Forde, Canberra
Year round. Springtime after rains will allow you to see more birds and wildflowers
Car park entry for the Mulligans Flat Nature Reserve Bird Walk
Shelter and street signs at Mulligans car park
Bike racks if you feel so inclined to ride to the trail head
Trail head car park located just off Mulligans Flat Road in the suburb of Forde
The Mulligans Circuit walk is the longest walk in this area at just over 11km and for me my favourite. Over half this walk is outside of the fenced off area that forms the Mulligans Flat Woodland Sanctuary but still contained in the Mulligans Flat Nature Reserve. One of the things that I really enjoy about this walk is that you get a sense of remoteness due to the both the length of the walk as well as the distance from any roads. In addition you get great views as various locations along the trail, and you move through different types of woodlands as well as through rural areas at the back on this walk that abuts the ACT/NSW border.
This walk is on formed management trail, and while there is some interpretation signage located within the Woodland sanctuary itself you just have to trust that you are heading in the right direction. Start the walk from the Mulligans Flat carpark but instead of entering through the main gate turn off to the left about 300-400mtres at the first access road that you come to which is located at the the crest of the hill. You enter this gate and proceed to walk across the Mulligans Flat Woodland Sanctuary before exiting the sanctuary back into the reserve itself. This almost seems to be a bit counterintuitive but trust that you are heading in the right direction. Once you exit the sanctuary you will continue on the management road through various types of woodlands and some open grassy areas keeping the Sanctuary fence to your right.
This trail does have its ups and downs and while not a difficult trail at 11.3km in length is still a challenge. You will come to a ‘T’ intersection and given that you are skirting the woodland sanitary turn the the right and follow the road. You will come across a number of gates that will allow you access back into this Sanctuary if you decide to do so but keep on walking until you run into a gate and this is your access back into the Woodland Sanctuary. You will actually loose site of the fence line at the rear of the sanctuary. At the time of this walk a new section of fence was still being constructed and it looked like the Woodland Sanctuary was being expanded. You will come to the Bustard Gate and some very obvious signages to bring you back into the sanctuary proper.
Walk your way back on the main road though the sanctuary and stop of at the various dams as well as the wool shed along the way. There is good interpretation signage inside the wool shed as well as a toilet at the rear which is access from the outside.
Continue your walk until you reach the main sanctuary gate and at this point you can either exit the main gate which is what we did, or walk along the inside of the fence to the same gate that you started the trail on. You then return to the car park to finish your walk.
This walk has lots to see. Apart from the lovely woodlands you get kangaroos, wallabies and a number of bird species that create a great walk right on the edge of town.
Part of this trail also forms part of the Canberra Centenary Trail
Kangaroo culling is currently underway in the area so nighttime walking is not possible at the moment
Fox (and dog) baits are down to control these animals which decimate the smaller wildlife. Dogs are not allowed in this reserve
Follow the trail signs to the turnoff on the left to the entry gate which is about 400metres from the car park. The main gate is around another 200metres further on
Into the Sanctuary. Make sure the spring loaded gate is closed properly to keep things in/out
The main fence is electric so hands off the very obvious live wires
The management road as you head across the sanctuary
Views into Canberra from inside the sanctuary
Wallaby inside the reserve. It’s hard to get close to the wallabies they just don’t have the confidence that the Kangaroos do
Mulligans Nature Reserve as from inside the sanctuary. The hill in this image is part the the Northern Camp Ground walk, the Golden Sun Moth walk and the North/Little Mulligans Circuit
Out of the sanctuary. Around half of this walk is outside the fenced of sanctuary which is where some of the best scenery is located
Outside woodlands. This is one of my favourite frosted areas in Canberra. It just has a nice feel about it
Kangaroos with good thick winter coates
Signage on the gates that show you were you are
Mulligans nature Reserve
Old farm machinery visible on the walk
Adjacent farm. This is private property, keep out
Stock loading area
Kangaroo mid bound
The steepest section of the trail. This section isn’t very long
Border marker post.
Border post close up. These posts were put in by the surveyors nearly 100 years ago when Canberra was first proposed. The last time I saw this post was about 8 years ago and it has definitely degenerated in that time
Trail example
Gate into the sanctuary if you wish to shorten the walk
White trunked Eucalyptus
Birds nest
Back into the sanctuary
Big Wallaby and for once it didn’t hop away
The management road back inside the sanctuary
The interpretation signage is excellent on this trail
Sock testing. I was looking for somewhere to stand in the water to test out a new pair of socks. I remembered why I do this in summer rather than the middle of winter
Wool shed. Drop in and look at the interpretation signage. There is also a toilet at the rear of the building at the left of this image
Don’t drink the water. I have but I filtered it
Toilet sign on the left hand front side of the building
Woolshed Interpretation signage inside the shed
Mulligans Flat Bird walk exit point on the left
Out the gate.
Back to the car park
Google Map to the trail head for the Mulligans Flat Nature Reserve Bird Walk from the Canberra GPO which is about 19km:
Car park for the Mulligans Circuit Walk
This walk was undertaken by the team from Australian Hiker