The coastal walk to Eagle Rock is a spectacular highlight of The Royal National Park

Eagle Rock is a large sandstone overhang in the Royal National Park, south of Sydney. It has the shape of an eagle’s head, with a beak, eyes and mouth on display.

Visitors are greeted with a sign depicting the shape of Eagle Rock when they drive into the Royal National Park from the south (Otford in the south) or from Sydney in the north via Sir Bertram Stevens Drive.

The only way to reach the eagle is by foot and it takes at least an hour and up to an hour and a half to walk to it depending on how often you stop and your walking speed.

And there are no shortcuts back!

Eagle rock can be accessed from the coastal track starting at either Garie Beach (south of the rock) or Wattamolla Beach (north of the rock).

Alternatively walkers can take the Curra Moors firetrail and head overland from Sir Bertram Stevens Drive.

As you approach Eagle Rock from the North you will see a large rectangular protruding block of sandstone.

The top of the rock is relatively flat and the rock looks rectangular in shape.

To see the rock from the south side it is necessary to cross Curracurrong Creek and if you look at it directly from the other side of the bay it is indeed very different.

You will now enjoy the view of an eagle’s head. There is no rectangle.

Weathering and erosion processes have carved out a shape that resembles the head of an eagle although some visitors see a less glamorous turtle’s head. We are going stick with an eagle’s head!

It is quite perplexing that from one angle you see a rectangle whilst from another angle you have the head of an eagle.

The first two photos below show the rock from the north and the third and fourth photos are taken from a southern vantage point.

If you proceed further south (80 metres or so) to the next waterfall which flows from Curra Brook, the rock changes again and it begins to lose its eagle shape.

Whilst on the topic of protruding rocks with facial features another overhanging rock has been identified in the Royal National Park.

The relative (fifth photo) is not as pretty as Eagle Rock but there are some distinct features: a forehead, eye, flattened nose or beak and a mouth.

Grumpy rock?

The final two photos are of a wedge tailed eagle, taken at nearby Symbio Wildlife Park.

Eagle Rock from the north looks to be just a protruding rectangular rock

close up

what a turnaround

celebrating the eagle

Grumpy rock

Wedge tailed eagle at Symbio Wildlife Park

a noble and beautiful bird

Forest Track

Sydney Nimble has added a new bush walk to its Royal National Park Tour.

Unlike some of our coastal walks through heathland (Wedding Cake Rock and Eagle Rock), the Forest Track offers a chance to see a very different environment in the national park.

Part of the walk is through a forest whilst the second half moves into a rainforest.

The track is a loop track so you finish within 50 metres of where you started. The track takes the rough shape of a loop as it follows and stays inside of Bola Creek and the Hacking River.

The range of vegetation is diverse and interesting.

There is a small patch of large Gymea Lilies where the sword like leaves are exceptionally high. Can’t wait for these plants to bloom with long shoots and wonderful red flowers on the end.

There are many cabbage tree palms of varying sizes, some as high as 25 metres, maybe more. Sorry didn’t bring the tape measure!

One of the real treats is coming across tall red cedar trees.

These trees were saved from loggers in the 1920s after community protest. In view of the high value of the timber from red cedar trees the trees were known as red gold. There’s gold in them there hills!

Attached to some trees are epithytes, which are plants that do not put down roots on the ground but instead have roots located on another plant or tree.

This allows the epithyte to exist closer to the forest’s canopy and obtain access to better quality light.

Unlike a parasite an epithyte does not take nutrients from the tree. It will instead rely on airborne nutrients, rain for water and compost on tree branches to survive.

Two attractive epithytes that can be seen on the Forest Track are the bird nest and staghorn ferns (first two pictures below).

There is fungi (check out third photo), lichen and much plant life to see when you walk through the rainforest: bright green moss on logs and boulders, epithytes, hollow trees, ferns, palms, eucalypts, casuarinas, red cedar trees and lianas.

Lianas are long stemmed woody vines that use trees and other means to make there way upwards to the rainforest canopy in search of sunlight.

if you are lucky you may come across a lyre bird whilst walking on the forest path.

Lyre birds are a native Australian bird which have the incredible capacity to mimic other birds and animals. They have also been known to imitate human sounds and sounds made by machines.  

The Forest Track takes around an hour and half to walk and Sydney Nimble is delighted to include it in our Sydney Tours.

high and healthy staghorn ferns

thriving bird nest ferns

Fungi (Hygocybe erythocrenata) encountered on the Forest Track

dont trip on the liana, it moves for no one

lyre bird on the move

hollowed out tree

tall timber