Credit: Kirsten Cunningham Photography
Note: the Minnehaha falls walk is currently closed by the blue mountains council due to safety risks relating to the instability of a rock overhang.
Cool off in the heat, enjoy the great outdoors and take the kiddos to one of our fave family friendly spots listed below for an unforgettable adventure.
As a designated UNESCO World Heritage Area, the impact on the environment is a huge concern in all natural and protected environments and sunscreen in particular is a hot topic in the Blue Mountains National Park.
If you can avoid wearing sunscreen and wear rashies, long sleeves and hats instead, you’ll reduce your impact and the amount of pollution from sunscreen washing off in the pristine creeks and pools.
As always on nature adventures, be conscious of rubbish and take everything you came with back home. If anyone does need to go to the toilet where there are no facilities, use common sense and move away from waterways (ideally 100m), dig a hole at least 15cm deep and bury number two’s properly!
For more info on leaving no trace check out the NSW National Parks and Wildlife website here.
Minnehaha is a 2.4km round walk or around 20-40 minutes each way depending on your speed, with lots of different spots to explore on the way up and down for kids. Some parts of the track are steep, slippery and require care, however the walk will reward you with a pristine waterfall swimming hole surrounded by bush and wildlife at the base. Minnehaha really is a magical waterfall swimming experience and absolutely stunning after a slightly arduous walk down.
There are a few smaller creek beach sections before you start descending to the main falls that are great for shorter walk options and smaller children. The track was well trafficked when we visited in school holidays and prime spots were quickly taken, so it’s good to get here at off peak times if possible.
This track is suitable for children over five who are capable walkers, but not advised after heavy rain or if you have very young children who cannot hold onto rails or walk steadily by themselves. Possible if you can supervise them one on one and hold their hands or carry them.The track can flood easily with wet weather as the creeks run across and under it at times
The waterfall swimming hole is deep and surrounded by beautiful rocks and bushland. There are lots of spots for older kids to explore scrambling around the rocks and the fresh cold water will definitely cool you off after getting sweaty on the way down!
There are no toilets or places to fill up water bottles so bring plenty of water and all your supplies.
Map link here
Additional info and reviews here
For more on swimming holes in the Blue Mountains see here or links below.
