The Bondi to Bronte Coastal Walk extends for approximately 4km along Sydney's eastern coast. The walk officially extends from Ben Buckler Point on the northern tip of Bondi Beach to the southern boundary of Waverley Cemetery. The route weaves its way around rocky sandstone cliffs and along the rim of several sheltered beach coves. It takes about 90 minutes to walk the entire route.
The walk began as a state government relief program in the 1930s. The original track was hewn partly from the local sandstone by labourers grateful for any form of employment during the Great Depression. Today’s more advanced track consists largely of broad and smoothly paved tracks and stairways that make it a popular outdoor excursion for people of all ages.
The route also hosts the annual Sculpture by the Sea event from late October to early November. For three weeks every year, more than half a million visitors trek past an exhibition of large, intriguing artistic outdoor sculptures. In past years its art has included a giant half-buried frypan and a collection of enormous shiny metal spheres. However, this isn’t the only art that can be seen. Aboriginal rock carvings estimated to be at least 2000 years old can also be found in several locations.
When Mum was in town in April I discovered that, despite numerous visits to Sydney, she’d never experienced the Bondi to Bronte walk. On the last day of her vacation, we took a few hours off to walk from Bronte to Bondi, stopping for a light lunch by the outdoor pool at Bondi Lifesaving Club. The weather played its part allowing us to enjoy partially sunny conditions even as dramatic storm clouds passed over the coast to the north.
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