The Budawang National Park (and neighbouring Morton National Park) are some of the most stunning and untouched areas around. Both parks cover an area of more than 2300 square kms and offer a magnitude of hikes from a relaxing day hike to multi-day treks.

Quick Overview

The Corang Peak trail is a 25 km long return hike located in the Morton National Park in New South Wales. The drive from Sydney to Morton National Park takes about 3.5 hours.

 

Highlights

  • Amazing landscape
  • Camping in caves
  • Wildlife (echidnas, wombats, wallabies, wedge-tailed eagles)

Budawang National Park Michael Harris Blue Mountains NSW winter

The Lowdown

I’d mentioned to a friend that I was keen to do some more hikes in the area, he suggested the Corang Peak hike in the Budawang National Park and said we could continue on and camp in some caves for the night — every part of that sounded perfect so a few weeks later 4 of us packed up one Friday night and set off early on Saturday morning.

The hike begins at the Wog Wog campground on Charleys Forest Road, about 20kms from the town of Nerriga, all up around 3.5 hours south from Sydney. We set off under cloudy skies and light rain through open eucalyptus forest slowly climbing up until we reached the fairly open plateau, by now the clouds had cleared and the sun was out as we crossed the Budawang Range with amazing views of The Castle and Pigeon House Mountain to the east.

After climbing up and over Corang Peak we stopped at the arch for a rest and some lunch before descending down to Canowie brook and enjoyed the last 2km of the walk to the cliff line ahead where we would camp for the night.

The rest of the afternoon was spent sitting on the edge of the cliffs above the tree-line chatting, laughing and pondering life while rays of light danced across the little valley and the sun slowly descended into the western sky.

Budawang National Park Michael Harris Blue Mountains NSW mist winter

Somewhat surprisingly, we all had a very good night’s sleep and we woke to the sounds of Currawongs in the trees and the entire area shrouded in fog. I couldn’t help myself and went down into the valley to get amongst it, nature changes when its foggy, everything is quieter and so peaceful.

As we were finishing breakfast and packing up, the fog lifted and we set off back along the trail we came in on but as we reached Canowie brook again we headed north and followed it upstream to the junction of the Corang river as an ‘alternate route’ back to the car.

The better part of the walk to the junction was slow going as there was no real track, the reward for our efforts and all the scratches was the amazing rock columns and the waterfalls — a perfect place to stop for lunch.

The remainder of the afternoon was spent on an easy to navigate trail back to the camp ground and the car, with the sun slowly setting it was the perfect end to an overnight trip with good friends.

On the drive back to civilisation we were talking about how the overnight trip felt longer, it felt like we had been gone for 2 or 3 more days than we had. Time spent in the bush is always time well spent regardless of how long it is. That’s why I love camping, being disconnected from the drone of everyday life cleanses a weary soul.

How To Get There

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Essential Gear

Activities

  • Hiking
  • Camping
  • Photography

Skill Level

Intermediate

Distance / Elevation / Duration

About 25kms with a 700m elevation gain. 2 days, 1 night.

 

Check out more trips in the Budawangs…

Bushwacked in the Budawangs (NSW)

Getting Deep into the  Budwangs (NSW)

Storming the Castle // An Overnight Raid on the Budawangs (NSW)