A glute-burning walk with a view that makes the huffing and puffing totally worth it!
Family-friendly:: Part of the walk has quite a steep ascent so may be better suited to ages 10 and up.
Easily accessible:: Yep! The walk starts at Lake Alexandra Reserve in Mittagong which has plenty of parking.
Starting point :: The walk starts at the south-western side of the lake. There is a large white sign displaying all the trails that run from the lake at the beginning of the trail.
End point :: The loop brings you around to the north-western side of Lake Alexandra.
Dog-friendly :: We didn’t see any dogs on the walk but they are allowed on a lead. We saw plenty down by Lake Alexandra!
Stairs :: There are some stairs but it is the steep ascent from the bottom of Mount Alexandra right to the top that will take your breath away!
Length :: The route we took (there are a couple of variations) was nearly 6 kilometres.
Duration :: 1 hour and 48 minutes according to the Garmin. We stopped a couple of times to take a breather and stopped at the top for about ten minutes to take in the stunning view.
Where is it?
The Katoomba Lookout Loop Track is one of the many walks and trails that start at Lake Alexandra in the Mount Alexandra Reserve.
The walk starts at the south-western side of the lake. There is a large white sign displaying all the walks that run from the lake at the beginning of the trail.
The Lookout Loop Walk is the yellow one, although you’ll be following the red circuit (the Mountain Circuit) for the first couple of kilometres before ducking off (and up!) the Katoomba Lookout trail.
The walk…
The walk starts out easy enough. Follow the red posts to start with. You’ll cross a couple of cute bridges and then come out on a fire trail.
Turn left at the fire trail and follow that until you come to a trail on the right (there’s a red signpost). This bush track will take you down to the base of Mount Alexandra and gets quite lush and green at the bottom.
You will have to scramble yourself down in between a couple of big rocks to get to this point. Just take your time.
And along that track, there is also a drop to your right of about 30 metres – un-fenced. So that’s why we don’t recommend the walk for younger kids. If you do take smaller kids, hang onto them during this section.
This track will bring you back out onto the main fire trail again where you’ll turn right and head for the pylons of the Hume Highway. Just follow the sound of cars and trucks!
About 20 metres before the highway pylons, there is a green sign post that says Katoomba Lookout and Mittagong (3km). Just to the left of that sign is a goat track that heads straight up the mountain.
If you go under the highway pylons, you’ve gone too far.
This is when the grunting and groaning will start. A narrow, rocky and very steep track takes you up the side of Mount Alexandra. At one point, I thought my calves were going to pop off!
But at least someone put some pretty rock scupltures halfway up so we had an excuse to stop and take a photo (and catch our breath!).
Because the ascent is so steep you do make good headway pretty quickly and it’s not long before you are even with the Hume Highway, then waaaaaay above it!
You’ll pop out the top of this track onto a fire trail and while the climb is less narrow and rocky, it’s still pretty steep!
The views are stunning though. The Hume Highway snakes through the landscape on your left (you are so high above it!) with Mount Gibraltar and the rooftops of Mittagong on your right.
The fire trail dips and climbs a fair bit and we began to think we had missed the Katoomba Lookout but came across it about 5 kilometres into the walk. There is a wooden sign post on the left of the fire trail directing you to the lookout.
And wow! What a cracking view! It was a clear day and we could see the skyscrapers of Sydney to the north and right across the Nattai National Park and the Blue Mountains National Park to the north-west.
So beautiful. It certainly made us forget about our burning-glutes!
From the lookout, it’s a fairly easy descent, continuing on down the fire trail.
Don’t come back the way you came. That goat track would not be a fun way to get back down Mount Alexandra! Keep following the fire trail you were on which will bring you to a car park accessed via Mount Alexandra Lookout Road (this is where you park if you just fancy walking the 600 metres up to the lookout and back again).
Follow this road around to the right. It will turn into Alice Street and then when you reach Leopold Street, cross over and walk down Victoria Street for about 20 metres before tucking back into a single track trail that will take you back to Lake Alexandra.
Why should you do it?
The view, the whole view and nothing but the view! On a clear day, it is simply stunning.
What’s nearby?
So many awesome walks start at Lake Alexandra. And of course, the lake is such a lovely place to wander around with the family or fur babies.
The main street of Mittagong is just a couple of blocks away so reward yourself with some takeaway deliciousness from local Mittagong cafes.
The Southern Highlands has so many amazing walks – here’s a selection of some our favourites!
We love sharing our awesome outdoor adventures with The Fold readers and want to make sure everyone stays safe and healthy when giving our walks and rides a crack for themselves. So, always check the weather forecast before you venture out. If you’re heading into a National Park, be sure to consult the National Parks website for up-to-date information about current alerts. Prepare yourself with the right equipment, clothing, safety items, with plenty to eat and drink if you’re going on longer hikes, and always let someone else know where you’re going and what time you are expected to be back. Have fun and stay safe!