Balls Head Reserve

 Parks and Reserves Map (817KB)

Up until 1916 this area was the home of a local Aboriginal community. Seafood was plentiful and shelter available in the many rock caves to be found in the area. During WW I the Australian Army claimed the land and a Quarantine Depot was established. It is now State-owned and zoned as open space.

Access

If arriving by car, follow Balls Head Drive from Bay Road off the Pacific Highway at North Sydney. There is one large car park as well as some street parking. If arriving by train, allow for a five to 10 minute walk from Waverton railway station.

Outlook

From Balls Head Reserve you look west to Gladesville, south to Sydney City, Balmain, Birchgrove, Goat Island and Mort Bay, and east towards Berrys Bay, McMahons Point and North Sydney CBD on the skyline.

Facilities

Facilities include public toilets, picnic areas, a children's playground, BBQs, seats, benches and alcove spots and a wheelchair track along the crest of the ridge.

Bush walk

You can take a moderate 20 to 40 minute walk starting from the Quarantine Depot and following the marked track to the flagpole on the ridge top at the western side of the Reserve. There are several walking tracks in the vicinity; care should be taken on the unpaved foreshore tracks - especially after bad weather.

Interest spots

Scattered through the Reserve you will find a number of dedication plaques, an Aboriginal waterhole, numerous foreshore caves and a historic flagpole. The flagpole is situated 300ft above sea level and marks the highest foreshore point west of the Harbour Bridge. In early settlement times it was used as a means of communication with Government House on the opposite shore.

Flora/Fauna

Vegetation is predominantly tall woodland, dominated by 'Angophora costata' and 'Eucalyptus piperita' with an understorey of grevilleas (spider flowers), wattles, hakeas, geebungs and heathland shrubs. In less windblown pockets, blueberry ash, NSW Christmas bush, Lilly pillys and small swamp-loving heath shrubs add a more luxuriant quality to the vegetation.

On the foreshore, specimens of the frequently misunderstood but vitally important mangrove community exist. The species present, 'Avicennia marina', has very thick leaves and is stout in appearance. Mangrove trees help bind the foreshore, provide shelter for young fish, food for fish and birds, and act as filters for sediment running into the harbour.

There are also several beautiful specimens of the broad-domed Port Jackson fig 'Ficus rubiginosa'. On summer nights these are filled with flying fox eating their fleshy fruits. Wildlife is also abundant - geckoes, dragon lizards, skinks, brush tailed possums, ring tailed possums, bats, rats and 68 species of birds live in the trees and shrubs around the rocky outcrops. Balls Head is a refuge for indigenous flora and fauna. Council officers and volunteers maintain the area.