This is wet and wild Kanangra style! Setting foot onto the rocky wonderland at Morong Falls is guaranteed to wow you. With waterfall pools hemmed in by giant boulders, rushing cascades and jaw-dropping views; it’s probably one of the most incredible places to swim in all the Greater Blue Mountains. The boulders and pools create such a fun landscape that it’s impossible not to feel those blissful summer holiday vibes. I fell in love with it on our visit and every visit since.
Here’s what to expect when visiting Morong Falls.
The Morong Falls Track
The stats
Distance: 8.9km return
Elevation gain: 300m
Difficulty: Easy - moderate
The walk to Morong Falls is easy. It’s almost entirely on wide fire trails and though it does have many little humps, there are no sustained climbs.
There is one mandatory creek crossing, which is easy in all but flood conditions when it must be avoided entirely. The final few hundred metres to the falls are off track and a little rough, but not difficult.
If you have a 4WD which can cross a fairly deep river then you can take 820m (total) off the stats mentioned above as you’ll be able to get to the nearer car park.
Starting the trail: crossing the creek
If you don’t have a 4WD and the skills to cross a deepish river, you can’t park at the nearest car park to the falls. However, the stats mentioned above include this extra 410m walk each way to avoid the river crossing and we’ve personally never driven to the nearer car park.
Depending on recent rainfall the very first steps along this track may well be your least favourite of the whole walk as you’ll have to cross the creek.
Even after heavy rain the crossing is easy in terms of the flow of the water because it’s not very fast, but it does get deep - the middle section was halfway between my knees and waist!
In drier times it will be much lower but you’ll always get wet shoes because there are no rocks to use as stepping stones.
It’s also a fairly long (approx 27m) crossing and a bit rocky underfoot, though you can definitely manage barefoot and keep your shoes dry for the walk if preferred.
What I can tell you though, is that even if you don’t enjoy this kind of thing it is oh so worth it when you get your first glimpse of the falls!
The only time this crossing would not be possible is if the river is in flood. It goes without saying not to cross if the water is brown and swollen.
If that’s the case it’s best to save this adventure for another time and head to check out some of the nearby trails at Kanangra Walls, which are also fabulous.
Along the fire trails
Once you’re across the creek the walk takes you along fire trails right up until the last few hundred metres.
You’ll head briefly uphill before the track flattens and after 410m you’ll reach a junction and follow the signposted track on the right towards the falls.
This is the offical start of the walk, so technically you could drive to this point, but the creek crossing would be iffy for all but experienced 4WD drivers.
The path heads gently downhill and then undulates through the forest until you reach a locked gate at the 1.7km mark. It’s just a fire trail so it’s not going to win any awards for beauty, but the bushland is pleasant and the walking is easy.
After passing through the locked gate the track continues to undulate but has more downhill than up. You only really notice that on the way back though!
After a further 2.4km (4.1km from where you parked) you’ll reach the end of the fire trail and what feels like a dead end. Unlike on our first visit, this is now marked with a large cairn.
The bush track down to the falls
Although you’ll be able to hear the falls (unless you’re visiting during a really dry spell) you might not immediately spot the path. Look for the worn path which leads right, in between the large cairn and the wooden post.
Follow it and you’ll quickly come to a more defined track which descends to the falls. It’s rough in places with rocks and some loose soil, but it’s not hard and you are only 350m from the base of the falls (and less to the rocks and cascades).
You’ll quickly arrive at some huge boulders and can carefully make your way right, to the pool at the base of Morong Falls.
The rocks you need to traverse to reach the pool are really grippy when dry and there are no steep drops.
Swimming at Morong Falls
Morong Falls is stunning. We couldn’t believe the force of the water bursting through the gap in the rock walls.
If you are planning to swim, the sweet spot is to visit after rain, but not a huge amount! If you aren’t planning to swim then the best time to visit is definitely after heavy rain when the power of the waterfall is just phenomenal.
On our most recent visit the waterfall was powerful, but there was plenty of room to swim outside of the current. It’s a great size pool and the scenery is so spectacular that I really cannot believe it’s not much more popular. And for reference, we visited on the January long weekend and didn’t see another soul all day.
Accessing the water is easy as there are tiered rocks taking you down into the pool and then it gets deep very quickly.
The water is cool, but on a warm day it gets a lot of sun, so it’s refreshing rather than an ice bath.
If you aren’t looking to swim there are plenty of large even rocks to lie out on beside the pool which makes for the perfect way to while away an afternoon. The lower rock tier beside the pool also has a natural back rest which makes it a pretty hard spot to leave!
One thing to note is that there is no shade here though, which is literally the only negative I have to say about this spot!
Exploring a little further
Downstream of the main falls and pool are several smaller cascades, each with their own tiny plunge pools.
They are backed by giant boulders and it’s these bits in particular that really felt like some kind of amazing water park. Again during times of high flow they are turbulent, but otherwise would be perfect for relaxing in.
They are very easy to reach and just a few minutes downstream of the main pool. The views out to Morong Deep from here are out of this world.
The mountains, the boulders and the giant waterfalls that continue down the gorge are so dramatic and the whole place is just magical.
You can continue further down the gorge but it gets harder. We only went a further 20m or so to a viewpoint over the next waterfall down before we decided it looked too exposed. You can see the route down and the rock is very grippy, but it looked too sketchy for me without ropes.
The easy scramble down to the ledge
If you want to get to the ledge with the view it’s quite easy if you stick to the left side of the waterway (not the middle crack which also looks doable but would be very dicey if you slipped). I stepped down some of the rock and did the rest on my bum and it’s tiered nicely so there are no big stretches required as you can semi slide onto the next tier (this makes it sound harder than it is, but it’s quite hard to describe).
Exploring beyond this point is definitely more of an endeavour and the area is very remote.
You’d want experience and great conditions - even if we had wanted to go further there was far too much white water around.
There is no phone signal anywhere along the track or much of the road to the trailhead, so a PLB is recommended if you’re coming alone or you want to do more than the easy walk described above.
Heading back
Allow plenty of time at the falls and smaller pools because this is a spot that’s really hard to leave! I knew I wanted to return before I’d even left, it’s just one of those places.
In terms of the walk, there is more uphill than downhill on the way back, but it’s still pretty easy.
Bush Safety
There is no phone signal in Kanangra, so we recommend bringing a PLB in case of an emergency. We carry a GME and you can check this one out and many more on Amazon.
Getting to the Morong Falls trailhead
Morong Falls is located in Kanangra-Boyd National Park. There is a significant amount of driving on unsealed roads to get there. When we visited these were all perfectly doable in a 2WD (in dry conditions) as long as you take it slowly. The roads are flat so it’s really just about carefully going around potholes etc.
Having said that everyone has different tolerance levels for these kind of roads so if you don’t enjoy them, this might not be for you as it is a long way on unsealed roads.
You’ll need to start driving down the road that leads to Kanangra Walls and then turn onto the Kowmung River Fire Trail 15km down the road on your right (it’s signposted). From here it’s roughly 6km before you head left and then a couple more kilometres before you reach the parking area just before the creek crossing.
Once you hit the Kowmung River Fire Trail the road narrows but remains in good condition (at time of writing). The coordinates for the parking area are -33.9779051, 150.0146490.
There is another way of accessing this spot which is on the other side of the creek to the one we’re talking about, but we didn’t use that road and can’t comment on the state of it.
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