Going for a walk in Autumn is a fantastic experience for several reasons. The season brings cooler, crisp air that makes hiking comfortable and refreshing, without the oppressive heat of summer or the biting chill of winter.

Colours are brighter and you can see stunning panoramas from the many lookouts dotted throughout the GeoRegion.

Why not visit Barrenjoey Headland with its brilliant 360 degree views of Pittwater, Palm Beach and Broken Bay?  There are two ways to the top, a stiff climb on the sealed service road, or a more challenging foot track with a lot of uneven steps. Try both, the service road up and the steps back down!

The geology is similarly impressive! The 1881 lighthouse is built of the local 240 million year old Hawkesbury Sandstone. Down at sea level on the northern side a 172 million year old igneous dyke slices along the shoreline, and beneath the sand dunes of Palm Beach lies the 70m deep channel where McCarrs Creek used to flow across a coastal plain to a coastline  approx. 8 km out to sea during the last Ice Age only 20,000 years ago. For information on the Barrenjoey trail click here.

It’s a perfect mix of physical activity and peaceful reward when you reach that lookout and take in the sweeping, colourful vista. Studies even back up that nature walks boost mood and reduce stress! What’s not to love?