In 1908, Henry Flagler opened a quarry on Windley Key during construction of his Overseas Railroad. The Florida Keys are made of coral rock, and it is at this geological site that you’ll peer deeply into the island’s fossil past, frozen in the walls of these massive quarries. At first, no one thought much of the rock. It was used...

Invitations to the opening of Govett’s Leap Lookout in 1889 promised “a banquet on a precipice – speeches in mid air.” More than a century on, a mere blink in geological history, the Blue Mountains view from Govett’s Leap retains its power to steal your breath. Bridal Veil Falls and Horseshoe Falls plunge 180m down faulted sandstone cliffs to the right and left and the Grose Valley...

Birthplace of the world’s oldest surf lifesaving club (1907), and a family favourite since the 19th century, Bondi Beach is the trail head for a lovely amble along cliffs fringing coastal suburbs. The Bondi-to-Coogee Coast Walk meanders 6.6km south, with boardwalks and footpaths following the voluptuous curves of beaches and honeycombed sandstone cliffs. The walk is do-able in 2 hours each...

Tiny Bouddi National Park, on NSW’s central coast, was dedicated in 1935 after a campaign inspired by Sydney lawyer Marie Byles. She explored the area on foot in 1922 with three girlfriends, one a trouser-wearing pistol-toting lass named Ester Waite. What enthralled Ms Byles were the coastal cliffs: great walls of cracked sandstone battlements besieged by crashing waves. Wind-tolerant walkers can see this splendour on...

Volcanoes are commonly perceived and portrayed as violent and destructive geothermal events. But the creative powers of lava under pressure are plain to see even before you set foot on a walking track in Warrumbungle National Park, in central north New South Wales. The grand scale of this artistry becomes clear treading the 14.5km Grand High Tops loop. How could you not stare at...

On sunny days, SydneyHarbour lives up to its reputation as one of the world’s most spectacular harbours. But you don’t need a million-dollar income to enjoy the million-dollar views. You can watch the pleasure boats and green-and-yellow commuter ferries, the swimmers and stick-chasing dogs, from the Manly Scenic Walkway. Linking the Spit Bridge, at Seaforth, and the world-famous beach suburb of Manly...

Built between 1826 and 1836, the Old Great North Road was a remarkable feat of colonial engineering. It is also one of 11 Australian convict sites inscribed as World Heritage in 2010. Treading it is a bushwalking New South Wales experience like no other. Some sections of the original road are now well-used roads, stone bridges and restored culverts the only clues to the...

Great Walks of Queensland is a multimillion dollar state government initiative to create a system of world-class long-distance walking tracks through national parks and World Heritage areas. The ten completed tracks explore mountains, valleys, tangled rainforests and islands. They offer a range of options, from family-friendly single-leg strolls between villages to multi-day extended pack-carrying hikes in remote country. All showcase...

Coming upon it out of Gulf Country dust, you might think Lawn Hill Gorge, in Boodjamulla National Park, a mirage. But there’s nothing illusory about this oasis of red sandstone gorge walls and forest-fringed green water and it’s a surprising bushwalking Queensland destination. In the Waanyi Aboriginal people’s tradition, Boodjamulla, the Rainbow Serpent, created the gorge and its three waterholes will dry up should he...

Aberdeen is not much of a destination, but if you do find yourself here then consider the following options: A walk on its good long beach The Stratosphere science discovery centre Provost Skene’s House, the former city mayor’s residence and the city’s oldest building (1545). The excellent Maritime Musuem which looks step-by-step at the process of ship building and has...

The City of Churches, as Adelaide has long been tagged, is also blessed with abundant parklands, some green and manicured, others au natural. The George Driscoll Sea to Summit Trail links several of these, creating an almost continuous corridor of greenery between Mt Lofty and Kingston Park Beach. This 35km celebration of the state capital’s parklands was designed as a one-day, uphill hike...

Mt Remarkable National Park, in the southern Flinders Ranges, is a sanctuary for a mix of flora and fauna from dry northern South Australia and the state’s moister south. But there is one creature you are guaranteed not to meet in Alligator Gorge. The rock walls have the crazed texture of a prehistoric reptile but the origin of the gorge’s name is unknown. And...

Wildflowers, rocky coves, and vertiginous sea cliffs await you on the spectacular one-way day walk – you’ll need to car shuffle – along South Australia’s south coast. A moderate leg of the long-distance Heysen Trail, the Waitpinga Cliffs walk snakes 13km along rugged Southern Ocean shore line. Starting at Waitpinga Beach, an unpatrolled surf beach also popular with fishers, it ends at boulder-strewn King...

Saw-tooth quartzite ridges rising from gibber plains are the most recognisable face of the Flinders Ranges, in central South Australia, but colour is their big surprise. From afar they look mauve, purple and blue yet up close the rock is very red and radiates age. The landmark feature of Ikara/FlindersRanges National Park is Wilpena Pound, an extraordinary stone ring scored with bushwalking South Australia trails. Geologists claim...

Sometimes there’s nothing better than a beach walk. And as beaches go, few compare with the Bay of Fires, on Tasmania’s far northeast coast. Named by English navigator Tobias Furneaux for the glow of Aboriginal fires he saw from HMS Adventure in early 1773, this shore could have been so named for its lichen-covered granite boulders, which glow like hot coals in early and late sun....

There were worse places to be a convict than Maria Island, off Tasmania’s east coast, but it’s far more fun to visit voluntarily. You need to combine bike riding with walking to explore the island’s fascinating history and geology in any depth. And the high point of island walks, for many visitors, is climbing Bishop & Clerk. A ferry ride across Mercury Passage, often escorted...

Regulars have been holidaying at Cape Conran Coastal Park, in east Gippsland, for years and newcomers rarely stop at one visit. It’s a perfect place to kick back with a book and ramble around rock pools. Or to expend more energy surfing and scuba diving. Tread the Dock Inlet Loop and you’ll quickly realise that it’s also a top bushwalking Victoria destination. Pink...

The Goldfields Track (GT) commemorates and celebrates Victoria’s 19th century Gold Rush, a mass migration of fortune seekers from around the world that increased the young colony’s population eight-fold to roughly half a million in just ten years. A shared mountain bike-walking trail, the 210km track links the historic cities of Ballarat and Bendigo, powerhouses of alluvial and deep reef mining respectively, passing through smaller towns, farmland and long-abandoned diggings along the...

Summer temperatures soar in Hattah-Kulkyne National Park but frosty winter nights can thaw to crisp mornings heralding sunny afternoons perfect for walking. And the pick of the walks is the easy 9.5km Lake Mournpall Circuit, a bushwalking Victoria opportunity to step out in near-desert country. More than 200 bird species have been identified on and around the Hattah Lakes, a...

I speak from painful experience when I warn that Bluff Knoll, in the fabulously craggy Stirling Range, is not a walk to do with a middle ear infection! Climbing the tallest peak in southern Western Australia is more fun in good health with a fleece and jacket to protect against southerlies. (The Aboriginal people who lived in and around this...