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The Royal – Covid 19 Impacts

NPWS in response to the Covid 19 outbreak on March 18th suspended all volunteer activities until further notice.

This was followed by a media release on March 26th:

The NSW National Parks and Wildlife Service (NPWS) will temporarily close all campgrounds, high visitation areas and historic sites across NSW until further notice, in response to tighter Australian and NSW Government health directives on social distancing and non-essential travel to prevent the transmission of COVID-19 in the wider community.…..

All roads through national parks remain open.

Most walking tracks and trails will also remain open and visitors should observe necessary social distancing with others while using pathways and other facilities to maximise their safety.

In the Royal this has resulted in  the Visitor Center, Garie, Wattamolla, Garrawarra Farm  and Bonnie Vale being closed.

So with more indoor activity required we have been busy creating some more content for you to view.  Follow the Read More link to view.

All Volunteer Activities Cancelled Until Further Notice

ALL VOLUNTEER ACTIVITIES HAVE BEEN CANCELLED UNTIL FURTHER NOTICE DUE TO THE COVID-19 OUTBREAK

If you wish to hear about a recent highly successful volunteer activity then please read on.

On a fine day recently 6 members of friends took to the water to access a beautiful, but remote spot in the park to remove a prickly pear infestation.  Check out the video of our efforts by selecting  Read More .

We plan on another attack later in the year and would welcome extra hands.

Our Next Guided Walk is on Monday 16th March

Our first guided walk for 2020 will be on March 16th starting at 8.30am at Wattle Forest, one of Audley’s picnic grounds.  We will take a walk through some fascinating rainforest looking for birds and other wildlife.  Then after a short while we will transfer across the river to Fig-tree Flat and start a slow walk down Lady Carrington Drive. Participants can walk to where we chose to turn around or if they choose they can turn around earlier or walk further.

This beautiful walk  is renowned for revealing a multitude of wildlife. Check out the Read More tab for details including a great video of a diamond python taken in the park just a few days ago.

See the Royal by Public Transport

Its easy to get to the Royal National Park by public transport: trains, a new bus service and a famous old ferry all give access to the park. With a bit of planning you can have a fabulous day out: an epic walk, a gentle stroll or a picnic by a waterfall or beach are all easily achievable by these public transport alternatives.

During the peak of summer and on public holidays the carparks in the Royal can become full early in the day, particularly Wattamolla, Garie and Bonnie Vale. Public transport can get you into these locations when car-bound visitors are turned away.

Select Read More to view our Public Transport page with some wonderful suggested itineraries for a great day out.

Waterfalls in the Royal

You may have noticed that it has been raining recently. Audley weir is still closed, as are other roads in the park and indeed around the city.

If you ever wondered what the many waterfalls in the Royal look like after heavy rain follow the Read More link to view the Video.

Streams in the Royal are flowing again

Through our long hot summer the streams in the Royal dwindled and some dried completely. Now with the rain they are flowing again and some creatures are celebrating……follow the Read More link to watch the video of a freshwater yabbie climbing the bank of a Royal stream.

Our Streamwatch volunteer program has been testing the water quality of streams in the Royal and Heathcote National Parks since 2004.

Red Bellied Black Snake drags Brown Snake away

Sometimes walking in the Royal you are privileged to see nature in action, this is one of those days. To humans the red bellied black is a beautiful snake but it is timid and disappears quickly when encountered. The Eastern Brown is the opposite: usually smaller, aggressive, not to be messed with.  This day these preconceptions were reversed…….the larger red bellied black has the brown snake  by the head and is taking it off to devour it. Follow the Read More link  to watch the video.

Bus Service is Launched

Bus Fleet has launched a new service within the park connecting many trail heads with public transport options. This allows access to popular sites such as Wattamolla and Garie when the carparks are full and also provides access to wonderful walks throughout the park.

The Royal has thankfully been unaffected by the current fires ravaging much of the East Coast and is only being closed to non residents when the weather conditions are severe.