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Tag: Sydney Harbour

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Hermitage Foreshore Walk Sydney Harbour

Hermitage Foreshore Walk at Vaucluse on Sydney Harbour

Running from Hermitage Reserve to Nielson Park, the Hermitage Foreshore Walk is a great way to take in Sydney Harbour and views to the city. In addition, you pass several historical houses, which are worth a visit if opened.

How to Get There

We walked from Vaucluse House and started the track at Strickland House, however if you want to use public transport, bus 325 has several stops along Vaucluse Road. For the return trip, bus 325 will take you either back to the start, or to Watsons Bay Wharf where you can catch a ferry.

Strickland House

We started the walk about halfway at Strickland House. This historic residence originally called Carrara was built in the mid-nineteenth century. The house has passed through many owners and is now owned by the New South Wales Government. Strolling around the grounds gives you an idea of the lifestyles of those who used to live here. The views over Sydney Harbour are amazing.

Unfortunately access into the house is not available, but you are able to walk around the outside.

Strickland House
Strickland House
Rear of Strickland House
Rear of Strickland House

The Foreshore Walk

From Strickland House, we followed the Hermitage Foreshore Walk, starting at Milk Beach. The boardwalk was in very good condition and made the walk easy, although in several places we did have to walk on sand and watch for incoming waves.

The views over the harbour are spectacular, with the bridge and Opera House visible at times. We even saw a seaplane taking off from Rose Bay.

Easy walking on the boardwalk Hermitage Foreshore Walk
Easy walking on the boardwalk
Weathered boulders on the Hermitage Foreshore Walk
Weathered boulders on the Hermitage Foreshore Walk
Weathered boulders on the Hermitage Foreshore Walk
Weathered boulders on the Hermitage Foreshore Walk
View across the Sydney Harbour
View across the Sydney Harbour
View across Sydney Harbour to the bridge Hermitage Foreshore Walk
View across Sydney Harbour to the bridge
View across the Sydney Harbour with a seaplane about to take off
Sydney Harbour with a seaplane about to take off
View across the Harbour to the city with a seaplane taking off
View across the Harbour to the city with a seaplane taking off

Greycliffe House

The walk finished at Nielsen Park, where you will find Greycliffe House. Tours of the house need to be booked through NSW Parks and Wildlife. You are able to walk around the outside of this neo-Gothic Victorian house and it’s gardens. Even from the outside it looks impressive.

Greycliffe House
Greycliffe House

What did We Think?

This was a pleasant and easy walk, with amazing views of Sydney Harbour, with several historical house to see along the way. Only a short (but uphill walk) from here is Vaucluse House which is open to the public.

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

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Sawmillers Reserve on Sydney Harbour

Wrecked Barge at Sawmillers Reserve

Sawmillers Reserve on Sydney Harbour

Located in the Sydney suburb of Waverley, Sawmillers Reserve is a beautiful park with an industrial heritage. For 100 years from 1880, the area housed a sawmill, but is now a leafy park on Sydney Harbour. Not only are remnants of the sawmill visible, but a ship wreck sits on the harbour foreshore.

Getting There

Public transport is a great option when visiting here, because parking is limited. We used the train, getting off at North Sydney Station before walking ten minutes to the reserve. On the way we stopped at a little coffee shop, before continuing.

Alternatively, it’s only a 10-minute walk from McMahons Point Ferry Wharf, giving another easy way to get here.

Ruins at Sawmillers Reserve

The reserve contains the remains of the sawmill, which have been placed together by artist Jane Gillings. The ruins draw attention to the changing use of the site from industrial, to open public space.

Remains of the Timber Yard at Sawmillers Reserve
Remains of the Timber Yard

Ship Wreck

The wreck of a Marine Service Board Hopper Barge lies just offshore, making an excellent backdrop to Sydney Harbour. Now slowly rusting away, the barge broke its moorings in the 1960s, before grounding in Berrys Bay off Sawmillers Reserve. This barge was used to carry dredged material out to the spoil dumping grounds off Sydney, but is now a heritage listed wreck.

Wrecked Barge at Sawmillers Reserve
Wrecked Barge on the Foreshore

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

Our photos are available for purchase on

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Ballast Point Park Sydney Harbour

Tank 101 which symbolises the site's working harbour history

Ballast Point Park

Getting There

Located near Balmain Ferry Wharf, the easiest way to get to Ballast Point Park, is ferry. When you arrive, check out the old ferry wharf building, which is now a community library. Originally a fuel storage area, Ballast Point is now a beautifully rehabilitated public space on Sydney Harbour. Intended for sale to developers but saved by a community action group, which resulted in its current use as a public park.

Balmain Ferry Wharf
Balmain Ferry Wharf

Mort’s Dock

Walking from the ferry to the park, we walked past a memorial to one of Sydney’s ship building docks. Now filled in, Mort’s Dock was the first dry dock in Australia, operating from 1855 until its closure in 1959. Between 1940 and 1945, Mort’s Dock constructed fourteen of the sixty Bathurst-class corvettes built in Australia during the war, as well as four of the twelve River-class frigates. The memorial commemorates their construction and service in the Royal Australian Navy.

  • Mort's Dock
    Mort’s Dock
  • Mort's Dock Plaque
    Mort’s Dock Plaque
  • View of Mort Bay
    View of Mort Bay
  • Sandstone Wall on Mort Bay
    Sandstone Wall on Mort Bay

Ballast Point Park

Deriving its name from colonial times, when ships returning to England empty would source ballast here, Ballast Point Park is now a beautiful park overlooking Sydney Harbour. Previous owned by Texaco, it was planned to develop the area for housing, but a local action group convinced the State Government to retain it for public use.

The site required decontamination because of its industrial past. Retaining walls in the park re-used rubble from the demolished buildings. Several old fuel tanks remain, as a reminder of the area’s past use, along with information boards describing the fuel depot. Scattered throughout the park, shade structures, provide great places to sit and relax, while admiring the views over the harbour.

We enjoyed walking around here, especially the old tanks and the conversion of tank 101 into a huge piece of artwork.

  • View of Sydney Harbour From Ballast Point
    View of Sydney Harbour From Ballast Point
  • Ballast Point Park Tank 101 which symbolises the site's working harbour history
    Tank 101 which symbolises the site’s working harbour history
  • How Ballast Point Looked as an Industrial Site
    How Ballast Point Looked as an Industrial Site
  • Ballast Point Park Remaining Fuel Tanks
    Remaining Fuel Tanks