Australia is a country that has many national parks in Australia, but today, we will have a look at Morton National Park. Morton national park is located in Australia. It is nestled in the Southern Highlands of New South Wales in between Sydney and Canberra.
It is famous for its waterfalls, walking trails, rivers, deep valleys, flat plateau, walking tracks, and wildlife. Some scenic waterfalls of Morton national park are Fitzroy falls, Belmore falls, granite falls, and twin falls.
This national park’s famous rivers are the Shoalhaven and the kangaroo rivers. You can enjoy the scenic waterfall views. It also has a picnic area. You can enjoy a picnic lunch with your family and friends in this national park.
This place is full of panoramic views. You can do a lot of activities like mountain biking, hiking, remote wilderness hiking, and watching wildlife services. There are 99 mountains in Mortan national park. Some of them are blue mountains, pigeon house mountain didthul, and mount Hoddle.
Mount Hoddle is the highest mountain in Morton national park. It is 3,009 ft long, and the most prominent mountain of this national park is pigeon house mountain didthul.
1. Geography Of Morton National Park
Morton National Park is spread over 494,200 acres of terrain. It is one of the largest parks in Australia. It is situated 170km in the southern highlands of Sydney in New South Wales. The boundaries of this national park are spread from Fitzroy falls to Belmore falls in the northern section and Budawang National Park in the southern highlands.
The area of this national park is carved by the Kangaroo river and Shoalhaven, along with some creeks. The southern part of this national park consists of Budawang National Park. The Budawang and Morton national park are divided by the Great Dividing Range.
There are some major rivers in this national park. The rocky sandstone landscape has various summits across the national park. The waterways of this national park feed the waterfalls of this park.
2. Geology Of Morton National Park
The Morton national park is full of flat plateaus, and there you find imposing gorges dissecting carved out by the rivers. The landscape alongside pockets of this national park is sandstone, horizontal Permian siltstone, conglomerate, and shale.
You can enjoy rock formation and observe it from various lookout points. You can see contoured weathering of flat rock, and those give us the region of terraced appearance.
Some people thought that Pigeon house mountain was a volcanic formation. It consists of sedimentary rocks and marine bedrock. This mountain lasted for 100 million years when Australia was located near Antarctica.
It is a favorite place for novice mountain bikers because they used to do mountain biking.
Ecology Of Morton National Park
Morton national park is a shelter for many wild animals and birds. Various flora and fauna live here in a varied combination of rainforests and eucalypt forests. This national park has sandstone flora like a honey flower, wattle, tea tree, and banksia.
Some wildflowers in the national park blossom at a particular time during the spring season. Some of those flowers are purple flowering chocolate lilies and flowering boronias.
Some wildlife that can be spotted in this national park is ground parrots, kangaroos, eagles, swamp wallabies, bowerbirds, gliders, falcons, and lyrebirds.
3. Human History Of Morton National Park
The Morton national park is the traditional country for the Yuin people. Didthul is also known as pigeon house mountain, and it was a landmark that Captain James Cook sighted during his journey on the eastern coastline of Australia. The name Pigeon House is also given by James Cook.
In 1938, this area was declared a national park, and it was named in memory of Mark Morton. Mark Morton was a member of the State Assembly, and he established the campaign of reserves. So, the national park is named after his name.
4. Best Hikes In The Morton National Park
Morton national park has a popular hiking area that has spectacular views. Some have very high points. We will discuss some of the best hikes of the Morton national park in detail.
4.1. Fitrozy Falls
Fitzroy falls is an incredible place that is 81 meters high. This waterfall is well known to the Wodi Wodi people. European settler Charles Throsby first spotted this waterfall in the 19th century.
Fitzroy falls are located at the northern boundaries of Morton national park. It has a walking track of 4.1 miles long, known as The East Rim Walking Track. And another walking track is The West Rim Walking Track, which is 2.1 miles long. There is a platform from where you can view panoramic scenes of many falls and valleys.
On the western edge of this Fitzroy falls is an escarpment to the renowned lookout. Besides this, it has many seasonal wildflowers like purple flowering chocolate lilies and flowering Boronia.
You can also enjoy the spectacular views of steep gorges and Clyde gorge. You can also enjoy the steep climbs in Fitzroy falls.
4.2. Belmore Falls
Belmore falls are located near Fitzroy falls, and this fall has three drops on the Barrengarry creek in the Illawarra region and the Southern Highlands. The range of this waterfall is 77-130 meters.
The walking track of this fall starts from Hindmarsh Lookout car park. There are several lookout points on this walking track.
4.3. Mount Bushwalker
Mount Bushwalker has an elevation of 641 meters and is located near the Porters Creek area. This place is the best hiking area in Morton national park. On a grand scale, you can enjoy remote trails, views of bushland, and unobstructed vistas of the Castle and Shrouded Gods.
