Leura Cascades Fern Bower Circuit in Blue Mountains National Park

Blue Mountains National Park, NSW

Leura Cascades Fern Bower Circuit

A steep loop through cascades, rainforest and cliffside views.

Photo: Wikimedia Commons
Length
2.2km
Time
2hr
Elev. change
95m
Difficulty
Challenging
  • Loop
  • No dogs
  • High point 952 m
  • #22 of 110 in Blue Mountains

Hear the audio tour

Leura Cascades and the Fern-lined Creek

Overview

About Leura Cascades Fern Bower Circuit

Why go

  • Cascades and creek viewpoints lead to a Jamison Valley lookout.
  • Rainforest, a natural amphitheatre and sandstone overhangs add variety to the loop.

Heads up

  • Very steep stair climbs and descents on uneven sections.
  • Several track junctions and lookout spurs can complicate route-finding.

Map & elevation

The route

Loading the Blue Mountains map
Full map
Elevation857–952 m
TrailheadLeura Cascades Picnic Area, Cliff Drive access-33.72112, 150.32077
Keep this map with you offline in the Parkwolf app

Plan your hike

Before you go

Parking

Start from Leura Cascades Picnic Area off Cliff Drive; roadside parking around the access can be limited at busy times.

Safety

Grade 4 terrain is very steep with many steps and some obstacles; sections can be slippery after rain, and mobile reception is limited.

3 active Blue Mountains alerts

  • ClosureRoads and tracks closed across Blue Mountains National ParkMany roads, fire trails and walking tracks across Blue Mountains National Park are closed; do not enter closed areas.Official details
  • CautionPark-wide solid-fuel fire banA park fire ban is active across Blue Mountains National Park: campfires and solid-fuel barbecues and stoves are prohibited. - Gas and electric cookers are permitted, subject to safety rules.Official details
See all 3 alerts
A park ranger sits on a dash-mounted phone, talking, as Parkwolf’s Tour Guide plays “Army Cutworm Moths: A Grizzly Bear Buffet” on Grand Loop Road below Dunraven Pass in Yellowstone
Parkwolf Tour GuideThe highest, rockiest slopes around here are a summer buffet for grizzly bears.

Blue Mountains Tour Guide

Your drive to Leura Cascades Fern Bower Circuit, narrated.

Parkwolf is a GPS audio tour guide for Blue Mountains National Park. As you drive, it chimes in with what’s ahead: hidden gems, upcoming stops, history, geology, and wildlife, right through your car’s speakers.

See the Blue Mountains audio tour

Recorded for this trailhead

Leura Cascades and the Fern-lined Creek
0:00 / 0:35
“Leura Cascades is coming up, where a fern-lined creek spills over dark rock shelves. Choose it for a shady picnic or a walk beside the water, rather than another wide valley panorama.”

Plays as you drive up to this trailhead in the Parkwolf Blue Mountains Tour Guide.

More stories near here in the app

  • The Wattle's Air Supply
  • Elysian and Olympian Rocks
  • Gordon Falls and Pool of Siloam
  • Echo Point and the Three Sisters
  • 188 audio storiesacross Blue Mountains’s roads, triggered by GPS as you drive
  • Wildlife heatmapsfor Grey Kangaroo, Wombat, Red-necked Wallaby, and 13 more
  • Works offlinemaps, 110 trails, 84 places, and audio download before you lose signal
  • CarPlay readysimple controls built for the drive
★★★★★
“Fantastic app with many points of information… It’s great to just turn on while you’re driving and it gives you an audio tour of the national Park. We love it!!!!”
JMJamesApp Store review
Download Parkwolf on the App StoreGet Parkwolf on Google Play

4.7 from 8,600+ ratings

Trail guide

Hiking Leura Cascades Fern Bower Circuit

Route and distanceThe Leura Cascades Fern Bower circuit is a steep loop from the picnic-area access, following…

The Leura Cascades Fern Bower circuit is a steep loop from the picnic-area access, following Leura Falls Creek through cascades, rainforest and cliff viewpoints. The stored closed line measures 2.19 km (1.36 mi). Other route descriptions give 4.5 km, but no complete line verifies which added lookout paths make up the difference; this entry follows the measured core loop. Check the official trail map before adding side paths.

Water and lookoutsFrom the stone arch, steps descend beside Leura Falls Creek and cross a footbridge before the…

From the stone arch, steps descend beside Leura Falls Creek and cross a footbridge before the route reaches a series of cascade viewpoints. A lookout above Bridal Veil Falls opens toward Jamison Valley. The water and cliff scenery are the main payoff, with rock formations and overhangs along the cliff walk.

Steep steps and junctionsThe loop climbs along Round Track, then drops steeply on Amphitheatre Track into rainforest.

The loop climbs along Round Track, then drops steeply on Amphitheatre Track into rainforest. It climbs again on stairs and traverses a ledge to a natural amphitheatre; Fern Bower steps lead back up to Prince Henry Cliff Walk and toward the creek crossing. Expect repeated steep descents and climbs on a formed track with obstacles. Allow about two hours for the mapped core with stops; longer estimates apply to the longer published circuit. The walk is signposted, but several connecting tracks and lookout spurs make a map useful at junctions. Surfaces can be slippery after rain, and mobile reception is limited.

RainforestPause in the fern-lined section and listen for the catbird and wonga pigeon.

Pause in the fern-lined section and listen for the catbird and wonga pigeon. The route's steep stairs, creek crossings and ledge make this a demanding walk despite its compact mapped distance. Pets are not permitted, except certified assistance animals.

Wildlife

Wildlife in Blue Mountains

All Blue Mountains wildlife maps

Sighting maps show where each species has been reported across Blue Mountains. Wildlife moves, so no sighting is guaranteed.

Keep exploring

Near Leura Cascades Fern Bower Circuit

See it all on the map

Trails that start nearby

Places near the trailhead

Parkwolf’s Blue Mountains ranking

Top-rated trails in Blue Mountains

All 110 trails
  1. 1Grand Canyon trackModerate · 6.3 km
  2. 2Three Sisters walkEasy · 0.8 km
  3. 3Lockley Pylon walking trackModerate · 7 km
  4. 4National PassChallenging · 5.1 km
  5. 5Wentworth Pass loop walking trackChallenging · 5 km
  6. 6Prince Henry Cliff walkModerate · 7 km

Take Parkwolf to Blue Mountains.

The audio tour guide for the drive, plus offline maps, trails, and wildlife heatmaps for when the signal drops.

4.7 from 8,600+ ratings

Download Parkwolf on the App StoreGet Parkwolf on Google Play