Exploring Cronulla and Bundeena

Cronulla simply has to be one of the most desirable places to live in the world. Wonderful climate, a brilliant beach, a nice pedestrianised high street, and less than an hour away from the fantastic city of Sydney.

It wasn't until I walked around the peninsula to the south of the town centre that I realised how awesome Cronulla is. The esplanade I strolled along was blessed with a extraordinary succession of benches, perfect places for a good sit, with views of the lengthy beach, Bundeena, and of course the deep blue ocean. After walking past signs on consecutive posts advertising missing parakeets and flamingos respectively, I reached a park where   outdoor barbeques were available. Here, I saw fins in the water. Sharks? Nope - dolphins! A small group swam right in front of me, gracefully sliding in and out of the water. As I moved around to the other side of the peninsula I was greeted by the evening sun, which was illuminating the most appealing part of Cronulla. The main Cronulla beach faces East and is all crashing waves. But over here, the houses faced West and therefore basked in the glorious evening sun, as did the charming Darook Bay where the water lapped peacefully against a tiny beach. The (very expensive) houses on this side of the peninsula were large and designed to make the most of the location with roof terraces playing host to views of the harbour and setting sun. Cronulla is a place where shirts are optional and coolness is unavoidable. If I make millions...

If nature is what you're after, then Cronulla ticks that box too, as the small town of Bundeena and The Royal National Park is a pleasant twenty minute ferry ride away. On Sunday, myself and my American roommate took this ferry. We had no plans for our day in Bundeena, but as so often this was to be an advantage, as after alighting we glanced at a map and quickly plotted a three hour circular walk that turned out to be absolutely brilliant. After walking through the laid back town of Bundeena, we took a left into the National Park onto a trail heading into the jungle, which was alive with bird and insect sounds. A steady ascent was soon rewarded, as over the trees we could see the Sydney skyline perched magnificently on the horizon. The best was yet to come though. At our half way point, Marley Head, it felt like we were at the end of world - to the right were isolated beaches and endless jungle, to the left were spectacular cliffs, and in front, nothing but the vast expanse of the Pacific Ocean. Then shortly after an astonishingly white rock was atop the cliff, contrasting beautifully with the blue of the sea. This rock had been weathered to a perfect smoothness and shaped like fingers in one place. It was the kind of natural feature that some places would have centered their tourism campaign around, yet we had just stumbled upon it. Soon after, an Asian man showed us a picture of the white rock on his phone and asked how close he was to it, but a later Google search revealed nothing. It was a great day and I vowed to return to the National Park to explore its charms further.


Looking towards Darook Bay from the Cronulla to Bundeena ferry.