it's some of the best scenery in the world.
A must do
Did this walk last weekend - beautiful scenery and a great challenging walk. The only part I struggled with was locating the track around Beauchamp Falls as it disappears when you reach the boulders (no worn ground to follow on the rocks!). I lost about 20 minutes here looking for the track - my suggestion would be to look for the piles of sticks that previous kind souls have placed to direct you, and look for what appears to be a small cave but is actually a small tunnel that you need to pass through between 2 large boulders. Inside the tunnel there is a white arrow painted on the rock but you can't see it until you get inside. Despite this slight mishap and a 20 minute break for lunch, I did this walk in 5 hours.
Did this walk on 9/3/2013 with my brother who was visiting from Alice Springs. He was really quite impressed and we thoroughly enjoyed it. The track is very hard to follow around the landslide areas of Rodriguez Pass, a copy of the track notes and map is a must ! We did this walk in 6 hrs with 3 food breaks and some faffing around the landslide. With the rain we've had lately the falls are really flowing but we were never unable to cross any of the creeks. Signage is reasonable but we nearly turned up a track that went back to Evans Lookout, it was in the section along the creek to Junction rock, it headed up and away from the creek, it's best to stay along the creek until you hit Junction Rock, you can't miss it.
I hiked Evans Lookout along Grose Valley today with final destination being Edenderry Falls. The landslide above Beauchamp Falls is still there - there's a chain-rope mounted to the cliff edge to guide you over affected area which is only 3-4m if that. Once passed that and down the cliffside, when you reach the landslide itself, there were clear white arrow markings painted on strategic boulders which made navigation down to the forest easy. [Slight-detour:- Scramble over the landslide towards the sound of the water and this will bring you to the boulders near Beauchamp Falls. Definitely worth a look. Access to the waters edge is straightforward, albeit with a bit more boulder scrambling] Once back on the main landslide, follow the white arrows on the rocks and when you reach the tree line you will see red & white plastic tape wrapped around strategic tree's along the way to guide you down further into valley floor. Beauty of this track is once you leave the Evans L.O - Grand Canyon descent/climb section you can say goodbye to most of the hikers and along the rodriguez pass you'll pretty much have the scenery and beauty to yourself.
Hiking near Sydney 
NEW
Track: Hard
1 km
not too much longer now :)