Echo Point to Leura Cascades

Echo Point

Echo Point is the Blue Mountains’ most famous and popular lookout, home to one of the best photo opportunities for the Three Sisters[1]. Visited by over two million tourists each year, this popular spot also serves as the starting point for many great walks in the area. The lookout is well fenced[2], has information signs[3][4] and stunning views across the valley to the Three Sisters[5] and Mount Solitary[6]. There are mounted binoculars and seats nearby.

Echo Point Information Centre

This modern building at Echo Point is a great source of information. It is open daily from 9am-5pm (except Christmas Day). There is a large range of books, maps and information about the area (and ice creams). There are toilets opposite the entrance

[Toilet Accessible]

, and mobility parking opposite

[Parking Accessible]

. For more information, phone 1300 653 408. More info.

(0km) Echo Point Information Center → Echo Point Archway Intersection

30 m
1 mins
0m
-1m

Very easy

From the front of the visitor center[7], this walk heads gently uphill, following the ‘Three Sister walk’ sign[8]. The walk soon passes the toilet block

[Toilet Accessible]

[9] and veers right to pass under the stone archway[10] and come to an intersection[11] with a path (on the right) just past the ‘Blue Mountains National Park’ sign[12].

(0.03km) Echo Point Archway Intersection → Int of Prince Henry Cliff Track and the Three Sisters Pathway

300 m
7 mins
8m
-19m

Easy track

Continue straight: From the intersection, this walk heads along the ‘Three Sisters walkway’[13] footpath, initially keeping the metal fence to the right. The smooth concrete path leads up and over a rise then leads gently downhill for about 80m to a signposted three-way intersection[14].
Continue straight: From the intersection, this walk follows the ‘Three Sisters 400m’ arrow[15] downhill along the concrete path, keeping the valley to the right. After about 15m the walk leads past a stone seat

[Seat]

(on the left), with a blue tongue lizard sculpture[16]. The walk continues gently downhill for another 60m to pass another sandstone seat (on the left)

[Seat]

. From here the path winds gently downhill for another 70m to find yet another sandstone seat (on the left)

[Seat]

. The path continues downhill for another 45m to find a clear intersection marked with a large ‘Three Sisters Walk’ sign[17]. On the right is a small flat loose gravel area with two seats

[Seat]

(0.33km) Int of Prince Henry Cliff Track and the Three Sisters Footpath → Int of the Prince Henry Cliff Walk and Lady Game Bushtrack

50 m
1 mins
1m
-6m

Easy track

Veer left: From the intersection, this walk follows the track winding up the hill and through the bush, away from the cliffs and the valley, for about 50m before coming to the intersection of the Lady Game track.

(0.38km) Int of the Prince Henry Cliff Walk and Lady Game Bushtrack → Int of Prince Henry Cliff Walk and Lady Carrington Lookout Tracks

260 m
6 mins
16m
-18m

Moderate track

Turn left : From the intersection, the walk follows the ‘Leura Cascades’ sign along the bush track, winding around through the bush and following the cliffs (further down the hill to the right) around the valley until coming to the intersection with the Lady Carrington Lookout track.

(0.64km) Int of Prince Henry Cliff and Lady Carrington Lookout Tracks → Lady Carrington Lookout

20 m
1 mins
0m
-12m

Easy track

Turn right: From the intersection, this walk heads out to the cliffs, going down a small flight of stairs and following the metal railing. Shortly after, the walk breaks out onto a fenced-off rockshelf, signposted as Lady Carrington Lookout. At the end of this side trip, retrace your steps back to the main walk then Veer right.

Lady Carrington Lookout

Lady (Cecelia) Carrington was wife of Lord (Charles Robert Wynne) Carrington. The couple explored parts of the Blue mountains in the late 1800’s and had a number of places named in their honour. Lady Carrington Lookout is long, narrow and fenced (twice). The lookout is perched up on a sandstone block and provides views over Jamison Valley.

(0.64km) Int of Prince Henry Cliff and Lady Carrington Lookout Tracks → Tallawarra Lookout

170 m
4 mins
6m
-17m

Easy track

Veer left: From the intersection, the walk follows the ‘Leura Cascades’ sign along the bush track which winds through the forest, gradually climbing up a long gentle hill. The track then flattens out and follows a metal fence-line to the ‘Tallawarra Lookout’ shortly after (marked on some maps as ‘Tallawalla Lookout’).

