The Grotto has to be one of our most unexpected finds on the South Coast yet. We set off on the trail with little in the way of expectations, but it was a gloomy day that was better suited to a bush walk than anything on the coast. A chance decision to head slightly off trail when we saw some fun looking boulders, led to discovering the most amazing caves, cracks and rock formations. They were all hiding in plain sight just above the main walking track.
It honestly felt like we’d stepped into a secret realm and one we didn’t share with another soul, despite the fact we were visiting in the busy Christmas holidays.
If you’re looking for a short trail in Nowra and don’t mind a very minor scramble, you will not find a better walk than the Grotto.
The Grotto Walk
The stats
Distance: 2.1km loop
Elevation gain: 85m
Difficulty: Easy, but our route has some off track walking
Summary: This version of the Grotto Walking Track is not the official version. The usual track is well signposted follows a circular path through the bush and alongside the Shoalhaven River. The version we’d describing is a shorter walk, which is partly on the main trail and also includes some off track walking.
There are a few staircases to climb and one short rocky scramble. How much you explore the hidden upper reaches depends on you, but there’s plenty to see which is easy to access and no additional scrambling is required.
Starting the trail: through the bush
We actually began the walk a little earlier than we needed to, so if you’re looking for the shortest possible route to the Grotto, we have included a closer parking spot below (this will shave 360m return from the total distance mentioned in the stats).
Using our route, you’ll walk from the residential street downhill for 15m (on the obvious worn path) and turn left. There is a fence running along this part of the trail as you walk through the bush with river views to your right.
Unfortunately the road is to your left, so it’s not a very wild start to the walk, though it doesn’t matter because that comes later.
The path is flat at first and then you’ll begin a gradual descent on a dirt track. After 370m you head right at the junction, and then right again 20m later, which is signposted as The Lower Grotto.
Finding the hidden grotto
The path will now begin descending more steeply towards the river on a series of stairs. The stairs last for 160m and the path gets much prettier from here as you walk alongside some giant overhangs and inbetween stone walls.
At the end of the stairs you turn right at the junction, heading along the Waratah Walk.
From here you are 100m from where you need to turn off the main track to find the Grotto. The turning is at a large rock, with a vine that you’ll need to step over to get to the clearing - the coordinates for the turn are -34.8649413, 150.5804416.
You could easily miss it, but if you’re keeping a keen eye open, you’ll see a worn track on the right side that leads towards the cliffs and away from the river.
As you walk further into the bush you’ll come to a series of high cliff walls, some with slits in the rock and some with boulder wedges. It’s very atmospheric, especially when you look behind you and see big rocky outcrops and a mass of hanging vines.
Within 50m of the turn off (from the main walking track) you’ll see some stone steps on the left, leading up into a rocky overhang.
Follow the overhang and you’ll come to a slanted gap between two rocks walls.
Grab a stick and “de-web” this bit if you need to. Then proceed through the gap and you’ll come to some small boulders you will need to climb up.
We honestly had no idea what was up there, but decided to climb the boulders anyway, and it’s from here that you feel like you’ve entered another world.
The rocks are easy to climb and not slippery when dry.
Exploring The Grotto cave
Joe climbed the rocks first and shouted down to me that I wasn’t going to believe what was up there. And he was right.
I couldn’t have imagined there was a hidden world of caves, slots and crazy rock formations just above the main walking track! It reminded me of the Blue Mountains, yet here it was just outside Nowra town centre!
My favourite area was to the right of the boulder climb, and that’s where you’d naturally head first anyway as it’s so dramatic. There’s a gaping hole between two colossal rock walls that I feel deserve a name, and perhaps they have one, but if they do I wasn’t able to find out what it is.
Not only are the walls gigantic, but there’s a huge tree running down the left side. The sprawling roots look like they are straight out of the Tomb Raider movie.
It creates the most incredible vibe and it only gets wilder when you see that the huge gap in the cliff walls leads towards a dark cave. It’s a bit Alice in Wonderland like, but perhaps a dark fantasy version. You can head through the cave mouth and you’ll see a big boulder wedge.
The walls were dripping with water which sparkled like fools gold wherever the light hit them. I went under the boulder and came to a very narrow crack in the walls. You can turn on your side and slither along the crack, though I confess i didn’t go far. I’m not sure what lies beyond, but even going a little way inside was fun.
Please be careful when exploring here as this is all off track, though bolt holes on the rock walls suggest it’s well known amongst climbers!
Going further
After exploring the area to the right of the boulder climb you can then head to the left side. There’s a lot to see, with crazy cliff walls, tight boulder wedges and more caves. Some of the caves are inaccessible to the average person, requiring ropes to get down or gear to climb up.
You’ll see a honeycomb cave high up on one of the rock walls and a few footholds worn into the rock. It looked very tempting, but you definitely need to be a rock climber to get up there!
Roughly 150m beyond this cave (probably slightly shorter in reality as we were crisscrossing back and forth to check out all the different rock formations) you’ll come to a huge overhang.
The path to get there is a dirt track with some rocks and tree roots, but nothing too challenging when dry.
The overhang has a sandy bottom which though slanted, is easy to walk on and even if you did slide down a bit, it would be like sliding on a shallow sand dune, so it’s easy to explore.
It’s really impressive, but perhaps best viewed from the other side, where you get a better idea of the scale.
It continues into another smaller overhang before the path runs alongside a cliff wall. I think I went for another 10m or so before coming to a natural turn around point.
The trail seems to peter out or involved walking quite steeply downhill on a track that didn’t look stable - though I personally didn’t test it.
Completing the trail
You don’t need to retrace your steps to get back onto the main walking track. Instead you can walk down the sandy hill at the overhang, which then leads to a dirt track. The dirt track heads down through the bush before coming to some old steps.
They are very overgrown and you may not even notice them at first, but you can use them to make the descent a bit more stable, as there is some loose soil here.
The trail will flatten and you need to head left. However, before you do, you might notice an old tyre swing and makeshift climbing frame to the right!
Between the old swing and the main walking track it’s just 50m. However, this section is overgrown and a bit scratchy, it’s easy enough to get through, but watch for spider webs!
You’ll then arrive at the main trail where heading left will see you retrace your steps back to where you parked your car. Heading right would take you on the longer circuit route if you have more time.
Where to park for The Grotto Walking Track
The walk begins on Yurunga Drive in Nowra. The best place to park is at these coordinates: -34.8633973, 150.5798242. This takes off 180m each way of just walking through the bush (as described in the notes above).
It’s an 8 minute drive from Nowra town centre or 30 minutes from Huskisson in Jervis Bay.
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