Porters Pass to Centennial Glen
Porters Pass to Centennial Glen
This is one of our favourite tracks in the Blue Mountains, and one we always recommend to visitors because in just 6km it gives you a taste of all the things that make the Blue Mountains memorable. From dry forests to temperate rainforest, sandstone cliffs and expansive valley views, to waterfalls and a canyon grotto — this is Porters Pass to Centennial Glen.
Quick Details
Length: 6km
Elevation: 200m
Grade: Moderate
Best season: Year round
Suitable for kids: Yes, but young kids may need some help in places.
Starting the Trail
As we set off from the Porters Pass trailhead, the wind was blowing a gale. The first part of the trail is through typical dry Aussie bushland — with no protection from the wind. Even though it’s dry forest, there are quite a few sections of the track that are almost always muddy and we wondered if there might be a natural spring close to the surface.
The trail is wide and easy enough to follow, although it isn't always in the best condition. A few wildflowers were out, bringing some colour to the walk. There are a few tracks that cross over this one, but they’re usually well marked with signs. As the forest closes in, the track gets quite rough and uneven — we’d presume it’s due to erosion.
Lamberts Lookout
Around 500m in, just before a big blue sign, there’s a small track that branches off to the left — it’s only about 40m long and takes us out to Lamberts Lookout. I have no idea who Lambert was or how they scored their own lookout — although I’m guessing it wasn’t Disney’s sheepish lion. The view looks past the cliff faces and down to the Kanimbla Valley.
Back to the Trail
The trail starts to head downhill, and as it does the forest around us starts to change to the deeper greens of a temperate rainforest. There’s a steep, well-worn staircase of sorts to bring us down to a creek surrounded by moss-covered boulders. Down here the wind is non-existent and it gives us a moment to take in our beautiful surroundings.
Porters Pass
We’re not really sure who ‘Porter’ was. We presume it has something to do with the track into the Kanimbla Valley — we’re not taking that one today. Our track stays fairly high along the cliff line. We cross the creek and scramble up the rocks on the far side.
It’s a nice section of the hike wandering through the moss-covered trail. The trees grow close to the track and little adventurers will love how the forest just feels like something out of a fairy tale.
As the trail drops further down the hill, there are some handrails to help guide us and we pass our first cascade of the day. It doesn’t have a name that we know of. The water flows right through the stone stepping blocks set in the track.
It’s not long before we pass a second nameless cascade. This one can be a little slippery — because you’re walking on the rock of the cascade itself. It’s normally fine unless it’s recently rained and there’s a lot of water. The wind is starting to pick back up as we near the start of Colliers Causeway.
Colliers Causeway
The deep green temperate rainforest falls away as we climb up the hill and through a gap between the sandstone wall and a boulder — like a gateway to the base of the cliff line. This next part is the longest section of the track, at about 1km in length.
We’re back in dry bushland now as the trail wanders along the base of a sandstone cliff. The trail can be rough here in places and it’s not made any easier for us by the strong winds. More than a few trees are growing sideways so we imagine that the Causeway must see a lot of windy days. We’ve hiked out here before on hot days, and that can be tough. We’ve also hiked here on cold, wet days, and there’ll be small streams of water pouring over the edge of the cliff above.
Colliers Causeway is quite open without much shade and the trail is mostly close to the base of the sandstone cliff. There are great views of the Kanimbla Valley — it’s also an incredible sight to look up at the towering walls beside you. As the trail brings us under the overhanging wall we get to escape the wind for a bit.
You can find handprints on one part of the wall. We’ve heard that they’re not authentic Aboriginal rock art and are a modern addition. I actually missed them completely on my first visit along this trail — not sure how I managed that, but I did. Even though they’re not the genuine article, it’s kind of fun to see how rock art might have looked when it was new.
The Rock Climbers
This trail is really popular with rock climbers, and on weekends you’ll see them dotted across the walls around you. We guess it’s because there are so many good climbable walls with such easy access. It’s funny, though, the way sound plays tricks here — more than once on this trail we’ve looked over our shoulders, only to realise the voices we could hear were rock climbers a long way off, and weren’t just behind us.
