How to hike the basin trail (solo)

It has been a hot minute but I am back with a short post on my recent drive out to Ku-ring-gai National Park which is about 1h away from Sydney. The drive took me out to the start of the Basin Trail which either takes you down to the Basin camping ground or down to the neighbouring beaches, Mackerel and Resolute.

I decided to head down to Mackerel Beach which is roughly a 6km round trip from the start of the Basin Trail.

If you want to do this hike as well, you’ll need to drive in Ku-ring-gai National Park and pay an entrance fee of $12.00 to park your car for the whole day.

Keep driving down West Head Road until you see a sign for the Basin Trail. Simply input The Basin Trail into Google Maps and follow the trail.

On the walk it’ll feel like you’ve made it to the outback during the first leg when you come across dirt tracks and tall bushes on either side of you. If you have time, check out the Guringai Land Aboriginal Engravings which you will find along the way. It is a conserved area where Aboriginal drawings can be seen on the rock, capturing Aboriginal stories and history on its surface.

Continuing along, you’ll find yourself in what appears to be a forest with trees that create a shady canopy on your walk. Then you’ll find yourself at the Mackerel Trail Lookout and it will take your breath away (see evidence of this happening to me in my vlog!)

Then you’ll find the challenging part of the hike which is a rocky descent down towards Mackerel Beach. You will see red signs leading you in the right direction, one path will take you to Currawong Beach (only accessible during lowtide) and the other to Mackerel Beach. You will also need to pass by private property but keep walking through until you get down to the beach. And after about 1-1.5h later (depending on how many photos you’ve taken!) you’ve made it down to the beach.

You can choose to take a ferry back to your desired destination if you didn’t drive. You can also keep walking to Resolute Beach and apparently walk back along the road to the start of the Basin Trail. Or you can do what I did and walk back the same way.

I hope you enjoyed this short recap and that it’s inspired you to also go out and explore more (even if you attempt it solo like I did). Don’t forget to check out my vlog which is a more visual recap of my adventure!