Waterfall Gully to Mt Lofty Guided Hike: Admire Australia's Countryside, Waterfalls, and Wildlife
4.9
19 Ratings
Adelaide
Embark on a guided hike from Waterfall Gully to Mt Lofty Summit in Australia. Explore the countryside, waterfalls, and wildlife while enjoying breathtaking views of the rugged terrain and coastal areas.
Duration:
4 hours, 30 minutes
Cancellation:
1 day
learn more
Highlights
- Waterfall Gully - Following a morning pickup at your Adelaide hotel, take the scenic drive out of the city toward Waterfall Gully ‘97 the trailhead of Adelaide’s most popular hike. On arrival, watch the spectacular First Falls sparkling in the morning sunshine then set off at your own pace.
During your hike, follow the 2.5-mile (3.9-km) trail past cascading waterfalls and along winding streams, and admire panoramic views from the tall gully ridges. Stop along the way to admire the beautiful scenery and fully immerse yourself in the natural environment.
Listen as native birds chirp in the trees and enjoy the scent of eucalyptus trees on the air. As you explore, keep an eye out for sleepy koalas high in the gum trees and kangaroos grazing in the bush.
- Mount Lofty Summit - At the summit of Mt Lofty, take in panoramic views of the city buildings, parklands and the iconic Adelaide Oval below. Be sure to look out across the plains to the coastal town of Glenelg and the far reaches of Port Adelaide. On a clear day, you may even see Kangaroo Island!
Perhaps relax and enjoy coffee or brunch at The Summit Café (own expense). Then, head back down to Waterfall Gully and meet your pureSA driver for the return to your Adelaide hotel.
What's Included
- Return Transport to the CBD
- Local tour guide
- Trail orientation
Additional Information
Embark on a guided journey through the scenic walking paths of Australia’s landscape, from Waterfall Gully to Mt Lofty Summit. Traverse the 2.5-mile (3.9-km) track at your leisure, exploring cascading waterfalls and glistening streams along the way. Experience the stunning rural charm unique to Australia and keep an eye on the tree canopy for a glimpse of slumbering koalas. At the towering apex of Mt Lofty, gaze upon the spectacular panoramas of the rugged terrain encompassing coastal Glenelg and Port Adelaide. Conveyance back and forth to/from the hike’s starting point from Adelaide CBD is provided.
This trek is classified as challenging - it features steep inclines and irregular surfaces, demanding a considerable level of fitness and agility. The total distance covered to and fro is 7.8km.
- This hike is graded as hard - it involves steep sections and uneven services and a good level of fitness and mobility is required.The total return walking distance is 7.8km.
- Due to uneven surfaces, this tour is not recommended for those with walking disabilities or young children
- Children must be accompanied by an adult
- Please dress appropriately for the weather and wear clothing and footwear suitable for bushwalking.
- In the interest of sustainability we recommend you bring a refillable water bottle (full).
Location
Waterfall Gully
Waterfall Gully Road, Cleland Conservation Park
Cancellation Policy
For a full refund, cancel at least 24 hours before the scheduled departure time.
Customer Ratings
4.9
(19 Ratings)
5 stars
4 stars
3 stars
2 stars
1 star
Terry_s
Nov 6, 2023
Great time - A quite demanding hike over only 4kms (up). Kane our guide was f fantastic. Lovely Australian bush well paved with easy directions. Very nice Cafe at Mt lofty summit.
Review provided by Viator
Vansh_g
Jul 9, 2023
Couldn’t have asked for better - The hike was amazing and so were the people, especially our tour guide! Super friendly, very helpful and informative. Overall, loved the trip to the core of it’
Review provided by Viator
Maria
Jan 27, 2021
Best hikes in Adelaide - Mike from PureSA explains the hiking route very well and I have used their waterfall gully tours more than 4 times and done different routes.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Tom_s
Jan 23, 2021
An enjoyable but challenging hike to Mt Lofty - Tour guide Mike was very friendly cooperative and gave good advice at the start of the hike location regarding routes and expected times which turned out to be fairly accurate. The first part of the hike was pleasant in the cool weather visiting the flowing first and second falls and passing through interesting Gully vegatation After this the steep climb commenced and apart from a few slight downhill and flatter stretches continued all the way to the summit. Other points of interest were Wilson's Bog a forest of many trees Mt Lofty Cottage and the city and suburban and ocean views from the summit After spending about 25 minutes at the summit the return journey although not requiring so much energy still required aj lot if care in the steep downhill sections. An early start is certainly a good recommendation as attempting the ascent in warm weather is not a good idea especially for those in the older age groups. My guide generously offered to take me all the way home but I did not accept his offer as I was not as exausted as he thought I was.
