The walk up to Tara Cave takes you on a well maintained path through pretty bushland teeming with kangaroos.
The cave itself is a site of special significance for the Gamilaraay, Wiradjuri and Wailwan people who began using the cave as a shelter over 4,800 years ago. Unfortunately - though understandably - you cannot go inside the cave and it has been grated for its protection.
You can still peek through the grate but we can understand why the sign at the start of the walk says it is best visited with an Aboriginal guide, that’s when the history of the area would really be brought to life. There are information boards along the way, but it’s definitely not going to be the same.
As well as the cave there are also some great views from the top, but overall without a guide if you’re short on time this may not be a top priority walk.
With that said, here’s what to expect on the trail.
The Tara Cave Walk
The stats
Distance: 1.9km each way
Elevation gain: 100m
Difficulty: Easy, but uphill
Trailhead: Old Woolshed picnic area
Summary: The path leading up to Tara Cave is immaculate, in fact it’s paved for much of the way. However, it is uphill for a considerable portion of the walk.
It’s not overly steep but if you’re walking on a hot day it’s still going to feel like a significant amount of climbing, though there are long flat stretches too.
In short, as long as you can walk uphill for around a kilometre you’re going to have no trouble on this track.
The trail
From the Old Woolshed picnic area (full parking details below) the walk heads north and begins by leading briefly down some steps and then crossing the dry creek bed - well for us it was dry, but after a lot of rain it will be an actual creek.
The benefit is that it’s the only creek crossing on the track and you can see it from the beginning, so you’ll know whether you are ok to cross and therefore complete the walk.
After this short crossing you’ll head briefly onto a fire trail before reaching a narrower track.
The walk now takes you through the bush which was absolutely teeming with kangaroos and small skittish lizards on our visit. You’ll pass over a bridge and shortly after reach the paved pathway.
Along the way there are information boards telling you about bush medicine, bush tucker and ways stone tools were created in the area.
You’ll now begin heading noticeably uphill, some of which is relatively gentle while some sections are a bit steeper, though it’s all on a well formed track, a mix of paved and a good dirt trail.
The paved path ends at the 1.7km mark and you’ll start to get your first views, though the best are yet to come.
Roughly 100m later you reach a boardwalk and this will bring you to Tara Cave after another 100m, 1.9km from the car park.
Tara Cave
From the boardwalk just before you arrive at the cave you’ll be rewarded for your uphill efforts with a seriously gorgeous view.
The mountains feel quite distant but you can still make out many of the famous landmarks, including Split Rock and the Breadknife. This was our second walk in the park and the first with mountain views and we were blown away.
The cave itself appears relatively small from the outside but the sign says it opens up to head height further back.
Evidence of axe grinding grooves can easily be seen at the very front of the cave.
However, it’s here where an Aboriginal guide would be particularly needed as other than the grooves there is not much to see and while there is a small amount of text about the cave at the site, it’s really quite minimal.
Although I did love the fact stating that the cave was in use long before the Pyramids of Giza were built, which definitely puts it into context!
Sadly for us there were no tours operating during out stay, but if you are interested in going with a guide you can see the schedule here.
As for my final thoughts, I have to be honest and say this was not one of my favourite walks in the parks, the views are really good from the top, but not as good as other walks and the cave experience is quite limited.
I do think a guide would make all the difference though and I did appreciate getting the chance to have even a little window into the Aboriginal culture of the area.
Getting to the Tara Cave trailhead
The walk to Tara Cave begins at the Old Woolshed picnic area in the Warrumbungle National Park, you can see the exact location on Google maps here. It’s around a 35 minute drive from the nearest town of Coonabarabran.
The Warrumbungle National Park has a daily fee of $8 per vehicle, though if you have an annual NSW National Parks Pass this fee is included.
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