Australian Hiker

Distance 2.4km
Altitude max 701m
Altitude min 646m
Duration .75 hours
Trail type Loop

Three Stars

Grade Three

Parking

Toilets

Rubbish Bins

Camping Grounds

Showers

Gossen Hill Circuit ACT (2.4km)

Canberra Nature Reserve

Nearest Town

The closest suburb to the trailhead is Bruce, ACT

Starting Location

The top of Weatherburn Place, Bruce ACT

Finish Location

The top of Weatherburn Place, Bruce ACT

Best Time of the Year to Walk

Year round

Gossen Hill Circuit Review

This walk takes in the Gossen Hill Nature Reserve located in the suburb of Bruce in northern Canberra. The best way to describe Gossen Hill is as a ‘choose your own adventure’. The walk can be accessed from different locations but the easiest access is from Weatherburn Place, Bruce which is a residential street – you have to park along the road so please be mindful of the residents. Walk up to the end of the cul de sac and there is a laneway that takes you past the houses and into the Gossen Hill Reserve.

This walk is all on management road. While there are ‘street signs’ on all the management roads there aren’t detailed directions. Having said that it’s almost impossible to go off track and it will be very obvious if you start exiting the Reserve. We recommend that as you go up the laneway and past the houses, take the first turn to the right and continue along the management road for around 400-500 metres and then take one of turns to the left that take you up the hill. Continue along the road and then loop towards the left and you will head back to the lower roads to the start point.

I have done part of this walk previously as part of the Canberra Centenary Trail but that was during the summertime and it had a very different feel. Walking this trail in winter with fog around gives it an otherworldly feel. Wildlife-wise this trail surprised me. There was a very lazy mob of kangaroos just off the trail, as well as lots of birdlife of all different types including one particular magpie that was expecting to be fed. The vegetation is open Eucalyptus forest.

We only spent around 45 minutes walking through the Reserve but it would have been so easy to stay longer. One bonus of this walk is that its dog friendly proving they are on a leash.