Nattai National Park

Nattai National Park is in a UNESCO World Heritage park in the Blue Mountains region of New South Wales. It's part of the Greater Blue Mountains World Heritage Area.

History
Nattai National Park is one of the few areas near Sydney with a limited impact from Europeans, but there have been several early expeditions attempting to cross the Blue Mountains passed through the area at the end of the 18th century, and settlers settled in the lower Nattai and Burragorang Valleys in 1827.

Early conservationists Myles Dunphy and Herb Gallop went on bushwalks in the region from 1912 onwards and an area held in high regard was a forest of Sydney blue gum around Blue Gum Creek. Dunphy lobbied for the stand to be preserved upon becoming aware of plans to log the area but was unsuccessful and the area was logged in the 1920s and 30s. Dunphy put forward a plan for a Greater Blue Mountains National Park, which incorporated what is now Nattai National Park in the southeast in 1932. The creation of Warragamba Dam in 1960 limited access for development of land upstream, but it was not until 1991 when plans for permanent protection and national park status became realised. In 2000, it became a UNESCO World Heritage Site as part of the Greater Blue Mountains World Heritage Area.

Flora and fauna
The varied flora is home to a large number of animals, including the endangered golden tree frogs, brown-headed cockatoos, brush-tailed rock kangaroos, and giant martens, Yellow-bellied glide pouches and koalas.

Climate
The climate of Nattai National Park is very similar to that of the rest of the Blue Mountains. However, during the summer months, bushfires can completely burn out the park, and thus closing the park.

Visitor information

 * Park website

Get in
The only access to the park is via car, and so all other means of transport into the park is not available. The park may be accessed via Wattle Ridge Fire Road and unpaved road access to a small unpaved car park at the edge of the park - a 4WD is not required. There aren't any facilities, just an information board, and a logbook. Make sure you sign in and out of the logbook when entering the park.

Another way to access the is via Wombeyan Caves Road, although this route is not used much, except to visit Wollondilly lookout.

Fees and permits
There are no fees and permits in the park, but the park may have to close during the summer months.

Do
The main thing to do in the park is bushwalking, and there are several worthwhile bushwalks, but it's a remote area and also very dry. Since the area is remote, very few people go hiking here.

Make sure your navigation skills are adequate to route find properly, as fires in the park often clear out undergrowth, which makes finding an indistinct trail nearly impossible (although it also means that walking is much easier).

At the Mittagong Visitor Information Centre, try to get a copy of a copy of a yellow cover book that takes an in-depth look at walks in the park, as it has some useful information about this region. The book was published in 1998, but little is known on whether it's still available today, but it's an excellent reference for this little known isolated region.

Trails

 * The Starlights Trail: Nattai Road Park Entrance to Emmetts Flat (a good campsite on the river without facilities) on the Nattai River. 6.5 km one way with 550 m descent, approx. It begins at an elevation of roughly 640 m and descends to 93 m which is the altitude of the river. These are aggregate measurements based on topographical maps and GPS.
 * Russells Needle: An extension of Starlights Trail from Emmetts Flat south along the Nattai River to a tall rock spire.
 * Katoomba to Mittagong Trail: A well known long-distance trail, through the heart of the Greater Blue Mountains World Heritage Area - 132 km in length.
 * Couridjah Corridor walk: a spectacular walk with typical Blue Mountains scenery, passing Thirlmere Lakes as well

Buy, eat, and drink
There is no commercial activity in and so you will need to bring everything.

Sleep
Bush camping is allowed anywhere outside the Lake Burragorang exclusion zone, but damaging plants is prohibited, so choose where you camp well, and use tents with smaller footprints. However, there are no campgrounds in the park.

Stay safe
Mobile phones may work on the highest parts of the plateau surrounding the valley but won't work in the valley.

Beware of snakes, especially sunning themselves on fire roads or trails and near creeks - they won't always move away when you come near, so you may end up getting uncomfortably close to one. Red-bellied Black Snakes are the most common type seen. Make sure you carry snake bandages and know how to use them. Treat all water taken from rivers/creeks - there are towns upstream, so water may be infected with Giardia. Be aware that when there has been recent and/or substantial rainfall there are many thorny vines, spiky plants and stinging nettles nearby the river. It is best to have an attire that will protect your legs and hands under these circumstances. There are many wombat burrows and soil that have been disturbed by wombats.

Go next

 * Thirlmere Lakes National Park
 * Blue Mountains National Park