Clarinda Falls from Faulconbridge

Faulconbridge

Faulconbridge, in the Blue Mountains, New South Wales, was named after the maiden name of Sir Henry Parkes’ mother. Faulconbridge sits on the Great Western Highway and is surrounded by valleys of lush bushland. This picturesque town was a home, and final resting place, for Sir Henry Parkes’, heralded as the ‘Father of Federation’. Faulconbridge was originally explored by non-indigenous Australians in 1813, by Blaxland, Wentworth and Lawson who were searching for a route over the Blue Mountains .

(0km) Faulconbridge Station → No. 10 Sir Henrys Pde

410 m
8 mins
10m
-16m

Moderate track

From the top of Faulconbridge Station, the walk heads off the station overpass to the bushland side of the station (if you come to a car park, you have gone to the wrong side of the station). The walk then keeps the rail line on the left as it follows the footpath down to the road. After a while, the walk comes to an intersection with Sir Henrys Pde, opposite house number 10.

Victory Track

The Victory Track is more formally know as the ‘Sir Henry Parkes Victory Track’[4] and is called the ‘Victoria Track’ in many guide books. The track starts near Sir Henry Parkes’ grave in Faulconbridge and leads to Sassafrass Gully Creek. Sir Henry Parks (1815-1896) was a politician and journalist, born in England. He is considered to be the ‘Father of Federation’ for Australia, although he died of natural causes 5 years before Australia’s federation. Parkes was the premier of New South Wales five times. The town Parkes was named in his honour. Parkes would sometime write under the pseudonym ‘Faulconbridge’ (his mothers maiden name) for the Sydney Morning Herald and other papers and Faulconbridge (the township) was named after his mother when Parkes purchased 600 acres in 1877. More info.

(0.41km) No. 10 Sir Henrys Pde → Clarinda Falls

1.3 km
39 mins
16m
-177m

Hard track

Turn right: From 10 Sir Henrys Pde (bushland side), the walk follows the ‘Victory Track’ sign down into the bush. The walk passes under a few rock overhangs and then crosses a creek. Passing a smaller track (on the left, which leads to the top of the falls), the walk soon comes down to a ‘Clarinda Falls’ sign[10].
Turn left: From the intersection, the track follows the ‘Clarinda Falls’ sign[11] towards the log fallen on the rock. The track tends left around the hillside, coming to Clarinda Falls.

Clarinda Falls

Clarinda Falls is a charming waterfall on Sassafras Creek. The water cascades over a near-vertical wall, into a sandy pool below. The falls are signposted from the main track and provide a nice cool detour, especially on warmer days. The falls are named for the first wife of Sir Henry Parkes, ‘Father of Australian Federation’.

Maps for the Clarinda Falls from Faulconbridge walk

You can download the PDF for this walk to print a map.
These maps below cover the walk and the wider area around the walk, they are worth carrying for safety reasons.

Springwood	1:25 000 Map Series	90304S SPRINGWOOD	NSW-90304S
Penrith	1:100 000 Map Series	9030 PENRITH	9030

Cross sectional view of the Clarinda Falls from Faulconbridge bushwalking track

Analysis and summary of the altitude variation on the Clarinda Falls from Faulconbridge

Overview of this walks grade – based on the AS 2156.1 – 2001

Under this standard, a walk is graded based on the most difficult section of the walk.

		Length	3.5 km
		Time	2 hrs
		.
Grade 4/6 Hard track	AS 2156.1	Gradient	Very steep (4/6)
		Quality of track	Formed track, with some branches and other obstacles (3/6)
		Signs	Directional signs along the way (3/6)
		Experience Required	No experience required (1/6)
		Weather	Weather generally has little impact on safety (1/6)
		Infrastructure	Limited facilities, not all cliffs are fenced (3/6)

Some more details of this walks Grading

Here is a bit more details explaining grading looking at sections of the walk

Gradient

Around 1.3km of this walk is very steep, whilst the remaining 440m has short steep hills.

Quality of track

Around 1.3km of this walk follows a formed track, with some branches and other obstacles, whilst the remaining 410m follows a smooth and hardened path.

Signs

Around 1.7km of this walk is clearly signposted, whilst the remaining 25m has directional signs at most intersection.

Experience Required

This whole walk, 1.8km requires no previous bushwalking experience.

weather

This whole walk, 1.8km is not usually affected by severe weather events (that would unexpectedly impact safety and navigation).

Infrastructure

Around 1.7km of this walk is close to useful facilities (such as fenced cliffs and seats), whilst the remaining 25m has limited facilities (such as not all cliffs fenced).

Plan your trip to and from the walk here

The Clarinda Falls from Faulconbridge walk starts and ends at the Faulconbridge Station (gps: -33.69662, 150.53487)
Your transport options to Faulconbridge Station are by;

Train. (get details)

Bus. (get details)

Car. There is free parking available.
(get details)

Fire Danger

Each park may have its own fire ban, this rating is only valid for today and is based on information from the RFS Please check the RFS Website for more information.

Weather Forest

This walk starts in the Central Tablelands weather district always check the formal BOM forecast or pdf before starting your walk.

Forecast snapshot