Lockleys Pylon Walking Track

Last updated: August 3, 2020

The Lockleys Pylon walking track is an exciting bushwalk in the Blue Mountains, offering scenic 360-degree views of the Grose Valley, Govetts Gorge and the sandstone cliffs of Mount Hay and Mount Banks.

This part of the Blue Mountains is still relatively quiet and undiscovered, which makes the track to the top of the pylon even more enjoyable.

The start of the Lockleys Pylon walking track is on Mount Hay Road near Leura.

From the Great Western Highway, take the Leura exit and turn right at the roundabout crossing the overpass. Turn right into Britain Street followed by a left turn into Mount Hay Road. This soon turns into a challenging dirt road.

After about 10km on this dirt road, you will get to a small car park with a sign. If this car park is full, there are other spots nearby where you can try to park, as long as you don’t block the road.

While you don’t need a 4WD to conquer Mount Hay Rd, you do need to drive very carefully. If it has rained, or rain is predicted on the day you’re going hiking, it’s best not to attempt to drive there with a normal 2WD vehicle.

With Leura’s train station about 15km away and no buses heading out there, traveling by car is unfortunately the only feasible option.

Lockleys Pylon was named after J.G. Lockley, a writer and journalist who supported conservation efforts to save the Blue Gum Forest from logging in the 1930’s.

The first section of the walking track is uphill heading towards a unique rock formation named The Pinnacles. It’s worth wandering around the rocks to explore this interesting area a bit more.

The track continues over a heath landscape with nice views of Fortress Creek and the canyon it flows through to your left.

Keep an eye out for a short detour that leads to a lookout point with great views of the valley and Fortress Creek below.

As the path continues, Lockleys Pylon will start appearing in the distance, while the panoramic views of the valleys and mountains on both sides of the track will be leaving you in awe.

Have a good look around and see if you can spot Mount Hay and Mount Banks in the distance.

Once you get to Lockleys Pylon, a set of stairs followed by a clear path will get you to the summit of this very distinctive landmark.

While it’s not all that far to the peak, there are some very steep sections that require a bit of effort.

Once you’re at the top, you’ll notice that there are several different paths you can choose from to get back down.

But before heading back, you will want to spend some tome on top to take in the amazing 360-degree views of one of the most beautiful parts of the Blue Mountains national park.

If you’d like to extend this walk, it’s worth continuing the walking track to Du Faur Head, a rock formation on the edge of the escarpment, overlooking the Gross Valley. From there you can go even further and visit the well-known Blue Gum Forest.

Allow for an extra two hours of hiking time if you’re planning to go all the way to the Blue Gum Forest.

What makes the Lockleys Pylon walking track particularly enjoyable is that it is quite unique compared to other, more popular hikes in the Blue Mountains, such as the Grand Canyon walk and the walking tracks in the Wentworth Falls area.

With the strong winds and alpine like landscape, this walk is somewhat reminiscent of the hike up to Mount Kosciuszko.

Follow Mount Hay Rd for about 10km until you get to a small car park where the starting point of the Lockleys Pylon walking track is.

Drive very carefully as Mount Hay Rd is an unsealed and very uneven dirt road.