Tallawarra Lookout

Tallawarra Lookout[18] is a small, fenced lookout near Silver Mist Picnic Area, along Prince Henry Cliff walk. The lookout provides an excellent view of Sublime Point and Kings Tableland. Leura Falls and Gordon Creek both flow through the valley below. There are a few bench seats just near the lookout. (Note: the lookout is marked as ‘Tallawalla Lookout’ on some maps.)

(0.81km) Tallawarra Lookout → Millamurra Lookout

60 m
2 mins
6m
-3m

Moderate track

Veer left: From the lookout, this walk follows the ‘Leura Cascades’ sign along the bush track winding around the edge of the valley for a short while before coming to the fenced-off rock platform signposted as ‘Millamurra Lookout’.

Millamurra Lookout

Millamurra Lookout is on a fenced, elevated rock platform on the side of the Prince Henry Cliff Walk. There are views of the Jamison Valley, including the Leura Falls Creek and Sublime Point. There is also a great view along the Kings Tableland escarpment to the right.

(0.87km) Millamurra Lookout → Int of Prince Henry Cliff and Honeymoon Lookout Tracks

390 m
10 mins
26m
-26m

Moderate track

Continue straight: From the intersection, this walk follows the bush track, keeping the valley down to the right, as it continues along for a short while before coming to the Honeymoon Lookout, which is up the hill on the left-hand side of the track. The track passes the lookout and comes to the intersection of the bush track heading up to the lookout straight after.

(1.26km) Int of Prince Henry Cliff and Honeymoon Lookout Tracks → Honeymoon Lookout

30 m
1 mins
8m
0m

Easy track

Turn left : From the intersection, this walk heads up the short hill to the concrete platform just off Cliff Drive, signposted as ‘Honeymoon Lookout’. At the end of this side trip, retrace your steps back to the main walk then Turn left.

Honeymoon Lookout

Honeymoon Lookout is a fenced lookout on Cliff Drive, just north of Katoomba High School. There is a short track that links this lookout to Prince Henry Cliff Walk. There is a bus stop at the lookout. The area is shaded by a few trees and provides views out to Sublime Point and Kings Tableland.

(1.26km) Int of Prince Henry Cliff Walk and Honeymoon Lookout Tracks → Honeymoon Point

100 m
2 mins
1m
-16m

Easy track

Continue straight: From the intersection, the walk follows the bush track, keeping the valley and the cliffs down the hill to the right as it winds through the forest, until it comes to the signposted ‘Honeymoon Point’, shortly after the metal fence starts of the right.

(1.36km) Honeymoon Point → Banksia Lookout

30 m
2 mins
0m
-36m

Easy track

Turn right: From the intersection, this walk heads out to the cliffs along the track, until coming to an intersection signposted as ‘Banksia Lookout’. The view is largely blocked by trees. At the end of this side trip, retrace your steps back to the main walk then Turn sharp right.

Banksia Lookout

Banksia Lookout is a fenced lookout along the Prince Henry Cliff Walk, down a few steps from Honeymoon Point. The lookout provides views of Sublime Point and Kings Tableland. The clearing for the old sewage treatment plant, down in the valley on the Sublime Point Trail, is still visible from this lookout.

(1.36km) Honeymoon Point → Banksia Streamlet

70 m
2 mins
3m
-4m

Easy track

Veer left: From the intersection, this walk follows the bush track heading away from the lookout, keeping the valley down the hill to the right as it winds down a set of wooden steps to the signposted Banksia Streamlet.

(1.42km) Banksia Streamlet → Lomandra Lookout

190 m
1 mins
19m
-6m

Moderate track

Continue straight: Keeping the valley down the hill to the right, the walk crosses the streamlet at the wooden bridge. The track continues up the wooden steps on the other side to the top of the hill, where the track flattens out and continues past a picnic chair and along the side of the hill to the Lomandra Lookout.

Lomandra Lookout

Lomandra Lookout is a fenced lookout along Prince Henry Cliff Walk, near Katoomba. Unlike other lookouts in the area, there are no sweeping distant views, but atop this cliff there is a great close-up view of the canopy of the surrounding bush. There is a bench seat on the rock platform, making a nice place for a rest.

(1.62km) Lomandra Lookout → Int of Prince Henry Cliff Walk and Burrabarroo Lookout Tracks

330 m
9 mins
25m
-23m

Easy track

Continue straight: From the Lomandra Lookout, this walk follows the bush track, keeping the valley down to the right, as it winds through thick forest along the side of the hill, winding all the way around and up a set of wooden steps to the signposted intersection of the ‘Burrabarroo Lookout’ track.

