Bushwalking on the Lady Carrington Drive to Palona Cave

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Lady Carrington Drive to Palona Cave

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Bushwalking track notes, photographs, maps and more for Lady Carrington Drive to Palona Cave are found in each of the tabs below

Lady Carrington Drive to Palona Cave

Time:	2 hrs Walking time Includes the time for the return leg Please allow extra time to rest and to explore	7.4 km S of Heathcote
Length:	5.1 km Walk Length As this is a return style walk, the 5.1 km includes the return leg of this walk (ie back to the start)	Royal National Park
Climb:	178 m
Style:	Return

Following the historic Lady Carrington Drive much of the way, this walk heads north until turning off the wide trail. Here the heads along a narrow track to a beautiful limestone cave. In typical sandstone country, Palona Cave's different geology makes it well worth the visit. There is a beautiful cascading waterfall just near the cave to add even more variety. Just a bit north of the turnoff this walk describes a side trip to an old picnic area, a nice cool and shaded spot to rest.

Map of Walk

Location

Sponsor of Lady Carrington Drive to Palona Cave bushwalking tracknotes

Map of Lady Carrington Drive to Palona Cave
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Map Scale

1 km

Base maps are used under licence and is © Department of lands Panorama Avenue Bathurst 2795 www.lands.nsw.gov.au

Maps that cover the walk area (please always carry maps of the area)

Print a map and track notes here

Otford

1:25 000 Map Series

NSW-91294S

Port Hacking

1:100 000 Map Series

9129

Photo Gallery




	Lady Carrington Drive gate, Sir Bertram Stevens Dr end




	Sign beside Lady Carrington Drive




	Southern end of Lady Carrington Drive




	Lady Carrington Dr near the Wallumarra Track




	The old Lady Carrington Dr




	At Int of Lady Carrington Drive and Walllamarra Bushtrack




	Sign near Bola Creek Picnic area




	Lady Carrington Drive north of Forest Path intersection




	Lady Carrington Dr




	Palona Caves Int




	Track to Palona Cave as it leaves Lady Carrington Dr




	Palona Brook




	Palona Brook Picnic Area




	Track to Palona Cave




	Rock Formation en route Palona Caves




	The track to Palona Cave




	Narrow Section of track




	Palona Cave




	Palona Waterfall




	Palona Waterfall




	Palona Cave




	Inside Palona Cave




	Inside Palona Cave




	Limestone formations

Terrain

Please note: This is a 'return' style walk and therefore these graphs only show the terrain for the first half of the walk (until the turn around point.)

Cross sectional view of the Lady Carrington Drive to Palona Cave bushwalking track

Cross Section of the Lady Carrington Drive to Palona Cave bushwalking track

Analysis and summary of the altitude variation on the Lady Carrington Drive to Palona Cave bushwalking track

Summary of the gradients over the the lenght of the Lady Carrington Drive to Palona Cave bushwalking track

Track Notes

Since this is a 'return' style walk once you have had enough of the walk, turn around and retrace your steps back to the start.

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Drive to Int of Lady Carrington Drive and Sir Bertam Stevens Drive

A park entry fee is required for driving into the park. You can drive or ride to the start of this walk Use these links to plan your trip to the start of this walk. Plan your trip from --> Castle Hill\|Chatswood\|Dural\|Epping\|Gosford\|Hornsby\|Katoomba\|Manly\|Parramatta\|Penrith\|Strathfield\|Sutherland\|Sydney\|

(0 km) Int of Lady Carrington Drive and Sir Bertam Stevens Drive to Int of Lady Carrington Drive and Walumarra Bushtrack Track: Moderate - servicetrail	Length = 653 m	Time = 12 mins
	Climb = 1 m	Descent = -22 m
From the car park on Sir Bertram Stevens Drive (500m north of the intersection with McKell Ave), this walk follows the Lady Carrington Drive trail through the National Park gate and down the long gentle hill. The track heads through the forest until coming to the signposted intersection with the 'Walumarra Track'.

(0.65 km) Int of Lady Carrington Drive and Walumarra Bushtrack to Bola Picnic Area Track: Moderate - bushtrack	Length = 74 m	Time = 1 mins
	Climb = 0 m	Descent = -2 m
From the intersection, this walk follows the dirt road to the north, through the forest for a short distance before bending to the right and coming down to the signposted intersection with 'The Forest Path' at the Bola Creek picnic area.