Review provided by Viator
Evelyn
Nov 13, 2020
Challenging, exhilarating, peaceful and beautiful. - Our driver was most professional and very careful in orienting us to the path we were going to follow. I was very happy to find that we did not need to return via the same path we used in our ascent. The trail itself was paved on the ascent, and not at all slippery even though there was light rain for part of our walk. The fire trails we followed in our descent were, for the most part very easy walking. Both trails were very well signposted so it was easy to follow the correct path. The ascent was quite steep at times - if you don't like walking up hill think twice before taking on this hike. The scenery we passed through was very varied and we were often rewarded by glimpses of civilisation way below us. As for wild-life spotting - I was excited to watch the antics of two yellow-tailed black cockatoos.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Kisseygee
Oct 5, 2020
A Must-Do Tour Not Far From Adelaide - My favourite parts were walking between tall trees, hearing water flowing on the streams on the side of the trails, each waterfall has their own uniqueness, seeing wildflowers, ferns, birds that I have not seen before! It's a great workout and it feels very reward to finally reach the Lofty Summit! Grabbed yummy meat pies and cheesecake at the Summit Cafe & Restaurant. The view from the first fall was AMAZING! 100% enjoyed it! Thank you, Pure SA!
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Y206mbdavidb
Jan 14, 2020
Great trip - This was an excellent experience. We are not experienced hikers so found it hard going, especially as a large section of the normal trail was closed for renovations and we were diverted to the adventure trail. However it was amazing and the view from the top well worth it. Mike was our driver and provided an excellent service with lots of advice and support including an offer to collect us from the top of the trail if we could not manage the trip back down. We did both ways and had a tremendous time.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Sylviaplant
Sep 18, 2019
Brilliant for spotting wildflowers in Spring - This was the most affordable and convenient option for transport to Mount Lofty besides hiring a car that I could find. I was the only person booked on a Monday morning. Shavojn was prompt, pleasant and informative. The 7.8km return hike is moderately challenging since it is uphill (from approx. 300m to 700m at the summit in elevation). The challenge was well worth the opportunity to see wildflowers in bloom - orchids, ericas, Epacris, wattles, pea flowers, Pomaderris, carnivorus Drosera, etc. I highly recommend this making trip if your are short on time but still want to have a poke around Cleland NP. Thanks again, Shavojn.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Garnik01
Mar 10, 2022
A very strenuous but rewarding hike - This was self guided - it’s a 4km hike to the top of mount Lofty with at least a 700m incline … at times exhausting - but very good exercise and an excellent path
Unfortunately after reaching the peak in around an hour it was cloudy so I couldn’t see more than a few metres in front of me …
The walk down is obviously much easier and I managed to catch some beautiful views of Adelaide
The waterfall at the bottom is also quite beautiful
Probably wouldn’t recommend this if you’re unfit or don’t have a few hours to spare
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Jennhinn01
Jan 13, 2020
Well worth the climb! - The whole experience was fantastic! The weather was perfect, Mike our guide was friendly & knowledgeable & the view at the top was breathtaking. As a reasonably fit person who exercises every day I did find it challenging at parts, the climb was steep. However, once you reach the summit you see it is well worth it. After a coffee & a little goodie (the cafe in the summit serves yummy treats), I was refreshed for the walk back down which was lovely. Unfortunately did not see any wildlife other than birds, but the waterfalls were beautiful. Well worth the reasonable price paid, I would highly recommend this trip. A great achievement saying you did Mount Lofty! Thanks for getting me there & back Mike & for being so nice.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
More activities from this operator
