Spit Bridge to Manly Coastal Walk

Spit Bridge to Manly walk, is one of the most popular walks in Sydney, covering 10 kilometres of beautiful coastline, with breathtaking views of Sydney harbour.

 While the walk can be started at either end, we unanimously decided to start from Spit Bridge and reach Manly for lunch, to give us a better variety of lunch choices. We caught the bus from Carrington Street near Wynyard station and in less than 30 mins, arrived in Spit Bridge, Mosman.

The Spit Bridge is a bascule bridge which opens the middle section to let the boat traffic pass through. Though these bridges were once very common in NSW, Spit Bridge is the only such bridge still operational on a major road in NSW.

The Spit Bridge

The Spit to Manly walk starts from the Northern end of the Spit Bridge and then the stairs go under the bridge and leads to Ellery's Punt Reserve, which is named after the local farmer Peter Ellery, who used a punt to transport passengers across the Middle Harbour in the 1950s.

Magnificient views of Middle harbour from the Ellery's Punt Reserve gave us a hint of what lies ahead.

Views Of Middle Harbour from Ellery's Punt Reserve

Spit to Manly Walk is well signposted right from the start.

Start of the Walk at Ellery's Punt Reserve

Through Clontarf Beach....

Breathtaking views along the way

After a short walk from Ellery's Punt Reserve is the Fisher Bay Waterfall that gives a rainforest setting to the surrounding. It is a small trickling waterfall and it can sometimes completely dry out.

Fisher Bay Waterfall

Towards Castle Rock Beach

The track passes through Grotto Point at Dobroyd Head, which is home to an ancient Aboriginal engraving site.

Engravings of a giant kangaroo, boomerangs, a whale and several small fish

This is a grade 3 track which suits most fitness levels and consists of paved walkways, boardwalks, bush track and several steep stairs.

The track has several separate sections of boardwalks

Paved walkways are well maintained

Vivid clours of many wildflowers along the path are sure to lift your spirits.


Amazing tree groves and magnificent views of the Sydney Harbour are a treat to the eye.







The track crosses few remarkable beaches including Clontarf, Castle Rock, Reef Beach, Forty Baskets, Fairlight, and Manly Cove.

Clontarf Tidal Pool was unfortunately closed

The Fairlight Beach and the Tidal Swimming Pool 

Arabanoo is the first Aboriginal man to live among European settlers. Arabanoo lookout at Dobroyd Head, which is named in his honour, offers expansive views over to North and South Heads.


We arrived in Manly after about 3.5 Hrs of walking, somewhat tired and very hungry and a delicious Thai lunch at Manly wharf was the perfect treat for our empty stomachs.

A Ferry back from Manly to Circularlar Quay was the perfect end to a day filled with spectacular views.



Location: Spit Bridge, New South Wales, Australia

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