NSW National Parks and Wildlife Service Archives

The Hiking Demise of Lily Hooper – her situation? scenario? questions of why? how? on a solo hike? of her 2026 tragic death in our Blue Mountains Nattai National Park

August 21, 2026

[A] Introduction to another Blue Mountains outdoor tragedy Not another one! Our Blue Mountains World Heritage Area in Australia has yet again tragically lost another hiker in our midst. One Lily Hooper (18) (or was she aged 19 according to some media?) of nearby Oakdale (a regional village in public consumption the Wollondilly Shire southwest of Greater Sydney) just yesterday after […]

Grand Cliff Top Walk Trail (MT-GCT)

July 5, 2025 2025, 7-Day, Autumn, Blue Mountains Council Bushland, Blue Mountains National Park, Concept, Experienced Adult Hikers, Half-Day Tour (about 5 hours), Healthy & Fit Adults, Katoomba, Leura, Multi-Day Treks, Recce, Spring, Summer, Tour Yarns, Wentworth Falls, Winter

(AUTHOR’S NOTE TO READERS: This article is a work in progress. This article is long because the trail we are critiquing is long. So we have divided up our critique into chapters, that in time will evolve into another one of our webbooks, free for all. So, we continue to update the content when time permits and in the process […]

Blue Mountains ‘Grand Cliff Top Walk’ – a misleading promotional article

This 19+km trek is officially promoted equivalent to a proverbial ‘walk in the park’ as being do-able in just 2-days… like ‘easy peasy’? Yet, from our on-ground hiking experience of this trail, it seriously is anything but! The Parks Service’s (NPWS) March 2024 public opening launch of its new concept ‘Grand Cliff Top Walk‘ in the Australian Blue Mountains, was […]

Blue Mountains ‘Grand Cliff Top Walk’ – Misleading Flyer & Press Release

July 5, 2025 2025, 7-Day, Autumn, Blue Mountains Council Bushland, Blue Mountains National Park, Concept, Experienced Adult Hikers, Half-Day Tour (about 5 hours), Healthy & Fit Adults, Katoomba, Leura, Multi-Day Treks, Recce, Review, Spring, Summer, Tour Yarns, Wentworth Falls, Winter

In the Australian Blue Mountains, during the cooler months of June and July 2025, Nature Trail’s Tour Director, Steve Ridd, has decided to undertake a series of segmented practice reconnoitre trips (‘recces’) of the recently and mostly upgraded and renamed amalgamated hiking tracks branded the ‘Grand Cliff Top Walk‘. This track is situated in the central upper Blue Mountains Region, […]

Blue Mountains ‘Grand Cliff Top Walk’ Our Critique – SEGMENT 1: Wentworth Falls Railway Station to Conservation Hut

This Trail Segment 1: Specifications: This Nature Trail Tour Title: Grand Cliff Top Walk Trek NT Tour Code: MT-GCT/1 NT Tour Code Description: Multi-Day Trek Tour Category Tailored Trail Official Opening Date: Monday 25th March 2024 Tour Current Status: Scouted> Recce > Practised > Commercial Trail partial closure, with roadway detour Nature Trail Version: Grand Cliff Top Walk – Original […]

Blue Mountains ‘Grand Cliff Top Walk’ Our Critique – SEGMENT 2: Conservation Hut to Fairmont Resort

(Content TBA) This lead feature image is our snippet photo of an Australian native Broadleafed Geebung (botanical name is Persoonia Levis). This particular trail segment of the 2024 ‘Grand Cliff Top Walk’ is situated in an sunny exposed escarpment heath open woodland natural environment. This flaky paperbark type rich red coloured bark is of the inner peel layers within […]

Blue Mountains ‘Grand Cliff Top Walk’ Our Critique – SEGMENT 3: Fairmont Resort to Gordon Falls Picnic Reserve

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Blue Mountains ‘Grand Cliff Top Walk’ Our Critique – SEGMENT 4: Gordon Falls Picnic Reserve to Leura Cascades Picnic Reserve

Nature Trail has specially selected this trail segment of the 2024 Grand Cliff Top Walk trail because it is has a relatively medium grade hike (yet with still many staircases up and down) which may be undertaken in a manageable half-day duration, yet by only hiking-fit adults and teenagers, but not sensibly for infants/toddlers nor anyone disabled. This trail segment […]

Blue Mountains ‘Grand Cliff Top Walk’ Our Critique – SEGMENT 5: Leura Cascades Picnic Reserve to Echo Point Lookout

On Friday morning 4th July 2025, Friends of Nature Trail chose our recce of this particular segment of the Grand Cliff Top Walk from west of Leura Cascades Picnic Reserve to Echo Point Lookout. This is because currently Leura Cascades Picnic Reserve is closed for council upgrade, plus a recent landslip on Round Track has close the track route as […]

Blue Mountains ‘Grand Cliff Top Walk’ Our Critique – SEGMENT 6: Echo Point Lookout to Katoomba Falls

(A) Brief Background: On Thursday 31 July 2025, Nature Trail managed to reconnoitre the 2024 ‘Grand Cliff Top Walk’ trail version which we have decided to label as ‘SEGMENT 6: Echo Point Lookout to Katoomba Falls. We have hiked this track many times over the years, being so close to home. However, this recent trail infrastructure upgrade project deserved our […]

Blue Mountains ‘Grand Cliff Top Walk’ Our Critique – SEGMENT 7: Katoomba Falls to Megalong Head

(A) Brief Background Let the truth be known, the ORIGINAL ‘Grand Cliff Top Walk‘ as proposed in the 1980s was to construct a hiking track to extend from the original Weatherboard Hut (from 1814) site all the way to the Explorers’ Marked Tree (from 1813) – to create an epic 30+ km amalgamation mega trail concept to link up old […]