Where We Be
Icebergs Pool with Bondi Beach just behind it has
to be one of the most inviting ends to a hike ever
Two Coastal Walks -- Sydney, Australia
The best hike we did in the Sydney area was
the Coogee to Bondi Beach Coastal Walk. You
can start at either end but we liked beginning
at Coogee Beach and walking back towards
Bondi Beach. That let us end up at the lovely
Icebergs pool shown at left. Just behind the
pool is the crescent of Bondi Beach itself, jam-
packed on a sunny Saturday afternoon near
summer's end. The coastal walk climbs up and
down and is 6.5 km (4 mi) one way with five
different beaches and some pretty amazing
clifftop scenery along the way. We took plenty
of pictures so you can judge for yourself.

Another worthy contender is the Spit Bridge to
Manly Beach Walk. This one starts out with a
scenic ferry ride from Circular Quay to Manly
Wharf followed by a short bus ride to Spit
Bridge. Again you can do the hike in either
direction but starting at Spit Bridge lets you
walk back towards Manly Beach for a swim at
the end -- and the wharf is nearby where you'll
catch the ferry home. The hike is 10 km (6 mi)
one way. This is a more typical nature hike with
scenery that is more woodsy than beachy, but
there are excellent lookouts of the harbor and
skyline from on high. Do both hikes if you have
the time -- it will be time well spent.
A seawater pool is carved into the rocks at the far end of Coogee Beach.
Starting your hike off with a swim makes for a refreshing beginning.
From time to time big waves crash into the wall and splash into the pool -- fun!
After our swim we showered in fresh water using the free facilities, drip-dried, then
donned our clothes and walked with our feet in the water to the start of the trail.
We quickly gained altitude and reached the main paved trail.
Here we're looking down on Coogee Beach from above.
The hike heads up over headlands then down to beaches
and bays like this one. It's not too steep but is fairly hilly.
The first stretch, Coogee to Clovelly Beach, is 1.8 km (~1 mile)
long and offers pretty coastal views near Gordon's Bay
This is the approach to Clovelly Beach (visible in the distance). As you can see, lots of
Australians are out and about on a Saturday enjoying the deep water swimming here.
A pool is built right alongside the bay. Cement "patios"
offer places to catch some rays after your swim.
Clovelly Beach itself is narrow with a playground and green grass at the
far end. You have to make quite a V-shaped detour to get around it.
Here we're at the far side of the V looking back at all the swimmers at Clovelly.
The next stretch between Clovelly and Bronte Beaches is 2.2 km (~1.3 mi) long.
Shortly after Clovelly you come to these beautifully situated lawn bowling facilities
Just beyond comes some of the most dramatic scenery of the whole hike.
Believe it or not, that's a cemetery up ahead with one heck of an ocean view.
Our pace slowed considerably as we wound our way through this section.
We stopped often to enjoy the crashing waves and cool ocean breezes.
Looking back you can see the stepped wooden boardwalk, the cemetery
in the distance, and the rugged coastline that makes this hike so special
Up ahead is Bronte Beach. You can see lots of
people enjoying the water on such a sunny day.
Of all the beaches we saw, we liked crescent-shaped
Bronte Beach the best for swimming and body surfing
Watching surfers catch the waves at Bronte Beach was kind of mesmerizing
Reluctantly we decided we'd better push on. Here's a last look at Bronte Beach from above.
Almost immediately you come to Tamarama Beach, only 700 meters (~0.4 mi) away.
It's sometimes called "Glamorama" due to all the good-looking people who sunbathe here!
Tamarama is yet another great beach. No wonder Sydney-siders
are so happy: they have so many amazing beaches in their back yard.
The last stretch is 1.2 km (0.75 mi) from Tamarama to Bondi Beach. Looking back,
you can see just how many people are walking the trail at midday on a Saturday.
Up ahead we get our first glimpse of famous Bondi (BON-DYE) Beach
But the real show-stopper for us was Icebergs Pool. This has to be the best located pool in Australia.
In case you're curious, adult admission is 8 AUD (~$6 US) per day as of 2019 -- not bad!
This large oceanside pool with crashing waves has to be seen to
be believed. If we came back again, we'd spend a whole day here.
Bondi Beach is jam packed on a sunny Saturday afternoon.
It's by far the biggest of the beaches we saw on our walk.
Whether you like tanning on sand or grass, Bondi has your number.
From here it's a short walk back to Bondi Junction and the train ride home.
Coastal Walk #1 -- Coogee to Bondi Beach
This is Coogee (KOO-jee) Beach. Getting here was simple: two train stops from Kings Cross to
Bondi Junction then a 15-minute bus ride from Bondi Junction (look for buses 313, 314, or 353).
Coastal Walk #2 -- Spit Bridge to Manly Beach
Here's another great way to start a hike: with a scenic 30-minute ferry ride
of Sydney Harbour. Manly Wharf is out towards the mouth of the harbor.
From Manly Wharf we caught a bus (look for #143 or 144) to Spit Bridge 15 minutes away. See that green area to the right?
That's the start of the hike. We had to wait a minute or two as the bridge raised and lowered to let a boat pass through.
Here's the beginning of the trail at Ellery's Punt Reserve. From
here head away from the bridge and keep following the shore path.
One of our favorite moments of the hike was seeing this rainbow lorikeet peeking out at
us from the bole of a tree near eye level. Eventually he stuck his head all the way out.
We hiked through woods with occasional views of harbors
and beaches. This is a view back towards Spit Bridge.
Wildlife was a fun aspect of this hike. We saw numerous
iguanas and lizards sunning themselves on craggy rocks.
Clontarf Reserve is a pleasant beach park with public toilets and a netted swimming area
I wore my swimsuit and tevas on both hikes so I could
take a quick dip in the water whenever I wanted
Manly Bay forms one of two "pincers" (Watsons Bay is the
other, shown right) that narrow the entrance to the harbor
The reward for all that stair climbing is great views of the Sydney skyline
While much of the hike is forested, you keep getting terrific
harbor views all the way from Clontarf Point to Dobroyd Head
In time we could see Manly up ahead. Famous
Manly Beach is on the other side of the peninsula.
The trail descended and we lost sight of Manly
for awhile as we wound along the coastline
Getting closer to Manly now -- a protected seawater pool offers another opportunity for a swim
We crossed this pleasant pedestrian mall known as the Corso that connects
Manly Wharf to Manly Beach on the far side of the narrow peninsula
Manly Beach was packed with people on a sunny day even
though it was midweek. This is the beach view looking left.
And this is the beach view looking right
After all that hiking I didn't waste any time -- I went
straight into the water. I even got to ride some waves!
The path climbs from here
Aboriginal rock art is another cool aspect of this hike. We could clearly see the
fish but some of the others (like the kangaroo) were much harder to see.
Ice cream at the finish line!