Look At Me Now Headland walk
Moonee Beach Nature Reserve
Overview
It’s an easy hike along Look At Me Now Headland walk, with scenic views all the way and a lookout over Moonee Beach. This is a great place for whale watching in winter and birdwatching in spring.
- Where
- Moonee Beach Nature Reserve in North Coast
- Accessibility
- Hard
- Distance
- 1.6km loop
- Time suggested
- 15 - 45min
- Grade
- Grade 2
- What to
bring - Drinking water, hat, sunscreen
- Please note
- Eastern grey kangaroos inhabit the reserve. They are powerful wild animals capable of causing serious injury if threatened, so please appreciate them from a distance.
- Remember to take binoculars in you want to birdwatch or whale watch
Look At Me Now Headland walk is a short, easy walking route with fabulous scenic views far out to sea, a lookout and beach access. Keep your fingers crossed for a breaching whale during winter and early spring. All year round, you can see eastern grey kangaroos nibbling on the grass and white-bellied sea eagles, ospreys and brahminy kites soaring above the coastline on the hunt.
Take a picnic lunch and sit between the dwarf grassy and rocky heath, which have adapted to these exposed conditions. You may spot a threatened zieria, which flowers pink and white in spring with glossy, tough leaves.
Look At Me Now Headland is an important Aboriginal site of deep significance to local Gumbaynggirr people. Preservation of this natural environment is also important to the broader community, and in 1989, over 5,000 people marched in a rally in Coffs Harbour to prevent destruction of the headland and adjacent beaches. It worked.
Map
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Local alerts
For the latest updates on fires, closures and other alerts in this area, see https://www.nationalparks.nsw.gov.au/things-to-do/walking-tracks/look-at-me-now-headland-walk/local-alerts
General enquiries
- 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
Park info
- in Moonee Beach Nature Reserve in the North Coast region
Moonee Beach Nature Reserve 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 Look At Me Now Headland walk.
Track grading
Features of this track
Distance
1.6km loop
Time
15 - 45min
Quality of markings
Clearly sign posted
Experience required
No experience required
Gradient
Flat
Quality of path
Well-formed track: The walk is 1-3m wide and mostly paved. If you start the walk at Lighthouse Crescent instead of Dammerel Crescent the walk begins as hard-packed ground and grass before it changes to a pavers.
Steps
Occasional steps: There's a set of 29 timber steps on the eastern side of the walk. There's also a set of 3 steps at the start of the walk if you begin the walk at Lighthouse Crescent.
Getting there and parking
Get driving directions
Look At Me Now Headland walk is in the Look At Me Now precinct of Moonee Beach Nature Reserve. To get there:
- Take Emerald Beach exit off Pacific Highway and then, once in Emerald Beach, turn down Dammerel Crescent.
- Park in the Look At Me Now carpark and follow the signs
Parking
Parking is available at Look At Me Now Headland walk on Dammerel Crescent, including 2 accessible parking spots. Bus parking is available.
It can be a busy place on the weekend, so parking might be limited.
Best times to visit
There are lots of great things waiting for you in Moonee Beach Nature Reserve. Here are some of the highlights.
Spring
This is the tail end of whale watching season, but the beginning of the best time for birdwatching and wildflower displays.
Summer
Enjoy a dip in the ocean or a splash around in the estuary when the weather's at its hottest.
Winter
Whale migration begins in this season, and you'll find uninterrupted views of the ocean from beaches, headlands and walking tracks.
Weather, temperature and rainfall
Summer temperature
Average
18°C and 26°C
Highest recorded
43.3°C
Winter temperature
Average
7°C and 19°C
Lowest recorded
-3.2°C
Rainfall
Wettest month
March
Driest month
September
The area’s highest recorded rainfall in one day
781.9mm
Facilities
Seats and resting points
There are 2 bench seats with backrests, one in the southern section of the loop walk and one where the paved part of the walk ends.
Maps and downloads
Accessibility
Disability access level - hard
Look at Me Now Headland walk is 1-3m wide and mostly paved.
Assistance may be required:
- There's a set of 29 timber steps on the eastern side of the walk. There's also a set of 3 steps at the start of the walk if you begin the walk at Lighthouse Crescent.
- If you start the walk at Lighthouse Crescent, you'll need to cross over a section of hard-packed ground before the track surface changes to pavers.
There are 2 bench seats with backrests along the walk and 2 accessible parking spots on Dammerel Crescent.
Permitted
Fishing
A current NSW recreational fishing licence is required when fishing in all waters.
Prohibited
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
Look At Me Now Headland walk is in Moonee Beach Nature Reserve. Here are just some of the reasons why this park is special:
Rare and threatened
Little bent-winged bats roost in nursery caves on the headlands of Moonee Beach Nature Reserve. Producing only one offspring each year and being particularly vulnerable to disturbance by humans, they are, unsurprisingly, an endangered species. Eastern grey kangaroos are found throughout the reserve and swamp wallabies frequent the coastal rainforests and heathlands. 80 bird species are known, including 10 endangered species, such as sooty and pied oyster-catchers and black-necked storks. Five threatened plant species survive in the salt spray and shallow soil on the surface of the headlands. To the untrained eye these plant communities, hidden within the grass, don't look like much. But to a botanist they are EEC (ecologically endangered communities) and their plight probably keeps some of them awake at night.
- Look At Me Now Headland walk It’s an easy hike along Look At Me Now Headland walk, with scenic views all the way and a lookout over Moonee Beach. This is a great place for whale watching in winter and birdwatching in spring.
- Moonee Creek canoe route For those into kayaking, canoeing or fishing, Moonee Creek canoe route is the ideal alternative way to enjoy the reserve. This pristine estuary is at the southern end of Moonee Beach.
Settling in
The 1880s were a big decade for newcomers to the area and the history is fascinating. From 1884, South Solitary Island signal station was operated by the Dammerel family. Only a couple of years into what would become a 40-year job, there was a collision at sea between Keilawarra and Helen Nicoll. Lone fossicker Frederick Fiddaman spent much of the 1880s searching for gold, and evidence of his toils can still be seen at Diggers Point. A century later, locals protested long and hard, successfully preventing the area becoming a site for sewage ocean outfall. Only in 1995 were Look At Me Now Headland, Diggers Point and Bare Bluff added to the reserve.
- Dammerels history walk Dammerels history walk is a short, easy stroll taking in historic sites, scenic views and the pioneering heritage of South Solitary Island. Whale watching and birdwatching is recommended.
This powerful place
Look At Me Now Headland is significant to local Gumbaynggirr people as an important mythological site and a powerful place within their homeland. Evidence of everyday lives of Aboriginal heritage and its people remains in the form of middens, campsites, ceremonial sites and areas where stone axes were ground. The name Moonee comes from 'Munim-Munim', which is the Gumbaynggirr name for the area. It means 'rocky', reflecting the original importance of this place for axe-making.
- Look At Me Now Headland walk It’s an easy hike along Look At Me Now Headland walk, with scenic views all the way and a lookout over Moonee Beach. This is a great place for whale watching in winter and birdwatching in spring.
Plants and animals protected in this park
Animals
-
Australian pelican (Pelecanus conspicillatus)
The curious pelican is Australia’s largest flying bird and has the longest bill of any bird in the world. These Australian birds are found throughout Australian waterways and the pelican uses its throat pouch to trawl for fish. Pelicans breed all year round, congregating in large colonies on secluded beaches and islands.