Heartbreak Hill campground
Parr State Conservation Area
Overview
For a remote camping experience, Heartbreak Hill campground is situated deep within Parr State Conservation Area and can be reached by walking or cycling.
| Camping type | Tent, Remote/backpack camping |
|---|---|
| Facilities | Picnic tables, barbecue facilities, toilets |
| What to bring | Drinking water, cooking water, firewood, fuel stove |
| Price | There are no camping fees at this campground but a $6 booking fee applies. |
| Bookings | Book up to 12 people or 2 sites online. |
| Group bookings | This campground is not suitable for group bookings. |
| Please note |
|
Heartbreak Hill campground is a great camping spot on Womerah Range trail and an especially good halfway mark for hikers doing the walk over 2 days. From the park’s main entrance off Webbs Creek Road, it’s a tough but rewarding ride for most mountain bikers and cyclists.
Set up camp in this remote site and keep an eye out for gliders and possums in the eucalypts as the sun sets. During the day, lyrebirds can often be spotted loitering around the bracken fern near your campsite. It’s also not unusual to be woken by a chorus of kookaburras.
When the wildflowers are out during spring, try identifying some of those growing around your campsite. There’s the mountain devil (red, of course), the pale pink flowers of eriostemon, the soft white-petal flannel flower and grey spider flower, which is a type of grevillia.
Map
Map legend
Local alerts
For the latest updates on fires, closures and other alerts in this area, see https://www.nationalparks.nsw.gov.au/camping-and-accommodation/campgrounds/heartbreak-hill-campground/local-alerts
Bookings
- National Parks Contact Centre
- 7am to 7pm daily
- 1300 072 757 (13000 PARKS) for the cost of a local call within Australia excluding mobiles
- parks.info@environment.nsw.gov.au
Operated by
- Bulga office
- Monday to Friday, 9.30am to 4pm.
- 02 6574 5555
- npws.wollemiyengo@environment.nsw.gov.au
- 2156 Putty Road, Bulga NSW 2330
Park info
- in Parr State Conservation Area in the Sydney and surrounds region
Parr State Conservation Area is always open but may have to close at times due to poor weather or fire danger.
Visitor info
All the practical information you need to know about Heartbreak Hill campground.
Getting there and parking
Heartbreak Hill campground is in the northern precinct of Parr State Conservation Area. To get there:
- From Wisemans Ferry, take the Webbs Creek Ferry and turn right on the other side
- Follow St Albans Road for approximately 5km
- Turn left in to Webbs Creek Road and continue for approximately 250m up the hill
- Womerah Range trail begins at the crest on the right hand side
Alternatively, if beginning from Putty Road:
- From Colo Heights, follow Putty Road north
- After approximately 25km look for the Womerah Range trail on the right
The trail to the campground requires a good level of fitness. It is steep and sometimes sandy, and can be a challenging experience, especially if you’re cycling. It is not recommended for elderly or very young campers.
Parking
Parking is available at Webbs Creek Road and Putty Road entrances. The campground is approximately 15km from Webbs Creek Road and 30km from Putty Road.
You'll need to carry all your camping equipment and drinking water from the park entrance to the campground.
Best times to visit
There are lots of great things waiting for you in Parr State Conservation Area. Here are some of the highlights.
Autumn
Cooler temperatures make for great hiking and cycling conditions.
Spring
The milder temperatures make this an ideal time for hiking and, as though purely for your viewing pleasure, wildflowers decorate the surrounding bushland.
Winter
For the adventurous, this is a great time of year to tackle an epic mountain bike ride on Womerah Range trail.
Weather, temperature and rainfall
Summer temperature
Average
16°C and 26.5°C
Highest recorded
50°C
Winter temperature
Average
6.6°C and 16.6°C
Lowest recorded
-0.1°C
Rainfall
Wettest month
September
Driest month
March
The area’s highest recorded rainfall in one day
230mm
Facilities
Water is not available at this campground.
Toilets
- Non-flush toilets
Picnic tables
Barbecue facilities
Visitors are encouraged to bring gas or fuel stoves, especially in summer during the fire season.
- Fire rings (bring your own firewood)
Maps and downloads
Prohibited
Gathering firewood
Firewood is not provided and may not be collected from the park.
Generators
Generators are not permitted in this campground.
Pets
Pets and domestic animals (other than certified assistance animals) are not permitted. Find out which regional parks allow dog walking and see the pets in parks policy for more information.
Smoking
NSW national parks are no smoking areas.
Learn more
Heartbreak Hill campground is in Parr State Conservation Area. Here are just some of the reasons why this park is special:
Extraordinary plants
Parr contains an unusual mix of plant species which are not only different from those growing further north in Yengo National Park, but are normally found in completely different parts of NSW. Vegetation ranges from open woodlands along the dry ridges to communities of open forest and tall open forest, heathlands, mallee and sedgelands. Flowering plants typically found in Parr include grey spider, flannel, eriostemon, and mountain devil.
- Womerah Range trail Womerah Range trail is a challenging hiking and mountain biking route with scenic views through the dramatic sandstone landscape of Parr State Conservation Area.
Convict trail
This area was named after William Parr, who was one of the earliest European explorers of overland northern routes out of Sydney. A draughtsman, boat builder and mineralogist, Parr was transported on the Fortune in 1813 at the age of 39, having been convicted of forgery. Despite a 14-year sentence, Governor Macquarie quickly made use of his skills and soon assigned him to the Surveyor General’s department as a mineral surveyor. In October 1817, Parr and his party set off from Windsor to find a trafficable route from the Hawkesbury to Hunter River, but did not quite reach Hunter Valley. Early European transport routes between Sydney and Hunter Valley are evident within Parr State Conservation Area, with remnants of Putty Road/Old Bulga Road. Today, Parr conserves Webb Creek catchment.
In the beginning
It was probably around 13,000 years ago that Aboriginal people first moved into this area. Until European settlement, these people lived off and nurtured the land and a large number of Aboriginal sites have been recorded within Parr. Mount Yengo (originally Yango), in adjoining Yengo National Park, is of particular significance; it was the place from which Biamie left the earth after creating the world, flattening the top with his foot as he went. Many sites within Parr, Yengo and the surrounding regions are closely connected with this mountain. Today, the local Aboriginal community retains a strong and active interest in the management of these sites and the landscape, along with a desire to preserve, as well as revive, Aboriginal culture.