Description of the attraction
Royal National Park is located 29 km south of Sydney. Officially established in April 1879, it is the second oldest national park in the world after Yellowstone in the United States. Initially, this specially protected natural area was called simply "National Park", but in 1955 the word "Royal" was added to the name in honor of Queen Elizabeth II of Great Britain, who traveled through the area a year earlier during her visit to Australia. In 2006, the park was listed as a National Treasure of Australia.
There are several settlements in the park - Audley, Mayanbar and Bandina, which can be reached by highway.
As in any other national park, Korolevsky has many hiking trails, barbecue and picnic areas. Mountain biking is allowed on specially marked paths, and the movement on these paths is two-way. One of the most popular routes is the two-day trek along the seashore from Bandina to North Era with an overnight stay in a tent.
The landscape of the Royal National Park is very diverse - from coastal cliffs, eroded by sea waves, and small cozy coves to ancient high plateaus and deep river valleys. The rivers flowing from south to north flow into the wide but shallow bay of Port Hacking, which is the northern boundary of the park. Sandy beaches open to the ocean are a great place for swimming and surfing. Some beaches can be reached by road, while others can only be reached after a few hours of walking.
The flora of the park is as diverse as its relief. Rosemary, darwinia, casuarina, sundew, and others can be seen in the outcropped heathlands and coastal areas. Silver Banksia, large-fruited oak and heather are found on the tops of ancient sand dunes. Among these thickets scurry about honey suckers, fire-tailed finches and southern soft-tailed beetles. The coastal rainforest, which has survived human invasions of the 19th and 20th centuries, is dominated by the Australian tea tree and long-leaved Lomander.
On the slopes of river valleys, mainly eucalyptus, pines, red blood trees grow, and from shrubs - Banksia, aralia, peppermint. Orchids, wild lilies, irises and hundreds of other amazingly beautiful flowers are also found here. River valleys have been chosen by many representatives of birds - golden whistlers, yellow-tailed cockatoos, laughing kookaburras, honey suckers, etc. Among the animals here you can see mountain kangaroos, wallaru, echidnas, koalas, wild dingo dogs.
Several buildings from the late 19th and early 20th centuries have survived on the territory of the Royal National Park: for example, in the town of Audley there is still a wooden dance hall, built about a hundred years ago, and on the western edge of the dam there is a huge wooden boat shed, listed as a national treasure. … Aboriginal rock carvings have been found at Cape Gibbon, which offers a beautiful view of the Sutherland Peninsula, where initiation rites were once performed. And not far from the town of Carracarong, right on the shore, you can see a huge rock in the shape of an eagle's head.
