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Tag: south coast

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Eurobodalla Regional Botanic Garden

Kangaroo sculptures

Eurobodalla Regional Botanic Garden

Nestled in the Mogo State Forest adjacent to the Deep Creek Dam, the Eurobodalla Regional Botanic Garden covers a 42-hectare site. Established in 1988 when Forests NSW provided the site to the local council, it has a visitor centre, display gardens and walking tracks. The display gardens cover 10ha of land cleared to provide material for the dam wall, effectively repurposing a bare landscape. The remaining 32ha has walking tracks that provide access to the local bushland.

Bushfires in 1994 and 2019/20 caused significant damage some of which is still visible as fire damaged trees.

Getting There

Located only 5 minutes’ drive from the NSW coastal town of Batemans Bay and just of the Princes Highway, it’s easy to find with plenty of car parking space. Entry is free which is a great bonus.

The Gardens

The display gardens exhibit plants from the surrounding area, with sea-level to sub-alpine plant species on display. This area is well paved, generally flat and its 2km are wheelchair friendly. The plants were flowering when we visited adding colour to the gardens. There are also several ponds here and if you are lucky you will see some native species. We only saw some purple swamp hens and ducks, but there are others that call the area home.

Kangaroo sculptures Eurobodalla Regional Botanic Garden
Kangaroo sculptures
Walking path through banksias
Walking path through banksias
Banksia in bloom Eurobodalla Regional Botanic Garden
Banksia in bloom
Purple Coral-pea (Hardenbergia violacea)
Purple Coral-pea (Hardenbergia violacea)
Sculpture using the trunk of a coastal grey box that was killed during the 2019/20 fires
Sculpture using the trunk of a coastal grey box that was killed during the 2019/20 fires
Pond near the eucalypt lawn Eurobodalla Regional Botanic Garden
Pond near the eucalypt lawn
Eucalyptus trees Eurobodalla Regional Botanic Garden
Eucalyptus trees
Purple swamp hen
Purple swamp hen

Forest Track

After walking through the display gardens, we headed to the Forest Track which took us through the native bushland of the area. This track is well defined but rough with several steep sections. However, it’s only 2km long with plenty of places to stop and enjoy the local bush. This track passes the dam, where a viewing platform lets you see over the dam wall and over Deep Creek Dam. With no trees on the wall or near the water, it looked very bare and no birdlife was present. This may change in the future, but we found it uninteresting (2024).

The trail through the Forest Track Eurobodalla Regional Botanic Garden
The trail through the Forest Track

What Did We Think

We loved the walk through the display gardens and native bush areas. The visitor centre has a cafe where you can relax after your walk with a coffee and snacks.

To see what else there is to do in New South Wales, please see some of our other stories.

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Horsehead Rock Wallaga Lake

Horsehead Rock

Horsehead Rock Wallaga Lake New South Wales Australia

As one of Australia’s most distinctive coastal rock formations, Horsehead Rock at Wallaga Lake is a must see if in the area. As a bonus, there are several other interesting rock formations on the same stretch of the coast.

Getting There

Located 240 km from Canberra on the New South Wales south coast, Horsehead Rock can be accessed from the Camel Rock carpark. We left out car here and walked the short distance to the beach.

Safety

There are two ways to view Horsehead Rock, either from the beach or the cliff top. It is important to only walk to Horsehead Rock from the beach at low tide, otherwise you may get stranded on the far side. Check the tide times be here.

When taking the cliff top track, be aware that it is not fenced. With soft edges and steep cliffs make it important to stay back while keeping any children well supervised.

Camel Rock and Haywards Beach

One track from the carpark takes you down to Haywards Beach. This is a beautiful sandy beach, where several people were surfing during our visit. As you step onto the beach, there is a large rock formation to your left. This is Camel Rock. We walked around it and then a little further around the headland where there are some other interesting formations. Horsehead rock can be accessed from here, but only at low tide. Unfortunately the tide was coming in, so we couldn’t get to it.

Haywards Beach
Haywards Beach
Camel Rock
Camel Rock
Haywards Beach viewed from the carpark
Haywards Beach viewed from the carpark

Cliff Top Track

Walking back from the beach to the carpark, we took the cliff top track. Several spots along the track provide great views over the beach. From here you can see why it’s called Horsehead Rock because it looks like one that is drinking with its head in the water.

Also from the cliff top, if you look left there is another formation. Called Dragon Tail rock, it looks like the tail of a huge mythical monster.

Cliff top trail
Cliff top trail
Horsehead rock from the rear and Pebbly Beach
Looking at Horsehead rock from the rear towards Pebbly Beach
Horsehead Rock
Horsehead Rock
Horsehead Rock
Horsehead Rock
Dragons Tail Rock
Dragons Tail Rock

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To see what else there is to do in New South Wales, please see some of our other stories.

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Mill Bay Boardwalk Australia

Looking over Wagonga Inlet from the Mill Bay Boardwalk

Mill Bay Boardwalk Australia

Running along the northern side of the Wagonga Inlet, the Mill Bay Boardwalk is the perfect way to appreciate Narooma. Narooma itself is located on the New South Wales south coast, around a three-hour drive from Canberra, Australia.

Getting There

Access is very easy, with a large carpark nearby. Accessible to wheelchairs, the boardwalk is flat and runs for 350m around the bay.

The Boardwalk

While walking along the boardwalk, keep a lookout for wildlife. We were lucky enough to see an Australasian Darter eating a fish it had caught. Resting on a rock not far away, a pelican was sunning itself and drying its wings.

At several places, the pathway has been widened and bench seats installed so that people can fish. This is great, because it allows room to fish, while people can walk through on the boardwalk without getting tangles in fishing lines.

This was a nice little walk with great views over the water. Worth having a look at if you are in the area.

Australasian Darter eating a fish
Australasian Darter eating a fish
Australasian Darter eating a fish
Australasian Darter eating a fish
Information board on seagrass
Information board on seagrass
Pelican drying itself off
Pelican drying itself off
Looking over Wagonga Inlet from the Mill Bay Boardwalk
Looking over Wagonga Inlet from the Mill Bay Boardwalk
Mill Bay Boardwalk
The Boardwalk
Steps leading up to Centenary Drive Mill Bay Boardwalk
Steps leading up to Centenary Drive
Bench seats and fishing spot on the Mill Bay Boardwalk
Bench seats and fishing spot on the boardwalk
Yacht moored on Wagonga Inlet
Yacht moored on Wagonga Inlet

To see what else there is to do in New South Wales, please see some of our other stories.

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