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Cockatoo Island Sydney Harbour

Cockatoo Island Sydney Harbour www.destinationsjourney.com

Cockatoo Island has a long history from its aboriginal heritage and convict use to its ship building past. All of these are on display at the island so that visitors can appreciate its varied and important history.

Getting There

Access to Cockatoo Island is easy using Sydney Ferries from Circular Quay.  The ferry terminal on the island is close to the information centre. This is a good place to make your first stop. The staff there will give you a free map as well as direct you to any specific place of interest you want to see.

Near the information centre is a café which has magnificent views across Sydney Harbour and towards the bridge. It’s a great place to sit and relax while soaking up the peace and quiet there.

Exploring Cockatoo Island

The first place we decided to explore was the upper part of the island, which we accessed by climbing a stairway. This area has old convict ruins consisting of the guardhouse and convict barracks. After looking though these we walked past some of the historic buildings there and walked through the ship building museum. This detailed Cockatoo Island’s ship building history and importance to the Australia particularly during World War Two

Guard House Cockatoo Island Sydney Harbour www.destinationsjourney.com
Guard House
Historical Building Cockatoo Island Sydney Harbour www.destinationsjourney.com
Historical Building

Ship Building

Back down at the lower level of the island we saw the old slipway where ships were built and launched. Several of the old cranes are still there although looking very rusty.

Old Crane Cockatoo Island Sydney Harbour www.destinationsjourney.com
Old Crane

Nearby are the remains of old workshops and machine rooms. These are large impressive buildings, now empty but a reminder of what once happened here.

Old Machine Shop Cockatoo Island Sydney Harbour www.destinationsjourney.com
Old Machine Shop
Disused Workshop Cockatoo Island Sydney Harbour www.destinationsjourney.com
Disused Workshop

Another interesting place was the tunnel under the hill. You can walk through it from one side of the island to the other. Fully lit, it was fun to walk through.

Tunnel Cockatoo Island Sydney Harbour www.destinationsjourney.com
Tunnel

Getting back to Circular Quay was easy as there is an electronic time-table at the wharf showing when the next ferry is due.

Cockatoo Island Waterfront Cockatoo Island Sydney Harbour www.destinationsjourney.com
Cockatoo Island Waterfront

Entry to Cockatoo Island is free, so for the price of the ferry ticket you can have a full day’ enjoyment here.

For other ideas about what to see in Sydney, read some of our other posts.[ctct form=”41″]

Sandstone Caves Pilliga National Park

Sandstone Cave Sandstone Caves www.destinationsjourney.com

You will find the Sandstone Caves on the Newell Highway just north of Coonabarabran in the Pilliga National Park.   To get to the Sandstone Caves, follow the Yaminba Trail signpost. This will take you to a car park where you will find a map board showing you the local walks available.

The well-formed tracks take you around the sandstone outcrop that the caves are located in. As well as the caves  the sandstone has eroded into some fascinating shapes. Several of the caves are sealed off to protect aboriginal artifacts, such as grinding grooves and rock carvings. There are boards explaining the importance of these artifacts to the local indigenous groups.

We took around 45 minutes to walk around the track at a relaxed pace. there were some steps to climb but overall it was an easy walk, highly recommended.

Eroded Sandstone Sandstone Caves www.destinationsjourney.com
Eroded Sandstone
Sandstone Cave Sandstone Caves www.destinationsjourney.com
Sandstone Cave
Sandstone Caves www.destinationsjourney.com
Grinding Grooves
Sandstone Cave Sandstone Caves www.destinationsjourney.com
Sandstone Cave
Eroded Sandstone Escarpment Sandstone Caves www.destinationsjourney.com
Eroded Sandstone Escarpment

For other places to visit in New South Wales, please read some of our other stories.[ctct form=”41″]

Maitland Bay Track Bushwalking and a Shipwreck

Walking Track Maitland Bay Track Bouddi National Park

The Maitland Bay Track is in the Bouddi National Park near Gosford on the New South Wales Central Coast. This is one of many walks available locally. We chose this one because it goes down to a beautiful beach with some amazing rock formations.

Maitland Bay Track Information Centre

The car park is large but becomes full on busy days. Nearby is a visitor centre which has information about the local area, from the bush walks available to the local fauna and flora. At the back of the building is a room with the history of the SS Maitland , which sank here on May 6, 1898. Of the 36 passengers aboard the Maitland, 24 lost their lives.

SS Maitland Memorial

Outside the information centre is a small memorial to the Maitland and those who lost their lives.  The centre piece of the memorial is the Bell from the Maitland.

Bell from the SS Maitland Bay Maitland Bay Track Bouddi National Park
Bell from the SS Maitland Bay

Maitland Bay Track

The Maitland Bay Track starts from the car park and then descends down a series of pathways and steps to the beach.  Rated grade 3, the track is well maintained, but you will need a reasonable level of fitness at the track is quite steep. Over its one kilometre length, the track descends 146 metres.  This might not sound like much until you have to walk back up.

Bush Walking Track Maitland Bay Track Bouddi National Park
Bush Walking Track
Walking Track Maitland Bay Track Bouddi National Park
Maitland Bay Track Steps Going Up

The scenery as you walk along the track is very nice Australian bush, with eucalypts and ferns everywhere. 

Maitland Bay Beach

The walking track ends at Maitland Bay Beach. This is a lovely sandy 500m long stretch of beach that is great for a swim or relaxing on. Have a look at the rocks and small cliff faces and you will find some interesting weathering patterns.

Maitland Bay Beach Bouddi National Park
Maitland Bay Beach
Rock Weathering Maitland Bay Track Bouddi National Park
Rock Weathering
Rock Weathering Maitland Bay Track Bouddi National Park
Rock Weathering
Waves at Maitland Bay Beach Bouddi National Park
Waves at Maitland Bay Beach
Honeycomb Rock Weathering Maitland Bay Track Bouddi National Park
Honeycomb Rock Weathering

At the north end of the beach is Bouddi Point.  This is the area where the SS Maitland came to grief. We had a look and could not see any wreckage. The volunteer at the Information Centre told us later that it would have to be a very low tide to see much. Still, the rocks were fun to climb over.

Bouddi Point Maitland Bay Track Bouddi National Park
Bouddi Point
Bouddi Point Maitland Bay Track Bouddi National Park
Bouddi Point

Walking Back to the Car Park

The walk back up took us twice as long as walking down because of the uphill grade. We decided to take a detour along the Bouddi Coastal Walk, which takes off to the left as you go uphill.  There was some really nice coastal views along this walk and made the detour worthwhile.

We enjoyed the Maitland Bay Walk and will be going back to walk some of the other tracks in the area.