Unofficial guide · verify with NSW National Parks

Yuraygir National Park guideYuraygir National ParkUnofficial operator’s manual

Wilsons Headland walking track

Guide updated · verify open/closed status on NSW National Parks

The park’s best short walk: Boorkoom campground to Wilsons Headland picnic area with barrier-free lookout platforms, seats, ocean views and a May–October whale window. Part of the longer coastal walk but complete on its own.

Do not pair: Do not pair Wilsons Headland with Pebbly Beach 4WD or a Wooli–Red Rock Grade 5 day. Wilsons is the product.

Turnaround: Picnic area is the finish unless you already booked a longer coastal-walk segment. If wind or a total fire ban is on, use the picnic stop and skip forcing a “full experience.”

  • Driving from Coffs to “do Pebbly then Wilsons” — hours of highway between road systems, not a morning.
  • Leaving the platform for a closer cliff-edge photo at Red Cliff / Arragan country you then add “because we are already in the park.”
  • Grade 3 · easy–moderate
  • 45 min – 1 hr 15 min
  • 3 km one-way
  • Effort: easy
  • Best for: Families, whale watching, wildflowers, visitors who want views without a multi-day

Distance, grade, time, boat contacts and open/closed status change — verify on NSW National Parks before you go.

Official NPWS info (verify status)
Panoramic view of undeveloped Yuraygir coastline and ocean

Wilsons Headland — Yuraygir coastline panorama

Maurice van Creij · CC BY 3.0 · Wikimedia Commons

Where you start

Boorkoom campground or Wilsons Headland picnic area

Walk it either direction. Most day visitors start at one car park and return the same way unless they have a two-car shuffle. Diggers Camp Road is the signed access from the Wooli / Minnie Water road system.

How to get there

  1. From Grafton: Pacific Highway south ~10 km, Wooli / Minnie Water turn-off, then Diggers Camp Road to Boorkoom / Wilsons Headland picnic area.
  2. Park only in signed picnic or campground parking. Do not pull onto cliff edges.
  3. Vehicle day entry applies. Confirm the pay-and-display or pass rules on the official park page.

How to do it (step by step)

  1. Check local alerts and a simple weather/wind forecast. Headlands are exposed.
  2. Walk the formed track between Boorkoom and the picnic area. Use the barrier-free lookout platforms and seats.
  3. Late winter to early summer: look for coastal heath wildflowers. May–October: scan for humpbacks with binoculars (park overview also cites May–September — treat it as a season, not a guarantee).
  4. Turn around at the picnic area unless you have deliberately joined a longer coastal-walk segment.

What to expect

Official: 3 km one-way, 45 minutes to 1 hour 15 minutes, Grade 3, medium accessibility note, park entry fees apply. Barrier-free lookout platforms with seats and beach/ocean views. It is a small section of the Clarence Coast’s Yuraygir coastal walk, but it is also a complete outing.

The track winds along the coastline past isolated beaches and small coves. Locals like it because the views come without a long day. The surface is a real walking track — wear shoes you can walk 3 km in.

Logistics and reverse

Start at Boorkoom if you are already camping there. Start at the picnic area if you are a day visitor with lunch. Reverse is the same walk. Without two cars, out-and-back is cleaner than hoping for a village shuttle that does not exist.

Pair with Illaroo if you want listed drinking water and a bigger camp. Pair with Wooli if you want a café and a boat conversation for a later multi-day.

When it shines

Spring / late winter: heath wildflowers. Winter into spring: whale watching (Red Cliffs lookout and Brooms Head are the other official vantage names). Summer: still good if you start early — there is little shade.

If wind is howling or a total fire ban is in force, use the picnic area as a short stop and skip forcing a “full experience.”

Map (orientation)

Pin may be approximate. Confirm trailheads, parking and track status on NSW National Parks before you drive.

Interactive map — pin may be approximate. Confirm trailheads and road status before you drive.

Open in Google MapsGet directions

Extra tips

  • Picnic tables and BBQ at Wilsons Headland picnic area — make it a lunch walk.
  • A good first Yuraygir walk for mixed-ability groups.
  • Accessibility on the full coastal walk is not wheelchair; this picnic / lookout cluster is the mobility-friendlier option. Confirm current surface notes on NPWS.

Often paired with Coastal walk (65 km)— only if energy and weather allow.

Area guide: Wilsons Headland & Wooli

Nearby stays (optional)

After the walk plan is solid: Yamba / Wooli / Coffs beds and kit searches if you still need them. Official NPWS camping, park fees and government bookings are never affiliated. Guided tours live on the Tours hub — not pushed on every trail.

Nearby stays

Yamba (primary) · Wooli · Coffs Harbour

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Some stay, tour and gear links may earn a commission at no extra cost to you. Park fees, official NSW National Parks camping bookings and fishing licences are never affiliated. Disclosure · Tours hub