Slippery Dip Falls
As we come to the end of Colliers Causeway, Centennial Glen Creek crosses the trail. There’s some rock-hopping required to get across and little adventurers will likely need some help with it. On the other side is a staircase with two options — to the right is a track leading to more rock climbing, and to the left is the climb up Slippery Dip Falls.
“Hope your clothes are waterproof… because you’re about to get wet”, said a passer-by who looked like they’d just climbed out of a swimming pool after jumping in with their clothes on. We looked at each other puzzled before looking up at Slippery Dip Falls above us, only to see the wind ripping through the stream and blowing the water straight across the track.
(photo taken November 2022)
Normally, on a good day, the water twists and curves down the rock face — like a slippery-dip. On this visit, though, there was a lot more water and the wind grabbed it and flung it across the stairs — it was a bit like walking through a hurricane. Thankfully we were in our Zorali and Revolution Race pants, and a few minutes in the sun had them dry again.
(Video taken November 2022)
The Grotto
Not far upstream is a small sidetrack to the canyon or the Grotto — arguably the most photographed spot on the trail, and for good reason. We’ve heard that locals have always called it the Fairy Grotto and it’s not hard to see why. Inside the short canyon is a waterfall and plunge pool straight out of a fairy tale.
The trail leads into the canyon and you can either crouch down and walk along a ledge to the end, or walk through the water. If you’re walking along the ledge, take your backpack off — trust us, it’ll make it a lot easier. We’ve seen people in the plunge pool on hot days — not a lot of room to swim, but would certainly cool you off in summer.
Centennial Glen
After leaving The Grotto, we head up the stairs and at the top is a junction — to the left is Centennial Glen, to the right is the Walls Ledge loop. Normally on our visits here we like to add in the loop around Walls Ledge first to watch the rock climbers. On this visit though, we decided to skip it because of the wind, and instead took the option to the left.
The forest here is really lovely — it’s like a mix of temperate rainforest and dry bushland. The track curves around the Glen in a horseshoe shape. Peeking through the trees to the other side of the Glen, we catch glimpses of Centennial Falls — our final waterfall for the day.
The best thing about Centennial Falls is that the track goes behind the waterfall. It’s an experience that little adventurers and big adventurers alike will find magical — no matter how many times we walk this trail, this part always puts a smile on our faces.
The Stony Staircase
As we leave behind Centennial Glen, we begin the climb out on an old stone staircase. It’s steep but it’s not overly long and at least it’s shady.
As we climbed higher, the dark green forest gave way once more to the sparse dry bushland. The wind still hadn’t let up so we took our time in the hopes it would magically disappear before we got to the top — it didn't.
Fort Rock
After walking out of the forest and into the open, we took a sharp left turn to head up to Fort Rock — it may sound impressive, but really it’s just a small pagoda-like rock formation on top of the hill. As it’s mostly low shrubs, there are some great views across the Kanimbla Valley again and it’s a great place to watch a sunset.
On previous hikes along this trail, we’ve seen paragliders sailing through the sky from here which is cool to see. It’s not long before the trail finds its way back into the trees, and after another steep hill climb we find ourselves back on the Porters Pass trail, just a few hundred metres from the trailhead, and the end of our hike.
Getting There
The Porters Pass trailhead can be found at the end of Burton Road in Blackheath. Alternatively, if you just wanted to do the Centennial Glen portion of the trail, or hike in the opposite direction from the way we did it, you could start at Bundarra Street, Gordon Avenue, or Centennial Glen Road. Please be mindful that these are residential streets and the locals probably don’t want you parking on their front lawns.
Tips and Tricks
There are quite a few tracks that cross over and branch off of this one. If it’s your first time hiking here, bring an offline map of the area to keep yourself on the right track.
When entering the grotto, take your backpack off and crouch down to walk out along the ledge.
There really is so much to see on this hike, so save it for a day when you can take your time and really enjoy it.
This is one of the rare Blue Mountains trails that is dog friendly, so bring along the family pooch for the hike!