(1.95km) Int of Prince Henry Cliff Walk and Burrabarroo Lookout Tracks → Burrabarroo Lookout

50 m
1 mins
0m
-8m

Moderate track

Turn sharp right: From the intersection, this walk follows the ‘Burrabarroo’ sign along the track, passing a picnic seat and climbing up a short set of rock steps to the top of a rock platform. The walk continues down the steps on the other side, around the base of a rock platform and along the bush track for a short while longer, to the Burrabarroo lookout. At the end of this side trip, retrace your steps back to the main walk then Continue straight.

Burrabarroo Lookout

This small, fenced lookout is just off the Prince Henry Cliff Walk, near Carrington Park. The view looks over the valley and out to Sublime Point and Kings Tablelands in the distance. The lookout is perched on the top of a rocky buttress at the end of a small point, giving great views.

(1.95km) Int of Prince Henry Cliff Walk and Burrabarroo Lookout Tracks → Int of Prince Henry Cliff Walk and Echo Tree Lookout track

430 m
11 mins
29m
-24m

Moderate track

Veer left: From the intersection, the walk follows the ‘Leura Cascades’ sign, climbing up the wooden steps and continuing along the bush track that winds through the forest, until coming to the intersection with the Carrington Park track.
Continue straight: From the intersection, this walk follows the ‘Leura Cascades 1km’ sign down the wooden steps and along the bush track, winding through the forest until coming to the signposted intersection of the ‘Leura Forest’ Track.
Continue straight: From the intersection, this walk follows the ‘Leura Cascades’ sign along the well-defined bush track, winding through the bush to the signposted intersection of the Echo Tree track at the bottom of the short set of stairs.

(2.38km) Int of Prince Henry Cliff Walk and Echo Tree Lookout track → Echo Tree Lookout

20 m
1 mins
0m
-10m

Moderate track

Turn right: From the intersection, this walk goes down the stairs following the sign to ‘Echo Tree Lookout’. The stairs continue downhill until coming to a fenced lookout. At the end of this side trip, retrace your steps back to the main walk then Continue straight.

(2.38km) Int of Prince Henry Cliff Walk and Echo Tree Lookout track → Int of Cliff Drive and Prince Henry Cliff Walk

20 m
1 mins
3m
0m

Easy track

Turn left: From the intersection, this walk follows the short set of wooden steps up to Cliff Drive, opposite the car park behind Solitary Restaurant.

Solitary Kiosk and Restaurant

Solitary Restaurant offers fine dining in a heritage-listed building overlooking the beautiful Jamison Valley, as well as housing a kiosk for a more casual lunch. The kiosk is open for lunch 7 days a week, from 10am to 4pm (opens 11am weekdays in winter). The kiosk provides a casual dinning experience, with breakfast foods from $10 and lunches around $15 per dish. The restaurant is open for lunch 7 days from 12-4.30pm, and dinner on Fridays and Saturdays from 6pm. Light lunches start from $14, and dinners from $55 for a mouth-watering 2 course meal. Contact details – 90 Cliff Drive, Leura Falls Ph: 02 4782 1164. More info.

(2.39km) Int of Cliff Drive and Prince Henry Cliff Walk → Int of Cliff Drive and Fossil Rock Track

50 m
1 mins
3m
-6m

Easy track

Veer right: From the top of the stairs, this walk follows Cliff Drive down the gentle hill towards the point, passing the restaurant and the sandstone pillar, to the signposted intersection of the Prince Henry Cliff Walk.

(2.45km) Int of Cliff Drive and Fossil Rock Track → Fossil Rock

20 m
1 mins
0m
-10m

Moderate track

Turn right: From the intersection, the walk follows the Leura Cascades sign down the wooden steps and along the short bush track to Fossil Rock Lookout.

Fossil Rock

Fossil Rock is a fenced lookout along Prince Henry Cliff Walk, near Katoomba. The lookout is close to Cliff Drive and gives great views along the Jamison Valley and over Mount Solitary, and along the far end of Kings Tableland. The sandstone floor of the lookout is mostly natural and has a few steps cut in it. The rock provides some natural sculptures to enjoy.

(2.47km) Fossil Rock → Int of Prince Henry Cliff Walk and Copelands Lookout Track

40 m
1 mins
0m
-5m

Moderate track

Turn left: Keeping the lookout and the valley to the right, the walk follows the bush track winding down the hill for a short while, before coming to the signposted intersection of the ‘Copelands Lookout’ track.

(2.51km) Int of Prince Henry Cliff Walk and Copelands Lookout Track → Copelands Lookout

170 m
4 mins
2m
-31m

Moderate track

Veer right: From the intersection, this walk follows the ‘Copelands Lookout’ sign down along the bush track, winding down the long, gentle hill to a rock shelf, where it continues down a steep set of wooden steps and along the bush track to the rock platform, fenced off with a short rock wall. At the end of this side trip, retrace your steps back to the main walk then Turn right.

