The Lady (Nancy) Fairfax Walk
Explore the gently graded pathways of The Lady (Nancy) Fairfax Walk. This spectacular 500-metre walk takes you through the pristine temperate rainforest of The Jungle. It is a highly accessible area ideal for groups of adults and children wanting to enjoy its beauty.
Along the paths, excellent interpretative signage explains rainforest succession and plant adaptation to low light environments, and reveals the wonderful fauna of the trees, like greater gliders, possums and powerful owls.
As you can see, the rich volcanic soil supports giant tree ferns, sassafras, coachwood, blackbutt, brown barrel and other trees growing in their natural state, well watered by mountain springs.
Notice the pencil orchid Dendrobium fairfaxii growing epiphytically on a tree on the eastern side of the walk. It was named to honour the founder of Sydney Morning Herald, John Fairfax. The type specimen was collected on Mount Tomah in 1872 by the orchid expert Robert Fitzgerald and the description by Fitzgerald and Von Mueller was published on the Fairfax paper, the Sydney Mail, of 1872.
Other plants of interest include lilly pilly over 30 metres in height, and sassafras and coachwood coppice circles surrounded by carpets of ground ferns.
The Lady (Nancy) Fairfax Walk is open during normal Garden opening hours. Pair your walk with a guided tour or lunch at Restaurant Tomah, for an unforgettable Blue Mountains experience.
Map of the walk. Click to enlarge
History of the walk
- This section of the Blue Mountains Botanic Garden was originally proposed as part of a rainforest National Park. The bronze plaque that dates from the original opening on 23 March 1929 can be seen along the walk.
- The walk is named in honour of Lady (Nancy) Fairfax AO, OBE in recognition of her philanthropic support for a range of community organisations in the ethics, health, aged care, volunteering, church and arts sectors.
- The Lady (Nancy) Fairfax Walk was opened on 23 March 2009, by Her Excellency Professor Marie Bashir AC, CVO Governor of New South Wales and Carmel Tebbutt, Deputy Premier, Minister for Climate Change and the Environment and Minister for Commerce.
