Sunday 13/12/2020 Broulee Island Nature Reserve
Broulee, NSW
Yuin country
Participants: Stephen Davies (Photos, Report), Sue Davies
After an enjoyable overnight farmstay on the edge of Moruya we spent some time driving around the beautiful nearby coast looking for some walking opportunities. Initially rather tentatively, as there was some light drizzle about.
Still, by 10am we settled on a very short, mostly beach and rock platform walk around Broulee Island. The Island itself appears to be untracked and is densely vegetated with littoral rainforest.
Max elevation: 18 m
Total climbing: 130 m
Total descent: -127 m
Average speed: 3.33 km/h
Total time: 01:28:25
From the carpark you walk a hundred metres or so through low sand dunes onto the small, delightful beach sandwiched between Broulee Head and Broulee Island (high point 27m). Heading north onto the rock platform we circumnavigated it in an anticlockwise direction before reaching Boat Harbour, which sits between the Island and Broulee Beach to the north. The rock platform itself at low tide is very flat and easy walking.
Superb Fairywren
Along the rock platform there were plenty of small skinks sunning themselves on the rocks and tiny birds, including a family of Superb Fairywrens, enjoying the ample protection offered by the thick low shrubs. Further around, resting themselves on the rocks next to the ocean were some Double-crested Cormorants.
Clickable icons on a world map which open the related trip report
A detailed, searchable trip list with links to reports, photo galleries and other content
NSW National Parks signage at the start of this track states
The Nature Reserve provides protection for two important biodiversity forest communities, Littoral Rainforest and Bangalay Sand Forest.
These forest types are listed as Endangered Ecological Communities under the Threatened Species Conservation Act 1995.
The island is home to a number of threatened animal species including the sooty oystercatcher and pied oystercatcher.
Humpback whales and southern right whales are sometimes observed from the island.
Dogs are not allowed on Broulee Island Nature Reserve, including the beaches and rock platforms around the island. Dogs can disturb wildlife including the threatened pied and sooty oystercatchers.
