Sydney, Australia: Customs House to Millers Point

Using City of Sydney's excellent brochure I followed the self-guided History Walk Customs House to Millers Point which only took a couple of hours.

After leaving the Customs House, an interesting building with some great exhibitions within the library that now occupies it, the next main stop is Macquarie Place a small oasis of a park with a set of colonial artifacts such as a statue, anchor and obelisk displaying distances to places that were significant at the time but perhaps now rather obscure.

The walks takes you through the Rocks, an archeological dig, a major cutting in the rock and under the Harbour Bridge - all of considerable interest - but the highlight really is the climb up the the top of Observatory Hill with its spectacular views and the picturesque Observatory itself (erected 1838).

The walk continues to hold its interest as it descends to Walsh Bay, Dawes point and conclusion at Millers Point (close to Circular Quay).

Full details of route: Colony history walk

Walked: February 2019

Summary: Easy walk, approx. 2-3 km , 1.5-2 hours

Sydney, Australia: Rose Bay to Watsons Bay and Hornby Lighthouse

Still suffering a sprained ankle from 5 months earlier  I was looking for something fairly easy for a hot summer day. This coastal walk through Sydney Harbour National Park with its stunning views fitted the bill.

The walk has good public transport connections at both ends, both bus and ferry. I arrived by bus at the Rose Bay ferry wharf to make a start after an outdoor brunch at a waterfront cafe.

The walk meanders along footpaths, beaches, national park trails and, at one point, a cycleway bridge always hugging the coast or not too distant. It includes the Hermitage Foreshore Track and South Head Heritage Trail.

In many places there are spectacular views of Sydney Harbour including Opera House and Bridge in the distance.

It's not a trail that needs detailed track descriptions - just keep as close to the coast as you can - although a cellphone GPS map is handy for navigating some of the streets that must be traversed between non-contiguous parts of the coastal national park.

Several historic buildings are encountered en route including Strickland House, Greycliffe House, Vaucluse House and Hornby Lighthousekeeper's cottage. Plenty of spots for picnics or a swim.

I expected to end at Watsons Bay and then return by ferry. However, I decided to continue onto Hornby lighthouse with more spectacular views and historic WWII structures.

It was such a hot day I stopped off for a swim at Lady Bay, a predominantly-gay nude beach, which was a great way to end a great walk. The useful thing for an unplanned swim at this beach is that one didn't need to remember -or have to carry - a bathing costume and towel.

Unfortunately the unplanned for excursion meant that I missed the last ferry back to Circular Quay and had to return to the central city by bus (the same one that serves Rose Bay). So beware that the last return ferry leaves at an absurdly early time - around 16:30 if memory serves.

Walked: March 2019

Summary: About 9-10 km and 3-5 hours.