Parking
Start at the southern Wises gate on Sir Bertram Stevens Drive; free parking is reported near both gates. The route ends at the northern gate, so arrange a pickup or plan to retrace the 4.1 km.
Overview
About Wises Track
Why go
- Spring heathland flowers and seasonal orchids
- A gently rolling ridgeline with a sandy banksia-scrub finish
Heads up
- Point-to-point routing needs a pickup or full retrace
- An early junction is unsigned
Map & elevation
The route
Plan your hike
Before you go
Parking
Safety
4 active Royal alerts
- ClosureWises Track and Karani Ridge closed for vegetation maintenanceMentions this trailWises Track and Karani Ridge fire trail are closed on weekdays from 1 October through 30 October 2026 for essential vegetation maintenance works. - The tracks are open on weekends and public holidays.Official details
- 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
The highest, rockiest slopes around here are a summer buffet for grizzly bears.
Royal Tour Guide
Your drive to Wises Track, 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 trailhead
Wises Track’s Heathland Walk0:00 / 0:25
“You're nearing the southern gate of Wises Track, a walk for looking closely at the heathland plants. Allow about an hour and a half for four point one kilometres one way, with a rocky descent and sandy stretches.”
Plays as you drive up to this trailhead in the Parkwolf Royal Tour Guide.
More stories near here in the app
- Wallumarra Track to Bola Creek
- Curra Moors Heath and Coastal Loop
- Who Scribbled on the Gums?
- Wattamolla Walk to Eagle Rock
- 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 Wises Track
A short heathland crossingWises Track is a 4.
Wises Track is a 4.1 km point-to-point walk between two gates on Sir Bertram Stevens Drive in Royal National Park. It follows an old service road over a ridgeline, through low heath and, near the northern end, sandy banksia scrub. Allow about 1.5 hours one way. This is more a heathland and plant walk than a destination hike; the spring flowers are the main reason to choose it. Because this is a through-walk, arrange a pickup or plan to retrace it for 8.2 km.
Watch the turnsStart at the southern gate; its sign may be missing.
Start at the southern gate; its sign may be missing. About 30 metres in, turn right, pass the rocky outcrop and descend. At the unsigned junction, keep right. The track then rises and falls gently along the ridgeline for about 2 km before reaching a grassy junction. Keep right again, past the overgrown left branch, for the last roughly 500 metres through banksia scrub and low eucalypts to the northern gate. The surface is unpaved, with one rocky descent and a sandy finish.
Come for the heathSpring is the season to aim for: the park highlights Wises Track for heathland wildflowers then.
Spring is the season to aim for: the park highlights Wises Track for heathland wildflowers then. Walkers have recorded Flying Duck Orchids, Christmas Bells and sundews along the track, but flowering and sightings vary. This is a better fit if you enjoy looking closely at the vegetation than if you are after a waterfall or lookout.
A name from the park’s early yearsWises Track is named for Bernhard Ringrose Wise (1858–1916), a NSW politician who served on the…
Wises Track is named for Bernhard Ringrose Wise (1858–1916), a NSW politician who served on the National Park Trust in its early years. It is a small bit of history attached to a route that still follows an old service road through the park.
Access and petsThe southern and northern gates are both on Sir Bertram Stevens Drive.
The southern and northern gates are both on Sir Bertram Stevens Drive. Free parking is reported near each, but the walk finishes at the other gate, so arrange a lift or budget for the full 8.2 km return. Pets are not allowed in the park, apart from certified assistance animals.
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.
