Mount Taylor Nature trail

When I migrated to Australia, the first city that I lived in was Canberra. It was very different to my home city Bangalore. Canberra was quiet and had so much of nature and wildlife around. I lived in the suburb of Chifley, very close to the Canberra Nature Park. One evening, I decided to hike the Mount Taylor nature trail to go see the wallabies and kangaroos in the wild.

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About Mount Taylor

With an elevation of 856 metres, Mount Taylor is a hill located between the valleys of Woden and Tuggeranong in Canberra city. Originally named Taylor’s Hill, Mount Taylor was named after James Taylor, son-in-law of Colonel George Johnston. Mount Taylor Nature Reserve is part of the Canberra Nature Park, a series of thirty three separate and protected areas in Canberra. The park consists of bushland hills and lowland native grassland.

Apologies for the quality of the pictures as these were taken a long time ago on my phone.

Mount Taylor Nature trail

There are many beautiful tracks that lead up to the peak of Mount Taylor. The trails are the fire trails that lead up to the peak of the hill. Only the hikers can access these fire trails and is closed for vehicles. The trail is very popular among the locals, especially in the evenings for good views of sunsets.

Are you new to hiking or trekking? Read my beginner’s guide to hiking and trekking.

Statistics

There are many trails that lead up to the peak of Mount Taylor. The one I am talking in this post is from Waldock street car park in Chifley. However, there are other car parks through which the trail to the peak is accessible. The access to the peak is from four suburbs of Chifley, Kambah (Tuggeranong), Pearce and Torrens. The foot track from Tuggeranong is longer and steeper than the fire trail from Chifley.

• Starting and finishing point: Waldock street car park in Chifley.
• Total distance: Less than 2 kilometres.
• Time taken: 45 minutes return.
• Grade: Easy. But do note that there are a few uneven sections.

The trail is also used by dog walkers.

Wildlife to spot

As I mentioned earlier in my post, I wanted to hike up the Mount Taylor Nature trail only because I wanted to see the wallabies or the kangaroos. So, no surprises there! The trail has many wallabies and kangaroos and they usually do not disturb the humans.

Apart from the wallabies and kangaroos, the hill also has many nationally endangered pink-tailed legless lizards. The lizards look a lot like small snakes and is of 14 centimetres in length. They live under rock and their main diet is the ant eggs.

There also have been a record of spotting around 85 species of Australian native birds. The walk is surely a perfect spot for all the bird watchers and photographers.

How to get to Waldock street car park?

The car park at Waldock Street in Chifley is the best place to park the car and walk up the Mount Taylor Nature trail. There are picnic tables near the car park too and there is ample car and free parking spaces.

Note: There are other car parks, such as one at Tuggeranong and the other from Parkhill street in Pearce, through which the trail is accessible.

There are buses (at around one hour interval) between Chifley and Woden bus interchange. The bus stop is a walking distance from the Waldock street in Chifley. Up to date information on ACT Transport website.

Closing Notes

Mount Taylor Nature trail is an easy and accessible walk. It is very popular among the locals of the suburbs as with a little bit of walk, the peak can provide stunning views of the city. The walk is surely a great walk to do in the evenings after a long day of work.

Did you enjoy reading about the Mount Taylor Nature trail? Then you would also love reading the hikes in Tidbinbilla nature reserve or the hike to the Square rock lookout.

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