Parking
Reported roadside parking is along Bottle Forest Road. The mapped Parklands/Bottle Forest trail approach adds roughly 1 mile each way to the measured segment; confirm a legal parking spot before leaving your vehicle.
Overview
About Bottle Forest Track to Karloo Pool
Why go
- Karloo Pool gives the short singletrack a definite destination.
Heads up
- It is one-way; returning along the same line means climbing back up.
Map & elevation
The route
Plan your hike
Before you go
Parking
Safety
4 active Royal alerts
- ClosureOvernight closures for deer-control operationsSpecified areas of Royal National Park are closed between sunset and sunrise from Monday to Thursday, excluding school holidays, through 18 December 2026 so NPWS can carry out deer-control operations.Official details
- ClosureUnauthorised trail between East Heathcote and Waterfall closedThe unauthorised trail between East Heathcote and Waterfall is formally and physically closed; access is not permitted.Official details
The highest, rockiest slopes around here are a summer buffet for grizzly bears.
Royal Tour Guide
Your drive to Bottle Forest Track to Karloo Pool, narrated.
Parkwolf is a GPS audio tour guide for Royal 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 area
Willow Tree Walk to Jersey Spring0:00 / 0:26
“You're approaching Willow Tree, where you can follow the old Lady Carrington Drive carriageway to Jersey Spring.”
Plays on the road 2.4 km from the trailhead in the Parkwolf Royal Tour Guide.
More stories near here in the app
- One Bird, Many Voices
- Audley Boats, Lunch and the Dance Hall
- Reids Flat and Pool Flat Picnics
- Bungoona Lookout and River View
- 43 audio storiesacross Royal’s roads, triggered by GPS as you drive
- Wildlife heatmapsfor Humpback Whale, White-bellied Sea-Eagle, Koala, and 13 more
- Works offlinemaps, 69 trails, 58 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 Bottle Forest Track to Karloo Pool
The track to the poolBottle Forest Track is a roughly 1-mile (1.
Bottle Forest Track is a roughly 1-mile (1.6 km) point-to-point foot track in Royal National Park. It starts at a junction in the Bottle Forest and Parklands trail network and descends to Karloo Pool. Allow about 40–50 minutes one way; that estimate starts at the junction and leaves out your walk-in from transport. Nearby circuits use parts of the same network but cover different ground, so check which route you mean before relying on loop mileage.
The way downThe surface is unpaved singletrack through bushland.
The surface is unpaved singletrack through bushland. The elevation profile drops about 120 m overall, though the path dips and climbs around the hillside. The tread is less obvious at some junctions than a broad fire trail, so keep your route map handy. If you turn around at the pool, count on about 2 miles (3.2 km) total for this measured segment and a harder climb on the return.
At Karloo PoolThe path reaches the sandstone shelves and still water of Karloo Pool, the payoff at the end of…
The path reaches the sandstone shelves and still water of Karloo Pool, the payoff at the end of this segment. Take a moment to frame the flat rock edge with the reflections and trees.
Access and rulesThis is one section in a larger walking network.
This is one section in a larger walking network. The mapped approach from Bottle Forest Road via the connected Parklands and Bottle Forest tracks adds roughly 1 mile each way before you reach the upper junction. Roadside parking is reported along Bottle Forest Road, but confirm a legal spot before leaving your vehicle. Pets are not permitted in Royal National Park.
Wildlife
Wildlife in Royal
56 sightingsHumpback WhaleMost seen around 11 AMSighting map
68 sightingsWhite-bellied Sea-EagleMost seen around 9 AMSighting map
12 sightingsKoalaMost seen around 6 PMSighting map
33 sightingsJavan RusaMost seen around 6 PMSighting map
69 sightingsShort-beaked EchidnaMost seen around 5 PMSighting map
11 sightingsRed FoxMost seen around 5 PMSighting mapSighting maps show where each species has been reported across Royal. Wildlife moves, so no sighting is guaranteed.
