The Royal National Park is a protected area located in the Sutherland Shire local government area in Southern Sydney and in the City of Wollongong local government area in the Illawarra region of New South Wales, Australia.

The park covers an area of 151 square kilometres (58 square miles) and is about 29 kilometres (18 miles) south of Sydney’s central business district, near the areas of Loftus, Otford, and Waterfall.

It was established by Sir John Robertson, who was the Acting Premier of New South Wales, and officially declared on 26 April 1879. This was a few years after Yellowstone National Park in the United States (founded in 1872) and 11 years before Yosemite National Park in the United States. Although Yosemite had been protected as federal land since 1864, it was not officially called a "National Park" until 1890. The Royal National Park was the first national park in Australia. It was originally named simply "National Park," but it was renamed in 1955 after Queen Elizabeth II of Australia visited the area during her 1954 tour.

The park was added to the Australian National Heritage List in December 2006.

Features

The park is located on the traditional lands of the Dharawal, an Aboriginal Australian people. The park includes the modern towns of Audley, Maianbar, and Bundeena.

Audley can be reached by road from Loftus, Waterfall, or Otford. Several railway stations (Loftus, Engadine, Heathcote, Waterfall, Helensburgh, and Otford) are located near the park. Bundeena and Maianbar can also be reached by road through the park or by a passenger ferry from Cronulla.

The national park once had its own special railway station, which was part of a branch of the Illawarra Line. This branch closed in 1991 and was later changed into a heritage tramway operated by the Sydney Tramway Museum.

The park has many cycling and walking trails, barbecue areas, and picnic spots. Over 100 kilometers (62 miles) of walking paths offer a variety of scenery. Cycling is allowed on some fire trails and only on specially marked paths. Mountain biking is permitted on specific two-way trails, and visitors should be careful when using them. A $12 fee is charged for vehicles entering the park.

The most popular walk is the Coast Walk, which follows the park’s eastern edge and provides beautiful coastal views. The 30-kilometer trail connects Bundeena to Otford or vice versa. It is recommended to spend two days to complete the walk. This trail is often used as part of The Duke of Edinburgh's Award. The Wallumarra Track (Wallumarra means "education/protect" in the local Aboriginal language) was built in 1975 to support environmental education and to add to the park’s walking trail system. The park is widely used by schools, TAFEs, universities, and other groups for environmental learning.

The park has experienced bushfires on several occasions, including in 1939, 1994, and during the 2001 Black Christmas fires. Native Australian plants naturally regrow after bushfires, and by 2008, few signs of these fires remained visible. During extreme fire danger, the park may be closed to protect visitors.

Camping is allowed only at Bonnie Vale, North Era, and Uloola Falls. These sites require advance booking through a registration system. A vehicle access fee is charged, but entry is free for people walking.

Geography, flora and fauna

Royal National Park has many different types of land. The park includes coastal cliffs with beaches and small inlets, as well as an old, high plateau with deep river valleys. These river valleys flow from south to north and empty into Port Hacking, a large but shallow harbor that forms the park's northern edge. When viewed from east to west, the park's many river valleys appear as rolling hills that fade into the distance.

The park's rocks are mostly made of Triassic Hawkesbury Sandstone, with some areas covered by Wianamatta shale, a newer type of rock. Below the sandstone layer is Narrabeen Shale, a mix of shale and sandstone that contains coal seams found across Sydney. These seams are mined near Wollongong, where they are close to the surface. Some areas near waterways have alluvium, a type of soil where endangered plant communities like swamp oak and swamp mahogany woodlands grow.

Along the park's coastline, there is a type of land called coastal heathland. This area has tough, low-growing plants that can survive salty air and rocky ground with little soil. The cliffs along the coast can be nearly 100 meters high at the southern end. These cliffs are interrupted by sandy beaches that are popular for swimming and surfing. Some beaches are easy to reach by car, while others require long walks through the bush. A few rocky coves are also found along the coast. Beaches with volunteer surf life-saving clubs and large parking areas are among the most visited parts of the park. These heathlands are home to many small birds that live away from Sydney's suburbs, such as the New Holland honeyeater.

Common plants on exposed heaths and cliffside paths include coastal rosemary, darwinia, bracelet honey-myrtle, she-oak, white kunzea, sundew, grass trees, ridged heath-myrtle, snakehood orchids, prostrate coast banksia, and long-leaf matrush.

On the ancient sand dunes above the coastal path, plants like silver banksia, scrub-oak, silky hakea, and pine heath are found.

Rare grasslands on exposed, windy cliffs are dominated by long-leaf mat-rush and kangaroo grass.

Many birds that live in heathlands include Lewin's honeyeater, New Holland honeyeater, beautiful firetail, chestnut-rumped heathwren, and southern emu-wren.

In the park, littoral rainforest has survived despite being destroyed in other areas during the 1800s and 1900s. An example is the "Palm Jungle" near the southern end of the Coast Walk, which includes tuckeroo trees growing under coastal tea trees and long-leaf matrush.

Moving inland, the land becomes rocky ridges and plateaus with hardy shrubs and poor soil. These ridges are part of an ancient plateau that has been eroded into river valleys. This habitat is important for Sydney because similar areas elsewhere were destroyed for development, putting many species at risk. Soils on sandstone ridges are sandy and mixed with clay, while clay ridges have richer soil from Wianamatta clay, which supports good forest growth.

