Clover Hill Trail in NSW’s Macquarie Pass National Park Has 3 Waterfalls to Chase

Macquarie Pass is best known as the twisting and turning gateway from the Southern Highlands to the NSW South Coast. But hidden amongst the rainforest and cliffs are gorgeous waterfalls to find along the Clover Hill Trail (and a little bit of off-track exploring too).

We Are Explorers acknowledges the Traditional Custodians of the Country on which this adventure takes place who have occupied and cared for the lands, waters, and their inhabitants for thousands of years. We pay our respects to them and recognise that sovereignty was never ceded.

Clover Hill Trail Facts

Distance: 9-10km [6km on track, 3-4km off track]
Duration: 3–3.5hours
Elevation gain: 350m
Route: Wikiloc

How to Get to Clover Hill Trail

There isn’t any public transport that reaches the Clover Hill Trail, so you’ll need a car. From Sydney, it’s a 1 hour and 40 minute drive to the start of the trail via the Princes Highway.

The turn off the Clover Hill Road is on Macquarie Pass itself, so keep an eye out, as it comes up quickly and there are no places to turn around until you reach the top or bottom of the pass. Once you make the turn off, you’ll immediately enter a small car park, where the trail begins. There’s probably enough space for a dozen cars, so make sure you get here early on the weekend before it fills up.

Skill Level

Intermediate

Finding the final waterfalls requires challenging self-navigation along the river bed, so you’ll want to be a fairly experienced hiker to tackle this trail!

Read more: How To Hike Off-Track

Essential Gear

• Hiking boots
• Waterproof/windproof jacket
• Backpack
• Hat
• Sunnies
• Sunscreen
• Insect repellant
• Water
• Cossies
• Towel
• Camera

What It’s Like Hiking the Clover Hill Trail

One of the best hiking trails in the Macquarie Pass National Park is the Clover Hill Trail. Thanks to the fabulous flow of the Macquarie Rivulet, this hike has many a waterfall to chase. Better yet, it’s just a hop, skip, and a jump away from Sydney and Wollongong.

But not all of the waterfalls are easy to find – locating Rainbow Falls is straightforward enough, but getting to Mulangong and Clover Falls requires some off-track exploration as you follow the river and navigate the less-defined paths upstream. For help navigating to Mulangong and Clover Falls, please feel free to use our GPS-guided directions. However, this won’t be too useful when it comes to navigating the less-defined track further upstream, which requires instinct and good judgment, more than anything else.

Rainbow Falls

Before reaching the first waterfall, you’ll have a dense forest landscape to enjoy. Along the 3km hike to Rainbow Falls, the ferns, plants, and leaves become increasingly lush and tropical. Nearing the end of the official Clover Hill Trail, you’ll reach an exposed grassy area where you’ll need to follow a narrow dirt trail to your right. 

The trail soon becomes muddy and leads down to the river towards Rainbow Falls – a multi-stream cascade converging beautifully over a fascinating rock platform.

Read more: Remember to leave no trace

Interestingly, the Wodi Wodi people, the original custodians of the land, used this river to travel between the coast and highlands. Without a doubt, Rainbow Falls is a gorgeous part of this river stream, but watch your step as it’s quite slippery around the edges of the rock platform.

Read more: Staying Safe Around Swimming Holes and Waterfalls

Mulangong Falls

Now, if you’re up for some exploration to find the remaining waterfalls, including Mulangong Falls, briefly follow the trail upstream and cross the river. From this point, there’s no marked trail to follow. With the river to your right, you’ll need to navigate through thick forest and choose the appropriate side-trails, leading to the cascade waterfalls along the stream. 

Sounds easy enough, right? Well, simply following the stream is practically impossible as large boulders form natural obstacles, forcing you to continuously hike away from the river. The trick is to find any path that stays as close to the river as possible, when possible.

You may find yourself following some side trails that don’t directly lead you to Mulangong Falls. But not to worry, there are plenty of other lovely cascades to explore along the way. 

Mulangong Falls is much larger than the neighbouring cascades, so it should be easily recognisable even if it’s a bit hidden. Hopefully, with some good fortune and persistence, you’ll be relieved to find the magnificent Mulangong Falls.

It majestically flows down an uneven vertical rock platform, splitting into two main streams, both gracefully spilling below into a shallow pool.

Clover Falls

Even if you’ve had a tough time finding Mulangong Falls, make sure to press on to find Clover Falls – the most outstanding waterfall of the entire trail. 

Once you’ve rejoined your chosen path, continue further upstream. With a bit of hard work, patience, composure, and trial and error, you’ll reach the outskirts of the thick forest and find a gathering of large boulders. 

As you navigate around these, you may even start to hear that all-too-familiar sound of water falling. This time, it’s the stunning Clover Falls that powerfully crashes into a pristine, turquoise swimming hole. After a tough hike to reach Clover Falls, you deserve a rest, and maybe even a swim. Go on then!

Clover Hill Trail Tips

• Wear shoes with good grip! You’ll be scrambling over wet rocks
• Be careful driving up and down Macquarie Pass; it’s a winding and narrow road with lots of traffic

FAQs Clover Hill Trail

How long is the Clover Hill Trail?

The established Clover Hill Trail is 6km return; however along with the off-track exploring to the additional waterfalls, this trail is around 9.5km return.

Can you swim in the Macquarie Pass?

Yep! You can swim at Clover Falls in Macquarie Pass National Park, where there’s a shallow pool at the bottom.

Is the Macquarie Pass steep?

As a road, Macquarie Pass is steep in some sections, particularly at the hair-pin turns at the top of the pass.

Want More Waterfalls?

• Quick Guide to Find Woy Woy Hidden Waterfall
• Best Waterfalls to Visit Near Sydney 2025
• Upper Gledhill Falls is Sydney’s Best Kept Secret
• Southern Highlands Road Trip – 9 Waterfalls in 2 Days