Bola Picnic Area	Alt = 35 m
Bola Picnic Area
Bola Picnic Area, in the Royal National Park, is at the intersection of Lady Carrington Drive and Forest Island Track. The picnic clearing is in a gorgeous rainforest setting, with tall trees and ferns surrounding the area. There is no car access to the picnic area. One picnic table and bench seat are provided, with no other facilities.

(0.73 km) Bola Picnic Area to Int Palona Cave Trk and Lady Carrington Drive Track: Moderate - servicetrail	Length = 1.04 km	Time = 22 mins
	Climb = 29 m	Descent = -46 m
From the intersection, this walk follows the 'Audley 9km' arrow down the short gentle slope and across Bola Creek, following the dirt road as it bends around to the left and continues up and along beside the creek. The road heads through the forest for a long while before coming to the hidden, signposted intersection with the faint 'Limestone Cave' bush track (the timber sign is not obvious, it is behind a large tree on the left, just before the signposted 'Palona Brook').

(1.77 km) Int Palona Cave Trk and Lady Carrington Drive to Palona Brook Picnic Area Optional sidetrip: Track: Moderate - servicetrail	Length = 108 m	Time = 2 mins
	Climb = 1 m	Descent = -4 m
From the intersection, this walk heads downhill along the management trail as it bends to the right. The trail soon crosses the signposted 'Palona Brook' and comes to a picnic area on the right-hand side.

Palona Brook Picnic Area	Alt = 19 m
Palona Brook Picnic Area
Palona Brook Picnic Area is found on the north side of Palona Brook along the old Lady Carrington Drive. The picnic area is home to a couple of wooden picnic tables and is next to the steep gully and culvert that Palona Brook flows through. A great spot to rest when visiting the nearby sandstone cove or walking the old road.

(1.77 km) Int Palona Cave Trk and Lady Carrington Drive to Palona Cave and Waterfall Track: Hard - bushtrack	Length = 781 m	Time = 19 mins
	Climb = 69 m	Descent = -9 m
From the intersection, this walk follows the 'Limestone Cave 1.6km' arrow along the track, heading up the hill and away from the road. The walk continues up a long hill, winding through dense forest for a short while before flattening out and continuing along the side of the hill. The walk winds through the bush and passes several rock overhangs and outcrops either side of the track, as the walk make its way along to the Palona Caves at the end of the track.

Palona Cave	Alt = 77 m
Palona Cave
Palona Cave is off Lady Carrington Drive, north of Bola Picnic Area, in the Royal National Park. Palona Cave is a large limestone overhang with a few cave decorations such as columns and stalactites. Being open to the environment, the cave has some green moss and is not reminiscent of other pristine white limestone caves. The cave is a unique feature for the area and is well worth allowing time to explore.

Palona Brook Falls	Alt = 73 m
Palona Brook Falls
The waterfalls on Palona Brook are just beyond Palona Cave. The brook is ephemeral (not permanently running), but when it is running, the waterfalls are a cool place to explore on warm days. The waterfall is made of up two main cascades, with a short landing in between. The water falls into a reasonably small rocky pool.

Drive from Int of Lady Carrington Drive and Sir Bertam Stevens Drive

A park entry fee is required for driving into the park. You can drive or ride from the end of this walk Use these links to plan your trip from the end of this walk. Plan your trip to --> Castle Hill\|Chatswood\|Dural\|Epping\|Gosford\|Hornsby\|Katoomba\|Manly\|Parramatta\|Penrith\|Strathfield\|Sutherland\|Sydney\|

Getting there

Plan your trip to the start of the walk and back from the end of the walk

Driving Directions

	To the start of the walk Drive from:		From the end of the walk Drive to:

Near by

A list of 6 walks that share part of their track with this one

Walk Name	Park	Style	Length (km)	Time	Grade	km from the start of this walk
The Forest Way Track	Royal National Park	Circuit	4.4 km	1 hr 45 mins	3 / 6	0.0 km
The Wallumarra Track to Bola Creek	Royal National Park	One way	4.7 km	1 hr 45 mins	3 / 6	2.7 km
Forest Island to Calala	Royal National Park	Return	8.9 km	3 hrs 30 mins	3 / 6	0.0 km
Lady Carrington Drive	Royal National Park	One way	9.7 km	3 hrs 45 mins	3 / 6	8.1 km
Wallumarra to Palona Cave	Royal National Park	Return	11.8 km	4 hrs 30 mins	4 / 6	2.7 km
Wallumarra Track to Forest Way	Royal National Park	Circuit	12.5 km	4 hrs 30 mins	3 / 6	2.7 km