Copelands Lookout

Copelands Lookout is a great viewing point with a short, sandstone wall around much of it. The lookout provides fantastic views over the Jamison Valley past Sublime Point, along Kings Tableland and past Mount Solitary.

(2.51km) Int of Prince Henry Cliff Walk and Copelands Lookout Track → Int of Prince Henry Cliff Walk and Bridal Veil Lookout Track

10 m
1m
0m

Moderate track

Veer left: From the intersection, the walk follows the track winding along the side of the hill, keeping the cliffs and the valley down to the right, soon coming to the signposted intersection with the track to ‘Bridal Veil Lookout’.

(2.52km) Int of Prince Henry Cliff Walk and Bridal Veil Lookout Track → Bridal Veil Lookout

40 m
1 mins
0m
-14m

Easy track

Turn right: From the intersection, the walk follows the ‘Bridal Veil Lookout’ sign along the bush track, heading down the gentle hill through the bush. The walk steps up onto a rock shelf, following it for a short distance before coming to the signposted ‘Bridal Veil Lookout’. At the end of this side trip, retrace your steps back to the main walk then Continue straight.

Bridal Veil Lookout

Bridal Veil Lookout provides a great views over Leura Forest and the Jamison Valley. Mount Solitary stands proudly in the distance. In keeping with its name, there are views of Bridal Veil Falls to the east. There is a small bench seat, but no shade.

(2.52km) Int of Prince Henry Cliff Walk and Bridal Veil Lookout Track → Int of Prince Henry Cliff Walk and the Leura Int of Prince Henry Cliff and Cascades Round Walk (SW)

230 m
5 mins
5m
-26m

Moderate track

Turn left: Keeping the signposted ‘Bridal Veil Lookout’ track to the right, this walk follows the track winding around the top edge of the valley and down a metal staircase, continuing along a fenced, wooden footbridge and down the side of the hill via wooden and metal steps, to the sign pointing back along the ‘Prince Henrey Walk’ to ‘Echo Point’.

(2.75km) Int of Prince Henry Cliff Walk and the Leura Int of Prince Henry Cliff and Cascades Round Walk (SW) → Int of Leura Cascades Round Walk and Fern Bower Track

70 m
2 mins
0m
-20m

Moderate track

Veer right: From the intersection, this walk follows ‘Round Walk – Leura Cascades’ sign along the lower track. The track gently heads down the hill for a short while before winding down the stairs to come to a four-way intersection and a sign pointing back up to ‘Round Walk – Echo Point’.

(2.82km) Int of Leura Cascades Round Walk and Fern Bower Track → Round Walk Lookout

20 m
1 mins
0m
-18m

Moderate track

Continue straight: From the intersection, this walk follows the ‘Leura Cascades’ sign up the steps. The track then heads along a fenced cliff ledge (with great valley views) to then head down two metal staircases, coming to a fenced (unsignposted) lookout.

(2.84km) Round Walk Lookout → Leura Cascades

90 m
4 mins
30m
-1m

Moderate track

Continue straight: From the lookout, this walk heads down the metal staircase. The walk then turns right (at the cave with the old bench seat) and heads down the steps as they wind down the hill to another fenced (unsignposted) lookout at the top of Bridal Veil Falls. From this lookout, the walk follows the dirt track, keeping the handrail and creek to the right. The walk then heads up the steps to cross a bridge and come to an intersection (with another bridge) at the base of Leura Cascades.

Leura Cascades

Leura Cascades is a lovely set of waterfalls with some bridges just below, allowing walkers to get up close to the creek. The area has a nice feel about it and is quite cool in summer. Much of the track near the cascades has handrails and the bridges are fenced. Allow some time to enjoy life among the cascades and fern trees in this valley. One bridge leads to a sandstone cave next to the pool and falls, a great place to enjoy the small section of canyon.

(2.93km) Leura Cascades → Int of Prince Henry Cliff Walk and Leura Park Track

200 m
4 mins
13m
-2m

Moderate track

Continue straight: From the bottom of the Leura Cascades, this walk heads up the timber steps to a rock platform at the top of the falls, and more nice cascades. From these cascades, the walk follows the steps upstream (keep the creek on the left). The walk heads up some timber stairs and then along a track, with glimpses down to the creek. The track then comes to an intersection with the ‘Prince Henry Cliff Walk’ just before the footbridge.
Continue straight: From the intersection, this walk crosses the footbridge to come to a three-way intersection with a sign pointing back to ‘Leura Cascades’.

