Byron Bay walk, NSW

Byron Bay walk, NSW created by Victoria Walks

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Summary

This is a wonderful in Byron Bay. Along the beach is a walker's paradise, particularly at low tide. Lots of spots to look out to sea.

Description

This is a ripper of a walk! Byron Bay Beach is one of the best walking beaches on the east coast. It is long and flat with beautifully fine, hard sand, particularly at low tide. Being the eastern most point of the Australian mainland it is absolutely perfect for watching the sun come up. Starting this walk just before the sun rises is an absolute must.

There is always plenty to see. There are often dolphins and whales (winter and spring) as Humpbacks come up the coast to calve. It is one of the best surfing and swimming (and sandcastle) beaches around too.

The first part of the walk is a dog off leash area until the Byron Bay Main Beach.

Cape Byron Headland Reserve around the Lighthouse area is also a great walk.

Cape Byron has a diverse cultural and natural heritage. Aboriginal heritage is not a thing of the past. Members of the Arakwal clan, who are the Aboriginal custodians of the Byron Bay area, take an active role to preserve traditional sites and retain cultural values. Palm Valley, for example, is the site of the oldest midden in the region. Aborigines camped and ate pipis, fish and animals here for more than 1,000 years.

A word of warning, for walker's Byron Bay is a town of contradictions. Apart from providing some of the best beach, nature and town walks in Australia, Byron has some really woeful spots for walkers around the town. There are lots of gaps in the walking network where there should not be. It feels like cars reign supreme. There are dangerous crossings, cars travel fast and routinely block footpaths ? the gutters are even designed to allow cars to easily drive up and block paths.

The town centre has some wonderfully wide footpaths in good condition, but they are often poorly connected (there is the odd pedestrian crossing) paths. The main roundabout on Lawson and Jonson St is a terrible for walkers. Corners like Jonson and Byron are dangerous for walkers, they have wide curved corners without proper road line markings that encourage cars to race around the corners.

Watch out for cyclists, they ride on the footpath and virtually none have bells or warn they are coming up behind.

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Points of Interest

1. The sunrise

No visit to Byron is complete without watching the sunrise!

2. Byron Bay Main Beach

Byron Bay Main Beach is a walker's paradise. Flat, hard sand and plenty of things to look at.

3. The Pass beach

Generally sheltered family beach and a great spot to watch surfers.

4. The Lookout.

You have to clamber over rocks to get to the steps and if it is high tide wade through the water, but definitely worth the effort.

5. Looking to The Pass beach

Looking back along the beach with Palm Valley behind.

6. Byron Bay

It is easy to spend an hour up on the look out, a fantastic view on all sides.

7. Humpback Whales

Not a great photo, but when I was here, I saw over 10 whales out to sea. Sometimes they come in quite close.

8. Palm Valley path

A great walk through the bush, the path is well maintained and smooth. Suitable for prams and maybe wheelchairs, but quite steep in parts.

9. The Boardwalk

The Boardwalk is fantastic and makes for easy walking. Good viewing out to sea as well.

10. The Kombi

Love this artwork makes a drab electricity sub station look good. Very Byron!

11. Avenue of trees

Nice avenue of trees and picnic area.

12. Middleton St artwork

There is no information about this artwork, but it looks a bit like a wooden version of stonehenge.

13. Monumental Environmental Artwork

Monumental Environmental Artwork is by John Dahlsen. The sign says it is temporarily installed, I hope not beacause it is a beauty. It is made out of a stump is Camphour Laurel.

14. Byron Bay bats

Look out for the colony of bats in the trees in Cumbebin Swamp Nature Reserve next to the path. If you cannot see them, you will smell them. Not the most pleasant of smells.