Leader: Graham Lewarne

Sydney Harbour Foreshore: Chiswick Wharf to Rhodes

1 April 2019

An 80 leaders walk

Photos Jill Green


Grounds of Yaralla


Rivendell boathouse


Bar-tailed Godwit, photo by Joan Kennedy

 

Participants:

Graham Lewarne, Jill Green, Rogo, Trevor McAlister, Richard Darke, Stephen Diserens, Warren Southey, Lindsey Paget-Cooke, Kumiko Suzuki, Joan Kennedy, Judy Mifsud, Chris Strojny, Jenny Stephens, Erith Hamilton, Betty Chow, Bob Wood, Chris Paine, Trevor Giblin, guest Polyxeni Graudins.

Walk description:

Lovely foreshore walk around the numerous bays on the southern side of the Parramatta River including historic sites of Exile Bay, Eadith Walker Hospital, Rivendell and Kokoda Memorial. Map: Harbour Circle map

Report:

Most of the group gathered at Circular Quay Wharf to catch the 8.48 am ferry to Chiswick Wharf. A mild rain-free day was predicted.

And so it turned out. Perfect walking weather. The last three of the group joined us at Chiswick, and we walked along Abbotsford Bay, past Abbotsford Wharf and Sydney Rowing Club keeping as close to the water line as tracks allowed. Then into Hen and Chicken Bay, the water still and clear - no wind. Low tide allowed us to walk on sand, with a few rocky sections, past a number of golf courses and green passive recreation areas. We walked around Kings Bay, Canada Bay, Exile Bay, and France Bay, the naming of the last three reflecting the fascinating history of a small group of French-Canadian political prisoners who were exiled and incarcerated in Concord in the 1840s.

There is a monument to the exiles, unveiled by the then Canadian Prime Minister, Pierre Trudeau.

The group passed the attractive shore-lined houses of Cabarita, before passing the Cabarita Swimming Centre. We had lunch at Cabarita Point.

Then along the shores of Kendall Bay, past the huge Breakfast Point development with its attractive lawns between the houses and the water.

We did not walk right to the end of Mortlake Point, a pretty place for lunch, and where the Mortlake-Putney ferry (built 1927) runs. Mortlake has undergone constant and significant development since the closure of the land occupied by AGL since 1884.

Further along Majors Bay we passed the Yaralla Estate and mansion, also known as the Dame Eadith Walker Estate. The leader gave a brief history of Yaralla, as we walked around the grounds, the stables, turpentine forest, the Grotto. The estate is now home to the Dame Eadith Walker Hospital. We walked the extensive mangroves lining the foreshore in front of Concord Repatriation Hospital. At the point, Rocky Point, is Rivendell, formerly Thomas Walker Convalescent Hospital, with the delightful Watergate by the clear water. Rivendell is now an adolescent psychiatric facility, established in 1997 with Dr Marie Bashir as its first director. Lastly and quite quickly we walked past the Kokoda Track Memorial.

The cafe is closed Mondays, so sadly for some, no coffee at the finish. A great group and a most enjoyable walk.

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