Wivenhoe Hill

Getting there

How do you get to the start of the walk? Head to Wivenhoe Dam along Brisbane Valley Highway and take Hay Road exit. Then turn right onto Fig Tree road. At the end of the road, there are two options, Black trail (straight ahead and leads to Red and White trails) and Blue (down to the right) - I opted for the Blue trail to start.

Maps

Which maps cover the area? Seqeb site has good information for the walk. http://www.seqwater.com.au/sites/default/files/PDF%20Documents/Recreation/Wivenhoe%20Hill%20Trails%20flyer%20-%20FINAL%20-%20web%20version%20%282%29.pdf

Route/Trail notes

A detailed description of the walk! The trail is very well signposted along the way. I started out along the Blue track, then connected onto the White, then finished up on the Red trail. The first couple of km's of the Blue trail are along bitumen, then left at horsewater station. Once on the trail proper it can be muddy in sections after rain and there are some small 'creeks' to cross, I had no issues after a few days steady rain, but might be a different story for flash flooding. There is also a bit of up and down so I would recommend good sturdy shoes. The views vary quite a bit, from bushland, to rocky outcrops, view out over the dam, Eucalypt forests, and open grassland. In my mind the blue trail is the most scenic, if pressed for time or just after a shorter walk I would recommend this. While there I spotted no less than 14 Whiptail Wallabies, a damp but healthy Koala and a Red Tail Wren and various other birds too. Very pleasant walk, but I would suggest a decent level of fitness, and there are plenty of nice spots (logs) to take a break. Also a portaloo at each end, I didn't use but they looked in fair condition. While there are plenty of trees, there are still some sections that are quite exposed, so could get hot quickly in summer. I'd suggest a nice winter walk.

GPS Tracks

No GPS available for this walk yet.

Comments

So, went on this walk today ... I'm not sure of some of the times in other comments listed, as the Blue Walk is 5Kms & the Black Walk is 4Km's. Now, I may be out of shape, or just enjoying the walk & taking my time!
The track & area appears to be closed picnic areas of the Wivenhoe Dam. It was very sad to see that what was a lot of money spent on building roads in and multiple carparks, toilet blocks, a large playground and facilities are all closed and being overrun ... but I'll get to that!
Took the Blue Trail in and went counter clockwise. First 1.5-2Km's is on what used to be a road. Lake on your right & you get to the end with what was once a large picnic area & toilets - its listed as the horse watering stop. TRack is multiple shared users for horses, walking and biking. Looks like mostly horse riding these days. Easy walk on the road & yes, multiple kangaroos & wildlife everywhere. Heads left & undulates around the lake inlets - lots of webs so take sticks & clay mud sticks to boots when wet. You get to point with toilet & closed gate where Black track joins - its the road out. Go beyond gate to see amazing viewing platform of lake & multiple toilets that are all closed down - such shame! Only opened 1990! Black track out is 2Km uphill from here and then downhill back to car - White and Red tracks go off to the right here - I didn't do them but the Blue & Black well worth the effort!

Macca on 25 Apr, 2023

Very enjoyable walk - plenty of wildlife to see. Did blue trail, white trail and red trail in that order. Well sign posted, well maintained track. Took 3hrs to do the 13kms. Best to do this one in winter as it has many exposed sections. Views of Wivenhoe Dam at times. Highlight was see the mobs of kangaroos. Would recommend this one for anyone looking for a pleasant walk close to Brisbane.
Paul on 23 Jul, 2022

Hit the red trail circuit clockwise. A solid climb with plenty of stops to catch my breath…7.31kms round trip in 1:44:02. Plenty of cobwebs but great views over the lake.
SueS on 24 Jun, 2021

You will find Wivenhoe Hill out in the picturesque Somerset Region.
Head to Wivenhoe Dam along Brisbane Valley Highway, take Hay Road exit off the Highway and then right turn into Fig Tree Road 🛻

This was my first time hiking Wivenhoe Hill 🥾

It is a shared hiking trail with horse's 🐎 so the track is mostly nice and wide and pretty easy to follow the whole way around.

Today I went anticlockwise and hiked the trails blue, white and red.
I would suggest starting this one early as the trail is very exposed for most of the hike 🌞

The scenery will change from water view's of Wivenhoe Dam to open grassland, bush and rocky outcrops ⛰

These three trails all link up together and are just over 10km. It took me around 2 hours and 45 minute's to complete with stopping for a break and photo's 📸

I personally believe you need a moderate level of fitness for this one. There are plenty of ups and down's the whole way round this track. It will definitely get the heart pumping and leg's burning 🔥 My leg's started to cramp up a little at around the 8km mark 😒

If you don't like walking through spider's web's, this one might not be for you 🕸

Overall a great hike to increase your fitness level with some lovely view's along the way 🌄

I will be back 🙏💕

Instagram:- misslissy79
Mel on 12 Jan, 2021

Walked the blue, white, and black trails. I would recommend (as per Brian's comments), walking the blue, white, and red trails (in that order). This is what I would have done, had circumstances differed.
Liam on 10 Oct, 2020

Very enjoyable casual walk. We started off on the blue trail, then the white trail and then the red trail back to where we parked the car. This is the best way to do this walk (anti clockwise). Doing it clockwise means you have a solid steady climb on the start of the walk. The blue and white trails are scenic with lake views. The view from the top of the hill on the red trail is excellent. also this is the only place with a large seat so was a good place to stop and have lunch while enjoying the views. Lots of birds and butterflies.
Brian on 19 Jun, 2020

Roughly 13 Kms - Started off with the blue trail, followed by white and red trails. Quite scenic and different to whats offered in the other parts of the region.
dinbush on 14 Jun, 2020

Walked this track last year. There are some magnificent views of the lake from a number of angles and some decent hills to get the heart rate going. There were sections that were very hot though and we did get an early start so I would not recommend doing in summer and if you do taking plenty of water.
Bobbe on 2020

I have all walks multiple times sometimes both on bike and on foot, the trails themselves are o.k but there are many real interesting features beyond the trails, there are several rock shelters among the ancient river beds and in the sandstone. It would be nice if SEQ water made dedicated walking trails around such features.
mika28au on 1 Oct, 2018

Walked the blue and black trail. After looking the whole way we spotted a koala in the parking lot right at the end.
JayWalker on 9 Sep, 2018

Did all trails today. Red, White, Blue and Black. Firstly I would not recommend doing all of them on the one day in the middle of summer. The Black trail in particular can be very hot along the bitumen. Secondly make sure you have a stick handy, spidey city. They were everywhere. Felt terrible knocking there homes down just to pass by. Some beautiful views on the Red trail and also on the Blue trail. All in all it was a 22.7k walk once all were done as we did the Black trail twice.
Nadso on 11 Jan, 2018

A fine walk. I only did the Blue and Black trails this time. The Blue trail offered a couple of decent views out to the lake but, most importantly, both trails were crawling with spiders. There was not one tree that did not have at least the trace of a web on it. Even at the back of a group of three I had some web threads stuck to me. There were a couple of spiders above the trail too but they were easy to avoid. We also passed through patches of deafening cicadas. Regardless, this was a decent, easy walk. On the way back to the car park on the Black trail I saw a couple of kangaroos, one with a joey in tow.
meadharry on 28 Dec, 2017

Did the walk after a few rainy days, even though there was a bit of fog, the views were still beautiful and nice to have the place to myself, great opportunity to spot some wildlife.
Tanya on 21 Oct, 2017