The next 10 closest walks

Walk Name	Park	Style	Length (km)	Time	Grade	km from the start of this walk
Curra Moors car park to Garie Beach	Royal National Park	One way	4.4 km	1 hr 45 mins	4 / 6	2.8 km
Curra Moors Loop	Royal National Park	Circuit	9.2 km	3 hrs 30 mins	4 / 6	2.8 km
Garie Road to Era Loop	Royal National Park	Circuit	5.0 km	2 hrs 15 mins	4 / 6	3.1 km
Stockyard spur to Garie Beach	Royal National Park	One way	3.3 km	1 hr 45 mins	4 / 6	3.1 km
Wises Track	Royal National Park	One way	4.1 km	1 hr 30 mins	3 / 6	3.2 km
Burning Palms loop from Garawarra	Royal National Park	Circuit	8.2 km	3 hrs 30 mins	4 / 6	3.6 km
Garawarra Farm carpark to figure eight pools	Royal National Park	Return	6.0 km	2 hrs 30 mins	4 / 6	3.6 km
Garawarra Farm to Garie Beach	Royal National Park	One way	3.9 km	2 hrs	3 / 6	3.6 km
Couranga	Royal National Park	Return	9.8 km	4 hrs 30 mins	4 / 6	3.6 km
Lake Toolooma Trail	Heathcote National Park	Circuit	6.4 km	2 hrs 30 mins	3 / 6	3.6 km

Campsites in the park
Bonnie Vale camping ground
North Era camping ground
Uloola Falls camping ground

Nearest know Outdoor Stores near the start of this walk

Store	Address	Phone	Distance (straight line)
Engadine Disposal & Outdoor Centre Pty Ltd	1042 Old Princes Hwy, Engadine	(02) 9520 3367	9.4 km
Paddy Pallin Adventure Equipment	587 Kingsway, Miranda	(02) 9525 6829	14.4 km
Boots Great Outdoors	23 Koonya Cct, Caringbah	(02) 9542 8988	15.8 km
Onrope	11 Nelson Ave, Padstow	(02) 9709 6299	23.7 km
Dans Caravans	422 Hume Hwy, Yagoona	(02) 9790 7047	26.8 km

A list of the nearest UHF CB repeaters I found to Lady Carrington Drive to Palona Cave.

Channel	Call sign (more info)	Site	Distance and dir from Lady Carrington Drive to Palona Cave Click to re-center search
3	VMG3	Mine commsite WESTCLIFF COLLIERY	21 km (to the WSW)
1	SYD01	12/14 Ormonde Parade HURSTVILLE	21 km (to the NNE)
7	SYD07	7 Glamorgan St BLACKTOWN	42 km (to the NNW)
5	SYD05	Sydney Adventist Hospital 185 Fox Valley Rd WAHROONGA Emergency use only	46 km (to the N)
8	ROB08	Communications Site MT MURRAY	58 km (to the SW)

Weather and Park info

Fire Danger
This walk passes Greater Sydney Region fire area which currently has a LOW-MODERATE rating and No Ban in place. (Checked 10 minutes ago)
Please Note: Each park may have its own fire ban status, this rating is based on information from the RFS and BOM.

Weather and Climate
Weather and Climate summary detailed weather and climate information here

Rain.

15.4°C (feels like 15.4°)

7 km/h from the SE (gusting 11)

92% humidity (as at 02/09:30am)

A graph displaying the average daily temperature range for the year

Royal National Park Link to official closures and fire bans page

$11
$3 to $10

Region: Sydney & Surrounds Park fees Camping Facilities

Walker Feedback

Comments

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Dylan

IP:58.172.131.xxx | 2009-11-07 07:37:47

Enjoyed the walk. Very overgrown in the section past the turnoff to the Limestone caves though, and we had a bunch of leeches on our feet and legs by the end of it at the caves.

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not too much longer now :)

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