Berowra Valley National Park is a national park in the northern suburbs of Sydney, New South Wales.

Understand

History

Berowra Valley National Park is a traditional Aboriginal land. It was where the Guringai lived in the east of Berowra Creek and the Dharug in the west. In the area there are several important places for the indigenous population, such as campfires, clam gathering and also artefacts.

Part of the park originally formed as a the Elouera Bushland Natural Park which was reserved in 1964 and consisted of 640 hectares. Additional lands were acquired and the park was gazetted for public recreation and the study and preservation of native flora and fauna in 1987. This gazettal was in response to increasing community concern over the development of bushland areas in the Hornsby Shire. The park then came to be known as Berowra Valley Bushland Park. Further land additions were made to the park, which was gazetted as Berowra Valley Regional Park on March 27, 1998, and was gazetted as a national park in September 2012.

Landscape

The national park is criss-crossed by valleys with bushes in which eucalyptus and banksia grow. There are 70 in the national park kilometres of hiking trails. The Great North Way, which can be hiked 250 kilometres from Sydney to Newcastle, runs 25 kilometres through the national park. Boats and canoes can be launched and fishing is available in Berowra Creek, which runs through the park.

Flora and fauna

Owls, white-tailed eagles, wedge-tailed eagles, kookaburra, gray-backed lily- tail, gray-headed fruit bat, swamp wallaby and the protected frog Pseudophryne australis can be seen in the national park.

Climate

The climate of Berowra Valley National Park is usually just like ordinary Sydney weather.

Visitor information

• Park website

Get in

There are numerous ways to get into Berowra Valley National Park, however, the park is only accessible via car. The quickest way to enter the southern parts of the park is when using A28 Pennant Hills Rd, turn onto Boundary Road and then turn onto Bellamy Street, and continue until the road ends.

Another option is to use Shepherds Drive from the western end of the park.

Fees and permits

None, although the park may be closed without notice during bushfire season.

Get around

Your only way to get around the park is by walking, or taking your car outside the park and re-entering a different section.

See

• 1 Barnetts lookout, cnr Whyanna St and Barnetts Rd, Berowra Heights. Stunning lookout overlooking the creek up the top of the valley, making it quite hard to believe that you're still in Sydney. (updated Sep 2021)
• 2 Blackfellow Head Engravings, 280 Quarter Sessions Rd, Westleigh. (updated Oct 2021)
• 3 Historic Military 'Steele' Bridge, Quarry Trail, Berowra Creek. (updated Oct 2021)

Do

• Great North walk. 27km trail one-way which takes about 3-4 days to do. (updated Sep 2021)
• Place of Winds interpretive trail. 1.2km boardwalk (one way) that takes you through some mangroves and forests in a very short walk. The walk should only take about half an hour, but it should be advised that it's best not to swim in Berowra creek due to pollution. (updated Sep 2021)
• Lyrebird Gully circuit. There are quite a lot of uhm, Lyrebirds as the name of the walk suggests here. There's also a small boardwalk in the middle of this circuit too. 9km one way, and takes approximately 4-5 hours. (updated Sep 2021)

Eat and drink

There are no places to eat nor drink in Berowra Valley National Park. The nearest ones are in the Upper North Shore.

Sleep

There are no places to sleep in Berowra Valley National Park. The nearest accommodation is in the Upper North Shore.

Stay safe

The only concern here is that the creeks are polluted and it's best not to swim in them. Wildlife isn't a problem here.

Go next

• Ku-ring-gai Chase National Park is just a little bit east.