When you are a regular hiker, you seek regular change too. Even for training purposes, you want to find a new difficult track, or a new set of stairs to climb up and down on.
Central Coast is a 1 hour 30 minutes drive for us (further than all of our other options), but it’s worth the drive. It’s surrounded by Brisbane Waters National Park, Bouddi National Park, Marramarra National Park, and Dharug National Park.
So, let’s explore.
Brisbane Waters National Park
This place is gorgeous and untouched (in comparison with other national parks around Sydney). Experiencing rainforest vibes near a big city is a privilege. If you need Grade 5 hikes for training, this may be the spot.
Wish we had spent more time exploring the full-day or overnight hikes in this national park. I heard they were lovely, but we never had the time.
Piles Creek Loop
This might be my favourite hike in Sydney (including trails within a 2-hour distance away from the city)! It’s surely in my top ‘5 hikes hikes in NSW’ list. That’s a bold statement, as I don’t put short trails on my favourites list.
Fun fact: half of this trail is actually a part of the ‘Great North Walk.’
It is such a fun loop. It’s short in distance but challenging — gets you to step on square stones and cylinder stones, go under hanging wet rocks with moss, hop from one large boulder to another, cross a bridge, climb up and down some steps, explore a rich green forest, and also some dry land. It’s a mix of everything. So adventurous!
Tip: pause and have some snacks after crossing the bridge, near Piles Creek. There is a campsite nearby.
It will test your mobility if you are carrying heavy packs for training or are recovering from a knee or ankle injury (in a good way).
I’m pretty sure this is actually 5km (unlike what the NSW National Parks website shows), Grade 5, and it took us approximately 2 hours with heavy packs. The trail starts from the carpark, at the Girrakool picnic area.
More info - https://www.alltrails.com/trail/australia/new-south-wales/piles-creek-loop
We don’t take pictures during our training days. Sucks to not be able to show the cool parts of this trail.
Girrakool loop track
Similar to the Piles Creek Loop, but shorter (2km), less challenging (Grade 3), with dryer landscape, and less adventurous overall. The trail starts from the carpark at Girrakool picnic area as well, so if you’ve got the time to cover 2 trails in 1 day, go for it.
We have seen groups run this trail, which was cool and inspiring for me. For 5 weeks, David and I did these 2 trails back to back, increasing the weights of our bags each weekend.
More info - https://www.nationalparks.nsw.gov.au/things-to-do/walking-tracks/girrakool-loop-track
Bouddi National Park
If you are into coastal walks, this is a beautiful place to explore with many trails to choose from. We had a lovely relaxing weekend getaway here. If it were summer, we would have brought our swimmers too, as the beaches looked very inviting.
Bonus: the trails are close to Killcare. If you’re coming from Sydney, you’ll drive past Woy Woy and Ettalong Beach. In my experience, it’s a privilege to be able to buy coffees or smoothies and walk through a national park sipping.
Box Head Track
3km return, Grade 3 — nice, short walk with scenic views, and opportunities to explore surrounding trails. If you have the time, I highly recommend also exploring Tallow Beach (there is a campground there) and Lobster Beach (access via the Flannel Flower).
Parking is a little tricky on busy days. At the end of Hawke Head Drive, there are spots for cars to pull to the side and park, but not a lot.
This is a forest walk with narrow and uneven terrain (a mix of tree roots, rocks, soil), but the overall elevation was not much. Slight steady climb towards the Box Head Lookout, which is a large rock you stand on at a pointy nose. You’ll be able to view Tallow Beach, Pearl Beach, and the Lion Island Nature Reserve from that point.
More info - https://www.nationalparks.nsw.gov.au/things-to-do/walking-tracks/box-head-track
Bouddi Coastal Walk
17km return, this is a long hike that stretches from Putty Beach to MacMasters Beach, through fern forests, coastal rocks and scenic lookouts from boarded platforms.
It’s very picturesque, up and down with lots of stairs, but not difficult (Grade 3), and very well maintained — perfect for a weekend chat and walk. Recommend exploring during sunrise or sunset for the best pictures.
Predictably, this is a popular trail for families, hikers, campers, people out for a picnic, and trail runners. Completing this route while running has been in my mind for a long time and in June, I was ready for a 17km run. Unfortunately, 2 weeks before our weekend getaway, I injured my right knee and overly stressed the IT Band. That was really disappointing. I love being out in nature (gives me the happy hormones), so I did what I could, which was to walk half of the trail while letting David run it. I must admit though, this is a very tough trail for running, as it has a lot of stairs.
I heard from the other hikers that seals on the rocks and echidnas between the bush have been spotted numerous times. I’ve seen a few small waterfalls and frogs hanging out nearby and a mischievous bush turkey digging around.
The exposed sections of the trail get windy and direct sunlight. There were plenty of picnic areas in the shade. Putty Beach and Little Beach on the trail have campgrounds (busy, must book in advance) if you would like to carry a tent.
I really enjoyed this trail. If we ever drive past Bouddi National Park again, I will make sure to run it. More info - https://www.nationalparks.nsw.gov.au/things-to-do/walking-tracks/bouddi-coastal-walk
And here is the trail runner
Marramarra National Park
Marramarra Ridge to Smugglers Ridge walking track
13km loop, Grade 4, good for a training hike if you’ve got heavy packs on, but otherwise, it’s got a lot of dry sections (resembles fire trails), which I found boring. Admittedly, the weather was very hot (on the unbearable side) that day, which may have influenced my judgement.
At the halfway mark, you’ll walk along Marramarra Creek, which is a nice spot to stop for snacks. There is a campsite there too.
Lol bit of a pathetic picture, but it belongs to the trail
Hope this has inspired your next journey! There is a lot to explore in Central Coast, NSW.
Questions: as always, if you have any questions about my notes, leave a comment and I’ll reply.
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