(3.12km) Int of Prince Henry Cliff Walk and Leura Cascades Picnic Area Track → Leura Cascades Picnic Area

120 m
3 mins
9m
0m

Easy track

Continue straight: From the intersection, this walk follows the ‘Picnic Area’ sign up the gentle hill, keeping the handrail and creek on the right. The track soon comes to a stone wall with a view of some cascades and Chelmsford Bridge. From the view of Chelmsford Bridge, this walk heads up the steps, following the path past an information board, toilet and under the arch to come to Leura Cascades Picnic Area.

Leura Cascades Picnic Area

Leura Cascades Picnic area is a open picnic area beside Cliff Drive, with Leura Cascades Creek running through the middle. There are a number of small cascades in the park, along with toilets and picnic tables. There are a few information signs and maps of the area. The park is well remembered for the artificial caves and arches that have been built to provide shelter and a sense of place. A small road runs through the park, providing access and parking, and garbage facilities are provided. There is also plenty of shade from some large pine trees.

Maps for the Echo Point to Leura Cascades walk

You can download the PDF for this walk to print a map.
These maps below cover the walk and the wider area around the walk, they are worth carrying for safety reasons.

Six Foot Track	1:50 000 Map Series	Six Foot Track	NSW-six-foot-track
Katoomba	1:25 000 Map Series	89301S KATOOMBA	NSW-89301S
Katoomba	1:100 000 Map Series	8930 KATOOMBA	8930

Cross sectional view of the Echo Point to Leura Cascades bushwalking track

Analysis and summary of the altitude variation on the Echo Point to Leura Cascades

Overview of this walks grade – based on the AS 2156.1 – 2001

Under this standard, a walk is graded based on the most difficult section of the walk.

		Length	3.2 km
		Time	1 hr 45 mins
		.
Grade 3/6 Moderate track	AS 2156.1	Gradient	Short steep hills (3/6)
		Quality of track	Formed track, with some branches and other obstacles (3/6)
		Signs	Directional signs along the way (3/6)
		Experience Required	Some bushwalking experience recommended (3/6)
		Weather	Storms may impact on navigation and safety (3/6)
		Infrastructure	Limited facilities, not all cliffs are fenced (3/6)

Some more details of this walks Grading

Here is a bit more details explaining grading looking at sections of the walk

Gradient

2.1km of this walk has gentle hills with occasional steps and another 600m has short steep hills. The remaining (520m) is flat with no steps.

Quality of track

2.4km of this walk follows a clear and well formed track or trail and another 640m follows a smooth and hardened path. The remaining (180m) follows a formed track, with some branches and other obstacles.

Signs

Around 3km of this walk is clearly signposted, whilst the remaining 250m has directional signs at most intersection.

Experience Required

Around 2.4km of this walk requires no previous bushwalking experience, whilst the remaining 880m requires some bushwalking experience.

weather

Around 3.1km of this walk is not usually affected by severe weather events (that would unexpectedly impact safety and navigation), whilst the remaining 170m is affected by storms that may impact your navigation and safety.

Infrastructure

Around 2.7km of this walk is close to useful facilities (such as fenced cliffs and seats), whilst the remaining 560m has limited facilities (such as not all cliffs fenced).

Plan your trip to and from the walk here

The Echo Point to Leura Cascades walk starts at the Echo Point Information Center (gps: -33.732069, 150.31242)
Your transport options to Echo Point Information Center are by;

Car. Parking fees apply in the area.
(get details)

Bus. (get details)

The Echo Point to Leura Cascades ends at the Leura Cascades Picnic Area (gps: -33.719623, 150.3224)
Your transport options to Leura Cascades Picnic Area are by;

Bus. (get details)

Car. There is free parking available.
(get details)

Fire Danger

Each park may have its own fire ban, this rating is only valid for today and is based on information from the RFS Please check the RFS Website for more information.

Weather Forest

This walk starts in the Central Tablelands weather district always check the formal BOM forecast or pdf before starting your walk.

Forecast snapshot

Park Information & Alerts

Download Pdf

Open iPhone app

Short URL = http://wild.tl/eptlc

Gallery images
There are other downloads I am still working on.
You will probably need to login to access these — still all free.
* KML (google earth file)
* GPX (GPS file)

Special Maps/ brochures
* A3 topo maps
* PDF with Lands Topo map base
* PDF with arial image (and map overlay)
I wanted to get the main site live first, this extra stuff will come in time.
Happy walking
Matt 🙂