4.4. Granite Falls
You can enjoy the incredible views of dense forests and other waterfalls from granite falls. Granite falls have a walking track of 0.3 miles long. This fall is 63 meters long.Â
4.5. Pigeon House Mountain
Pigeon house mountain is 720 meters high. It is also known as Didthul, and this name is given due to the shape of the mountain. Didthul means the shape similar to a woman’s breast. This mountain’s west rim walking track is 3.1 miles long, and it takes three hours to complete this track.
The views from the summit of this mountain are breathtaking. You can also enjoy the twin falls lookout from the trails of this mountain.
4.6. Kangaroo River
The Kangaroo river is the major river that runs through the valley. The walking track of this river is 2.1 miles long and starts from Tallowa dam road. There are many camping spots near the Kangaroo river.
You can enjoy camping in those spots because they are open for public use, but you must follow the Leave No Trace Principles.
5. Places To Stay Near Morton National Park
Morton National park is a vast area so you can’t visit it in just a day, so you need some accommodation facilities to stay in during your trip. There are many nearby towns where accommodation facilities are available.
5.1. Kangaroo Valley
Kangaroo Valley is a small town located near the Morton national park. It is near the Kangaroo river, so you can enjoy boating there and see the scenic views of the dense rainforest. You can do many activities like cycling, walking track, and kayaking.
This place is full of lush farmlands. You can easily visit Fitzroy falls, Belmore falls, and lake yarrunga from this town. It is located at a two-hour distance from Sydney or Canberra.
5.2. Nowra
Nowra is a large town located on the South coast of New South Wales. It is located at 2.5 hours of distance from Sydney on the bank of Shoalhaven river. The name of this city comes from an Aboriginal word for the Black Cockatoo.
This town is the commercial hub of this area, so it has many shops and accommodation facilities. You can also look at this area’s historic houses, golf clubs, and walking tracks. You can access all the national parks in the south region from this town.
6. Some Nearby Cities Of Morton National Park
Morton national park is located at a very less distance from some cities. Two of them are Sydney and Canberra. You can start the journey from these cities and carry on your adventurous trip to New South Wales.
You can enjoy the plenty of attractions of these cities. So let’s discuss these cities in detail.
6.1. Sydney
Sydney is closest to the Morton national park. Morton national park is situated 106 miles away from this city.
The other attractions of this city are the Sydney bridge, Bondi beach, Sydney opera house, Royal botanical garden, and darling harbor. You can also get accommodation facilities in this city.
6.2. Canberra
Canberra is also located near the Morton National Park. This city is the capital of Australia. Morton national park is situated just 100 miles away from this city. Canberra is smaller than Sydney.
The main attractions of this city are the National Gallery, Parliament House, mountain ranges, farms, and parklands.
7. Some Nearby Attractions Of Morton National Park
The main nearby visitor center is the national park. Some national parks are NSW national Park, budawang national park, budderoo national park, and so on.
We will discuss some of those national parks in detail so that if you plan a trip to New South Wales, you know them very well.
7.1. Budawang National Park
Budawang national park is located on the south coast of Morton national park. The name of this national park is featured after Mount Budawang. It features a rewarding trail, and you can see lovely views from the summit.
This is an enormous park, and the main attractions of this national park are deep valleys and rugged sandstone terrain. Along this, you can do a lot of activities like camping, cycling, mountain biking, and swimming.
7.2. Budderoo National Park
Budderoo national park is situated in the Illawarra region of New South Wales near the coastlines and towns of Shellharbour and Kiama. This national park is located on the northeast side of the Morton national park.
The main attraction of this national park is the Bird Area. It is home to many endangered species of bird. You can see many species of birds like the pilot bird, eastern bristlebird, and rock warbler.
People also like the Minnamurra Rainforest of this national park which is located on the northeastern side of this national park.
7.3. Jerrawangala National Park
Very few people know about the Jerrawangala national park. It is situated in the Great Eastern Escarpment near Nowra city. this national park is located on the eastern border of the Morton national park. Tianjara Falls are located near this national park.
People enjoy cycling, driving, and hiking. You can also enjoy a short walk on the east-rim track of this national park. This park is not easily accessible to visitors because of fewer road access points.
Final Note
We have discussed the Morton National Park. I know all of us are busy, but if you get some time, visit Morton national park. This national park is a popular destination for day trips or school excursions. It is a beautiful place full of incredible views. You are worth visiting here.
Many keen photographers visit this place the clicking pictures of wildlife. You can also enjoy the panoramic views of sandstone cliffs, cascading Fitzroy falls, and sandstone escarpment.
So, if you get some time, plan your next trip to Morton national, and this trip will be one of the most memorable.
