Gerringong Falls

I went to Gerringong Falls thinking I'd end up at the bottom, looking up. That doesn't happen anymore. The route down to the base is closed, and the national park says it's closed for good, so what's left is the walk to the top of the falls. It's about 18km return from the Budderoo track car park in Budderoo National Park, in the Illawarra hinterland behind Jamberoo. I did it on a weekday and didn't meet a single other walker. I was glad I went, but a couple of things nearly ruined it, so here's how it went. Can you walk to the bottom of Gerringong Falls? No. The NSW National Parks page says there's no approved track to the base and that people have been seriously injured trying. I wanted the bottom badly, because I could see a rock pool down there from above. But I'd rather look at it from a distance than get hurt where my phone doesn't work. So my plan changed to the top. The first part is a wide fire trail Most of the 18km is fire trail. It's wide and easy on the feet, and honestly a bit boring. You can zone out and just walk, which is fine for a while, but I did start wishing something would happen. It did later. Which track do you follow to the falls? The Hersey Trail. That's what the park recommends, and it's the one I'd tell anyone to use. Now the part I really want you to read. On Google Maps there's a line called Gerringong Falls Walking Track that looks like a shortcut, and it looked shorter to me on the map. Please don't take it. There's barely a path. The scrub is so thick that I ended up crawling through it on my hands and knees, and I think nobody has been through for a long time. I lost more time and energy there than on the whole fire trail. The Hersey Trail comes in above that track near the top of the falls anyway, so the shortcut buys you nothing. Reaching the top of the falls You cross one small creek first. When you reach the second one, Gerringong Creek, you're at the top of the falls. There's a rock pool right there and the water looked incredibly clear. It was too cold the day I went, so I only stood there wishing I'd picked a warmer day. The disappointing bit is that from the top you can't see the waterfall at all. You're standing where the water leaves, so there's nothing to look at but the creek. How I got a proper view (and why I wouldn't tell you to copy me) I wasn't going to walk 9km each way and not see the falls. So I went along the edge of the cliff through the trees, moving slowly, until I reached the opposite side of the gorge. There was almost no path. I honestly surprised myself, because I'm not usually that brave, and I was very aware that I was next to a big drop with nobody around. I was lucky not to run into any snakes. From over there I finally saw the whole waterfall, and it was worth it. The falls are listed as more than 150m by the national park and about 180m on another walking site. It looked like the tallest one around to me, though I didn't measure it. It hadn't rained much for a while, so the flow was thin and the water blew around in the wind. It looked more delicate than powerful, which I liked. I could also see the rock pool at the bottom, which I'd wanted to reach. If you go, treat the cliff edge seriously. Go with someone if you can. Carrington Falls and Jamberoo Lookout on the same day I saw Carrington Falls first, on my way in. It carries more water than Gerringong did that day, since it's on the Kangaroo River. Sites can't agree how tall it is (I've seen 50m and I've seen 90m), so I'll only say it looked smaller than Gerringong to me. On the way back I stopped at Jamberoo Lookout for a few minutes. You can see a long way and there's a stretch of coast too. I'll be honest, a lot of lookouts around here start to look the same after a while, but it's a nice place to sit after 18km. You pass Jamberoo Action Park on the way up, so put that on your list if you're coming in summer. The drive up Before the mountain there's a farm with big green hills and a whole herd of cows. I really wanted to pull over and take a photo, but I kept missing the places where you can actually stop. The road up has a few tight bends, so take those slowly, and in some parts the trees are so thick that you need your headlights on. It was a weekday morning and pretty quiet, and I found it easier than the drive to Kangaroo Valley. Would I do it again? Once was plenty, and I'm glad I did it. The trail itself is a bit dull, the shortcut is awful, and the falls are only properly visible if you take a risk I wouldn't recommend. But seeing the whole thing on a quiet day with nobody around is something I still think about. Wear old clothes and old shoes. Wind and scratch-proof layers are best, because the scrub will win. Go with a friend if you can, and stay well back from the cliff edge.