AnnieThe second most photographed bridge in NSW (after Sydney Harbour Bridge) is the Seacliff Bridge near Wollongong. Opened in 2005 it was named after an 11 year old school girl in a naming competition.
The 665m bridge has seen thousands of people walk across it to admire it’s beauty and can be seen from the Stanwell Tops lookout point.
But, how does one get to the secret lookout spot to really capture the bridge in all its glory?
The famous secret lookout point at Seacliff bridge by William Patino
Last weekend, I was near the area so I decided to stop off to find this secret path. Good news is, there’s a train station nearby called Coalcliff so you don’t necessarily need a car to get there. It’s just 15 minute to the bridge from the station. If you’re driving from Sydney, it’s just over an hour’s drive to Stanwell Tops.
UPDATE 2018: Please be aware someone recently lost their life doing this short hike. If you are going to attempt it, please be VERY careful and stay away from the cliff edge.
Always wear hiking boots and I strongly advise NOT to take children on this walk at all. Although the path I mention isn’t illegal, it’s not to say that it’s a well trodden on track or safe.
This blog post is purely to help experienced hikers and to make sure you don’t go the illegal way by the train tracks.
Related post: 18 best hikes near Sydney
The view from Stanwell Tops overlooking the bridge in the distance
Keep driving down the road from Stanwell Tops and once you drive over the Seacliff bridge, you’ll see a small car park on your right at the end of it, big enough for two cars. This is where the entrance to the path is, but because you’ll be on the other side of the road, just park up round the corner on the side of the road.
The car park (for 2 cars) and entrance to the secret path!
Other perspective of the secret entrance and other parking at the end of the bridge
Look for this small gap in the bushes to enter the path
Once you walk into the bushes, you’ll see a massive tree with a billion branches. This obviously doesn’t look like the right way, but it actually is. There will look like various paths along the way which is confusing but as long as you stay to the right and work your way up through the hill, you’ll come to the top to view the bridge.
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This is what you’ll see once you walk into the bushes – keep right and make your way up the hill
When you make your way up to the lookout, you’ll see the path continues on. Just walk up another minute or so and the view gets even better! This entire walk took 10 minutes to get to the top so it’s not too difficult. 
Things to know before you go to Sea Cliff Bridge
I would strongly recommend wearing hiking boots as it’s not the safest climb in the world. I also definitely wouldn’t recommend taking children up there as it’s quite steep in sections and there’s not a lot to hold onto. Because I went up there in the afternoon, the light wasn’t great so I’d recommend going early in the morning to catch the sunrise.
I have heard there’s another way up to the hill by the art college and playground, and along the railway. This track is actually illegal so I wouldn’t be trying that one as an Instagrammer pointed out to me that the police caught him and his friends going along this path and they were all fined $400 each!!!
Here’s a video of how we got there!
Thanks for taking the time to read this post!
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