Where

Bomaderry Creek Regional Park in South Coast

Distance

3.9km loop

Time suggested

2 - 3hrs

Grade

Grade 3

What to
bring

Sunscreen, hat, drinking water

Please note

Remember to take your binoculars if you want to birdwatch.

For some decent exercise and a couple of hours of absorbing the delights of Bomaderry Creek, take the She-Oak crossing walk. This trail makes the most of the natural wonders of the park; the hidden gorge with its rock faces and tumbled boulders, the cool rainforest and softly running water, are the perfect accompaniment for this tranquil walk.

Setting out from Bomaderry Creek picnic area you will wander beneath rock overhangs, stride out on the heath, enjoy the wildflowers and keep an eye out for orchids sprouting from the rock crevices. You’ll enjoy the birdlife and be sure to watch the creek for fish as they dart through the rock pools.

Best of all, you can enjoy this two-hour walk during any season. Winter is a pleasant time of year on the NSW South Coast and this shady pocket provides shelter, even on hot sunny days.

Take a virtual tour of She-Oak crossing walk captured with Google Street View Trekker.

For directions, safety and practical information, see visitor info

Visitor info

Maps and downloads

Learn more

A gorge of rainforest and sandstone

Bomaderry Creek has forged in the landscape a winding, cliff-lined gorge with sandstone outcrops and great slabs of fallen rock. The gorge not only looks dramatic, but also protects a diverse and beautiful environment, making it a wonderful spot to visit.

Aboriginal cultural experience

Bomaderry Creek contains several sites of importance to its original inhabitants, and you're likely to see evidence of Aboriginal heritage such as rock shelters and axe-grinding grooves during your visit. The shade and abundant water and fish this unique place offered provided a welcoming environment for its dwellers, and it's full of stories of the past. Archaeological evidence and sites across the gorge country indicate that for the last 2000 years the park saw a diversity of use: for seasonal food gathering and possibly for ceremonial and social activity.

Precious resources

The water was important to European settlers as well as Aboriginal people. In 1938, a weir was built on Bomaderry Creek to provide the first reliable water supply for the town of Bomaderry. When the weir waters were no longer needed for town water, a section of the weir was taken out to allow Australian bass and other fish free movement along the creek in a fishway. You can see the weir from the lookout near the picnic area.

Rare plants

A walk through this lovely park in spring will reward you with the sight of an array of beautiful wildflowers. You'll find this small park surprisingly rich with threatened plant species, including the endangered Guinea flower, the vulnerable albatross mallee, and Bauer's midge orchid. But perhaps the most unique plant that calls this park home is the endangered Bomaderry zieria - it only grows within the park and surrounding bushland and nowhere else in the world. The park is also alive with animal activity - Australian bass and other fish use the fishway in the weir to travel upstream. Threatened species found here include the glossy black cockatoo, masked owl and yellow-bellied glider.