Walk Map
Description
The Echidna Trail is a beautiful walk that winds its way amongst some of the prettiest nature in the park. Trees include peppermint box, river red gums and pink gums on the higher slopes. Other plant species found here include sheoak, golden wattle, a small stand of native pine and
various herbaceous ground covers.
Twenty-seven species of native orchids have also been recorded in the area. The spring wildflowers are beautiful. Six heritage sites have been identified; including four huts/houses built in the late 1880’s – all of a similar construction.
The Waterfall Track is a short detour of the main track. It does run after heavy rain, but is mostly either dry or dripping.
Details
Location: Gate 7 Piggott Range Road, Onkaparinga Hills. (45 minutes from the CBD)
Tracks: Echidna Trail and Waterfall Track
Grade: Easy to Moderate
Time: 2 hours
Length: 5 km
Our Story
The Echidna Trail and Waterfall Track are my favourites in the whole park and I have come back to them several times. Leaving from Gate 7, you walk straight ahead for a short ways before coming to a convergence of tracks. From here you can access several other tracks in the park. However, we took the left turn onto the Echidna Trail.
You are immediately in a beautiful landscape of nature along a wider track. This soon narrows and this time around we found the bushland had become quite dense. After a rich winter of rain, the growth has been huge. We had to watch out for the spikey Black Boy leaves as they were growing over the thin pathway and they do hurt!
The wonderful thing about this track is that you can be guaranteed to get up close and personal with many kangaroos. And I mean quite literally up close. Every time we have been there, they have taken us by surprise. You are walking along the track and all of a sudden they are either on the track or right next to it. At times we have walked passed them before we even realised!
This trip, Dave had stopped to take some macro flower shots not knowing that they were right there. The sound of the shutter frightened them into moving and before we knew it, a dozen of them were staring at us. I love this incredible shot of Mum and Joey staring out of her pouch. We were only 10 metres away from them and were staring at each other for ages! The variety of expressions on the joeys face as she observed us were such a wonder!
The ruins on the track always take me by surprise as well. You are walking along in beautiful rugged nature, turn a corner, and there it is, an old stone house ruin. It is fascinating to think of the life that people led living here in the late 1800’s. Incredible, but it would have been tough.
The Waterfall Track is a short detour of the Echidna Trail and a must do. I always have to climb the rock face and sit on the waterfall. I have never seen it more than dripping away. One day we will have to get here after a heavy rain and see what it’s like! Today, we saw the most incredible skink ever. He was huge! Dave got lots of photos of him, but this one below of him climbing out of a crevice is my favourite.
This is a wonderful walk to do and is fine to take the kids. You are able to take dogs, but they need to be on a lead or muzzled and well controlled due to the poison baits laid out for the foxes. It isn’t recommended to do between November and March due to snakes and fire danger. Winter is a great time for the waterfall. And spring time is a chance to see the spectacular orchids and wildflowers! And if you are lucky, the newly born kangaroo joeys!
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