Thursday 16/10/2025   Evans Lookout  Road – Valley View Lookout – Evans Lookout – Grand Canyon Loop Walking Track – Greaves Creek – Neates Glen Parking Area – Evans Lookout  Road – Grand Canyon Carpark 

                                           Blue Mountains National Park, NSW

                                           Gundungurra Country (Gundungurra people)                                 

Participants: Stephen Davies (Photos), Sue Davies (Report)

We decided to revisit this lovely half-day walk as the weather was favourable and we were keen to build up our walking fitness. 

Download file: 20251016.gpx                         Track Info

 

We arrived at Evans Lookout, the Grand Canyon carpark and headed off at 8:00am. It was already warm, but the carpark was empty and we had the first half of the walk virtually to ourselves. 

The trail descends quite quickly via multiple steps, leaving the dry sclerophyll forest to reach the cool rainforest of the canyon. Ferns and mosses were in abundance, and the vegetation was so dense, we needed to change from our sunglasses. There were thriving vertical rock gardens teeming with life. There are several creek crossings with conveniently located stepping stones, sandstone overhangs and waterfalls. 

As we began to emerge from the canyon, we started to meet people travelling in the opposite direction, as the walk can be accessed from both ends of the canyon. We saw several monitors who kindly posed for our photos. The native irises and other wildflowers were in bloom. 

There is an interesting section where you walk under a waterfall and through a cave. Then the climb out via those familiar sandstone steps began. Once we reached the top, there was still another kilometre to walk along a level trail back to the carpark to complete the loop. 

This is a popular and scenic half-day walk that was definitely worth repeating. 

Amongst other photographically recorded observations during this walk, we were able to confirm sightings of each of the following species: Australian Water Dragon (Intellagama lesueurii), Silky Purple Flag (Patersonia sericea)

Photos

Map View

Clickable icons on this world map will open the related trip report

Contents

A detailed, searchable trip list with links to reports, photo galleries

 

Information on Parks signage along the way

Evans Lookout – Blue Mountains National Park

Evans Lookout is taken 15 milion years of geological uplift and erosion to carve out the valley you can see below you. The Grose Valley is known as the ‘cradle of conservation in SW and became a declared wilderness area in 2001, helping to protect its values.

The magnificent Blue Gum Forest is at the heart of the Grose Wilderness area. This dense forest of tall blue gum trees is one of the most secluded areas in the Blue Mountains. It played an important role in the beginnings of the park and the conservation movement in NSW. In 1932, the forest was saved from the axe when a group of bushwalkers pooled their money to buy out the lease. Decades later, intrepid hikers can still walk into this natural wonder.

In this area, you will find some of the most photographed landscapes in the Blue Mountains. The cluster of view points around the rim of the Grose Valley provides ever-changing views of sweeping sandstone escarpment, sheer cliff walls, deep canyons, tall waterfalls and hazy blue forests. Be sure to take a moment to sit and take in the last natural beauty surrounding you.

 

The local landscape features, geology, scenic highlights, flora, fauna, Indigenous history, white history and other nearby walks in the area (Perplexity AI Model)

Landscape Features and Geology

The Evans Lookout and Grand Canyon area are perched on the northern escarpment of the Blue Mountains at approximately 900–950 metres elevation. The landscape here features towering sandstone cliffs, narrow slot canyons, lush creek gullies, and broad valley vistas, particularly over the Grose Valley. The geology is dominated by the Triassic Narrabeen Group and Hawkesbury Sandstone, consisting of quartzose sandstone, siltstone, and intermittent shales, deposited over 200 million years ago. Greaves Creek carves a deep gorge as it descends through the canyon, forming waterfalls, natural tunnels, and overhangs due to ongoing fluvial and chemical weathering of these layers. Above the escarpments, shallow valleys contain perched swamps, which help sustain year-round water flows through the canyon.

Scenic Highlights

Panoramic views from Evans Lookout, Valley View Lookout, and points along the Grand Canyon Loop Walking Track reveal dramatic cliffs and the undulating canopy of the Grose Valley. The Grand Canyon Walk itself, a heritage-listed track opened in 1907, is considered one of the most visually impressive bushwalks in the Greater Blue Mountains, guiding visitors through fern-filled gorges, beneath overhangs, and across Greaves Creek via numerous picturesque crossings. The route features waterfalls, tranquil pools, and mossy rock gardens, especially lush after rain.

Local Flora

Local flora exhibits clear vertical zonation. Exposed ridges and cliff-tops support dry sclerophyll woodland, including blue gum (Eucalyptus deanei), scribbly gum (Eucalyptus sclerophylla), and banksia (Banksia serrata). The canyon and gully floors are notable for their warm temperate rainforest species, dominated by coachwood (Ceratopetalum apetalum), sassafras (Doryphora sassafras), and tall tree ferns (Dicksonia antarctica). Moist creeklines also support lilly pilly (Syzygium smithii), greenhood orchids, and a dense understorey of ferns, mosses, and liverworts. Hanging swamps on nearby slopes are habitat for rare plants such as the Blue Mountains cliff mallee and Fletcher’s drumsticks.

Local Fauna

The area is recognised as a habitat for a diverse range of native animals. Notable birds include the superb lyrebird (Menura novaehollandiae), crimson rosella (Platycercus elegans), and eastern honeyeater (Lichenostomus spp.). Greaves Creek’s pools are inhabited by aquatic invertebrates and native crayfish. Common reptiles include the eastern water dragon (Intellagama lesueurii) and blue-tongue lizard (Tiliqua scincoides). The area supports threatened species such as the giant dragonfly (Petalura gigantea). Nocturnal mammals such as sugar gliders (Petaurus breviceps) and possums can be spotted in the forest margins.

Indigenous History

This land lies in a boundary region recognised as country for both the Gundungurra and Darug peoples, with important sites extending throughout the Grose Valley and its tributaries. Thousands of years of Aboriginal occupation are attested to by artefacts, art sites, and archaeological findings – for example, the long-inhabited Walls Cave nearby. Grand Canyon’s chert deposits were traditionally used for stone tool making. Indigenous custodians navigated these valleys and ridges on well-established paths and visited waterholes for ceremonial and practical purposes. The region remains of high spiritual and cultural significance to local First Nations communities, with contemporary management involving traditional owners.

White History

European encounter began in the early nineteenth century, with surveyor George Evans providing some of the earliest documented visits. The formalisation of walking tracks, including the Grand Canyon Track (opened 1907), supported a burgeoning tradition of bushwalking and nature appreciation in the Blue Mountains. Infrastructure such as Evans Lookout Road and the Grand Canyon carpark arose to serve recreational visitors. The area soon became enveloped within the Blue Mountains National Park (1959), helping safeguard it from resource extraction. Heritage designation followed, with continued recognition of scenic, scientific, and cultural value alongside increased cooperative management with Indigenous stakeholders.

Map View

Clickable icons on this world map will open the related trip report

Contents

A detailed, searchable trip list with links to reports, photo galleries