On the steep sides of river valleys, the land has exposed rock with pockets of soil. Eucalyptus trees and other species grow here, along with small streams and understory plants. Trees in this area are usually no taller than 10 meters. This habitat is typical of coastal areas in New South Wales but has many species found only in Royal National Park. It is one of the most diverse areas in the Sydney Basin.

This environment is called sclerophyll open forest and is divided into "dry" and "wet" types. Factors like bushfires, low nutrients, hot summers, and limited water shape this habitat. Some trees, like scribbly gums, have smooth bark that reduces fire risk, while others, like stringy barks, have flammable bark that helps their seeds grow after fires.

Common plants in this area include Sydney redgums, Sydney peppermints, Port Jackson pine, red bloodwoods, Pomaderris, old man banksia, hairpin banksia, rock banksia, Sydney boronia, native sarsaparilla, violet twining pea, dusky coral pea, hop bush, native pea, dwarf apple, parasitic devils twine, native panic, Lepidosperma grass, forest grass trees, Sydney waratah, flannel flowers, blueberry ash, silky hakea, variable bossiaea, bonnet orchids, hyacinth orchids, Pomax umbellata, native parsley, edible native currants, broad-leaved geebungs, Sydney golden wattles, gymea lilies, sheo-oaks, flax-leaved wattle, bracken, grey spider flower, red spider flower, pink spider flower, and native iris. Hybrid species like Banksia ericifolia x spinulosus and Angophora costata x hispida may also be found.

Birds that live in this habitat include golden whistlers and yellow-tailed black cockatoos.

Park highlights

Audley is a large, flat area at the base of one of the larger valleys in the park. The main road from the north enters Audley, which is at the base of a valley. This road crosses the Hacking River on a weir before continuing up the other side of the valley. Audley was built in the late 1800s as a place for people from Sydney to have picnics on day trips. A protected timber boathouse from that time still exists on the western bank of the weir. It rents rowing boats and canoes for exploring the river and also rents mountain bikes. A timber dance hall built in the early 1900s on the eastern bank is used for events. Large picnic areas, grassy fields, a café, restrooms, and a group of ducks are part of Audley. It is still a popular place for families today. After heavy rain, the weir floods, closing the road and forcing people in Bundeena to drive an extra 30 kilometers to the southern end of the park if they want to go to Sydney.

Jibbon Point is the southern end of Port Hacking and offers views of the Sutherland peninsula. Aboriginal rock art sites are visible here and were used for ceremonies. The name "Jibbon" comes from the Dharawal word for Port Hacking, "Djeebun."

Eagle Rock is a unique rock formation near Curracarong, about halfway down the park’s coast. It looks like an eagle’s head when viewed from the side. Curracarong is also known for several waterfalls that flow over cliffs and into the sea more than 100 meters below.

Garie Beach is one of the most popular surf beaches in the park.

Wattamolla Beach has a large lagoon behind it, which connects to the sea through a shallow stream. Families enjoy playing in the calm lagoon with young children, while adults enjoy the clean waves. There is plenty of parking, but it can fill up quickly on busy summer days. Wattamolla is a sheltered cove with a sandy bar at the entrance. Behind the bar is a lagoon fed by Wattamolla Creek and Coote Creek. Coote Creek flows down a valley and forms a waterfall that drops over a sandstone cliff into the lagoon.

'Figure 8' pool is located south of Burning Palms.

Werrong Beach is the only legal naturist beach in the park. It faces east toward the Tasman Sea. The hill behind the beach has trees and undergrowth. People who camp overnight might be woken by wallabies or a Ranger who could fine them for illegal camping.

Lady Carrington Drive was an early road through the park. It runs south from Audley, following the Hacking River upstream for about 10 kilometers (6.2 miles) to where it meets the main road. The road was popular for carriages in the late 1800s and early 1900s. It has not been used for vehicles for a long time and is now a popular path for walking and cycling. The road is mostly flat and has a width of about 4 to 5 meters (13 to 16 feet). It passes through valley floor vegetation and in spring, bright yellow wattle trees and orange and red banksia and waratah flowers can be seen. Many schools in the Sutherland Shire use Lady Carrington Drive for annual sports or charity events, where students walk from the southern end to Audley, where a large barbecue picnic is held.

North and South Era beaches are located in the park. Camping is allowed at North Era campground, which overlooks North Era Beach. North Era’s bush campsites are ideal for an overnight stop while walking the Coast Track. Burning Palms Beach is a common rest place for hikers on the Royal Coastal Walk. The beach is surrounded by distinctive palms and is known for the nearby 'Figure 8' rock pools.

Winnifred Falls and South West Arm Pool are natural freshwater and saltwater waterholes at the base of Winnifred Falls on South West Arm Creek.

The Royal Coastal Walk is the most popular trail in the park, stretching from Bundeena to Burning Palms and up to the Otford Cliffs.

Heritage listings

Royal National Park includes several heritage sites, such as:

• Royal National Park Coastal Cabin Communities

Naturism

Royal National Park has one officially allowed beach where people can swim without clothes, called Werrong Beach. Other beaches where this is not officially permitted include Little Jibbon Beach, Jibbon Beach, and Ocean Beach.