National Falls is one of the most beautiful waterfalls in Sydney. Despite being spectacular, it doesn’t seem to be very well known and you’ll often find you’re the only person there. The upper falls are easy to access, but the lower falls with that picturesque overhang, require a little more effort. You can walk right the way behind both the lower and upper falls if you’re careful.
As with all waterfalls in the area you’ll want to visit after some decent rainfall to see them at their best. Here’s everything you need to know about visiting National Falls.
Upper National Falls
Lower National Falls
The Upper National Falls
The upper falls are easy to access. From the small car park you just need to walk a few metres to reach the wooden staircase down to the falls. It’s seen better days, but seems sturdy enough.
After the first few stairs you’ll see a dirt path off to your left which will take you behind the waterfall. It takes just a few minutes to get there and always feels like a bit of a novelty! The path is narrow and gets muddy so watch your step.
You will also see a path down to the bottom of the upper falls from just before the overhang but it can get a bit slippery. The alternative is to go back to the main path and climb over the barrier, which is easier.
We wouldn’t normally suggest climbing a barrier but as you can use the other path with no barrier to get to the same place, it makes sense to take the less slippery route!
From the car park, the walk either to the base of the falls or to the path behind it, takes just a few minutes.
Normally you can walk out onto the rock platform before the falls to get some nice head on photos, but if the rain has been extreme it will be flooded, so tread carefully.
Lower National Falls Overhang
Distance: 600m return
Before you set off to the lower falls note that if there isn’t much water in the upper falls, the lower falls won’t be running, and there’s no point making the trip there.
There is no longer an official path to take you to the bottom of the lower falls. However, there are also no barriers or anything saying you are not allowed down there.
The walk to reach them is short, but a little harder than the walk to the upper falls. You need to start walking down the road - it’s a busy road so please walk behind the crash barriers as there is no room for pedestrians on the road.
For the first couple of minutes there is plenty of room and then you reach a very narrow section where on your left there is an unfenced drop off into the bush. It only takes a minute to cross this bit, but just go carefully. It’s not hard, but you absolutely do not want to be blasé with footing.
Just beyond the narrow section (150m from the car park) you will see an old stone staircase off to your left descending into the bush. Take these stairs.
They are in reasonable condition, but they slope on an angle, so again, just watch your footing if it’s been wet.
After 100m the trail will flatten and turn into a dirt path before you’ll see another less powerful waterfall that cascades over the track.
You will get wet walking through it but it’s all part of the fun! You are then at the giant overhang which the lower falls cascade over.
It’s a really great spot and if the waterfall is running powerfully, it feels really wild. You can walk right behind the falls on the wide path and it doesn’t get muddy like the upper falls.
You can stick pretty close to the wall which means you won’t be anywhere near the drop off, but as always go carefully.
The Base of the Lower Falls
The short walk down to the base is more of a scramble than a path. It’s only about 50m, but it can be slippery when wet. I wouldn’t go down unless you feel comfortable scrambling over rocks.
There are a few routes you can take. You’ll see the first one just off to the right straight away, it looks like the route everyone uses judging by the foot prints.
We chose another route which was less slippery. You continue most of the way round the overhang and then you’ll see a rocky route down, which was less steep.
The first route was a dirt path so felt a lot more slippery than carefully picking your way over the rocks. Our route didn’t feel any different to many popular sections of the Great North Walk - the only difference is that the rocks can be pretty wet so take it slowly and carefully.
The waterfall at the bottom reminded me a lot of Victoria Falls in the Blue Mountains. It’s very pretty and would normally have a small swimming hole at the base - in heavy rains it will be flooded.
It’s great to see the falls from the bottom, but my favourite view was from the overhang, so if you think the route down looks too wet or you’re not keen, know that you’ve already seen the best view!
If you love National Falls and want to see some more gorgeous waterfalls nearby, we have a whole post dedicated to the best waterfalls in Royal National Park.
Getting to National Falls
National Falls is located in Royal National Park. The car park can be found just off McKell Avenue, on the Waterfall side of the park. It’s not huge, but then it never seems to get busy so it shouldn’t be a problem.
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