Parking
Start at Mackenzie Falls Car Park, reached on the sealed access road from Mount Victory Road. Toilets, picnic facilities and information boards are at the trailhead.
Overview
About Mackenzie Falls Walk
Why go
- Reliable waterfall flow and a dramatic gorge finish
- Short route with a big payoff
Heads up
- 260 narrow steps make the return much harder than the distance suggests
- Popular precinct can feel busy on weekends
Broken Falls Walk is a short, easier, wheelchair-friendly walk out to a lookout. It gives you the waterfall view without the descent and climb.
Parkwolf’s verdictIf the stairs aren't for youMap & elevation
The route
Loading the Grampians map
Full mapElevation350–437 m
Plan your hike
Before you go
Parking
Best time to go
Safety
5 active Grampians alerts
- ClosureMackenzie Falls precinct closed during constructionMentions this trailThe Mackenzie Falls (Migunang wirab) Precinct has no vehicle or visitor access during major construction works expected to finish by the end of 2026.Official details
- ClosureBushfire-damaged walks and picnic area remain closedThe Fortress, Red Gum, Billimina, Chimney Pots and Brownings Loop walks, plus Mafeking Picnic Area, remain closed because of track or site damage from the 2024/25 summer bushfires.Official details
The highest, rockiest slopes around here are a summer buffet for grizzly bears.
Grampians Tour Guide
Your drive to Mackenzie Falls Walk, narrated.
Parkwolf is a GPS audio tour guide for Grampians 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.
Recorded for this trailhead
MacKenzie Falls: Choose Your Walk0:00 / 1:04
“You're coming up on MacKenzie Falls, and this is a stop I'd make time for, even if a steep walk isn't for you. The falls flow all year, dropping over dark rock into a deep pool and sending spray through the gorge.”
Plays as you drive up to this trailhead in the Parkwolf Grampians Tour Guide.
More stories near here in the app
- A New Way Through the Gorge
- Smiths Mill: Camp Among the Stringybarks
- A Bee That Shakes Out the Pollen
- The Diver on the Dead Branch
- 233 audio storiesacross Grampians’s roads, triggered by GPS as you drive
- Wildlife heatmapsfor Short-beaked Echidna, Powerful Owl, Wedge-tailed Eagle, and 13 more
- Works offlinemaps, 81 trails, 62 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!!!!”
Trail guide
Hiking Mackenzie Falls Walk
The routeOut-and-back from Mackenzie Falls Car Park to the base of Mackenzie Falls and back the same…
Out-and-back from Mackenzie Falls Car Park to the base of Mackenzie Falls and back the same way, 2 km / 1.24 miles return. Budget about 1 hour 15 minutes, realistically 1 to 1.5 hours depending on your pace and how long you linger at the falls.
How it unfoldsThe first stretch through stringybark and native shrubs is gentle and easy to follow.
The first stretch through stringybark and native shrubs is gentle and easy to follow. Then the track tips over the edge of the gorge and drops through 260 narrow steps to river level, where sandstone walls close in and the falls come down in tiers into a deep pool. The air at the bottom is noticeably cooler and damp, and on the right day mist hangs in the light.
The stairs are the real workDon't let the short distance fool you.
Don't let the short distance fool you. Parks Victoria rates this one strenuous, and we score it 6/10. The surface is well paved with no scrambling, but the descent is steep and the return is one long sustained stair climb. That climb back out is the part that catches people, so pace it and take breaks on the way up.
- Rock and steps get slippery, especially near the spray zone
- Stick to the formed track; cliff edges here are unstable
- Shoes with grip make a real difference
Water rule and dogsSwimming at Mackenzie Falls is not permitted.
Swimming at Mackenzie Falls is not permitted. The water is cold and deep, currents are strong, and there are submerged objects you can't see from the surface. Dogs are not allowed on this trail; assistance dog access is handled under separate requirements.
Access and facilitiesDrive in on the sealed access road off Mount Victory Road to Mackenzie Falls Car Park.
Drive in on the sealed access road off Mount Victory Road to Mackenzie Falls Car Park. There are toilets, picnic facilities and information boards at the trailhead. The precinct is a popular one, so weekends and holidays are busier.
Wildlife
Wildlife in Grampians
157 sightingsShort-beaked EchidnaMost seen around 6 PMSighting map
37 sightingsPowerful OwlMost seen around 6 PMSighting map
59 sightingsWedge-tailed EagleMost seen around 11 AMSighting map
24 sightingsEastern Brown SnakeMost seen around 11 AMSighting map
10 sightingsTiger SnakeMost seen around noonSighting map
29 sightingsRed-bellied Black SnakeMost seen around 11 AMSighting mapSighting maps show where each species has been reported across Grampians. Wildlife moves, so no sighting is guaranteed.
