Take a Walk Around Sawtell!

Cross the bridge over Middle Creek at the south end of Sawtell First Avenue. Turn directly right into Bayldon Road. (Bayldon was an early settler).

Take the low track by the creek and continue to the entry to the Sawtell Golf Club. (This is worth a detour to see the view from the Clubhouse. Add 10 mins.) Continue along Bayldon Rd. to Lyons Rd., cross over and pass the Rotary club sign and walk straight ahead in an easterly direction through forest red gums with emerging littoral rainforest understorey.

This is an area rapidly recovering from a degenerated state as a result of a local Sawtell group campaigning to save it for future generations of people, flora, fauna and the abundant bird life. It is hoped koalas and wallabies will return. Continue to the point where there has been a house and see the tall Norfolk Pine planted by Dr. Dolman which became a boating marker, explaining the name.

Return to the car park and take the left road down to the boat ramp. Here there is a young rainforest climbing up the slope to meet the remnant mature rainforest above on Lyons Road. A trio of pelicans frequent this lovely section of the Bonville Estuary.

Return to the road junction and take the other arm to a picnic area on the Estuary called Mick’s Retreat. Here, at low tide, you will see many waterbirds on the sand banks. A bollarded walk through a regenerating area of littoral rainforest will lead eventually to the beach behind the Sawtell caravan park. Find the steps up to the Sawtell caravan park and return through the park – right to the village or left back to the picnic area.
Note:  Sawtell Village Green. This is the area where Sawtell began – growing out of the largest camping area in NSW in the early twentieth
century. Here the annual New Year’s Fun Day is held.