Why you need take the challenge of the Cooloola Great Walk
Guide
By Danielle Reckless
Five days, and four nights, traversing along breathtaking coastal tracks, through ancient rainforest, along world-renowned everglades and across towering sand dunes; the Cooloola Great Walk on the Sunshine Coast is unlike any other walk you've tackled before.
Stretching from the southern end of Great Sand National Park, connecting Noosa North Shore in the south and Rainbow Beach in the north, this remote 102km trail boasts some of the most iconic coastal views going—making it an easy contender for the best Great Walk in Queensland.
With each step you take along this spectacular walking track, your connection to the land deepens, and you reset a little more. Here’s how to tackle the Cooloola Great Walk.
Meet Cooloola Great Walk's spectacular landscapes
Carlo Sand Blow, Great Sandy National Park, Sunshine Coast
This isn't a walk in the park, it's better.
The beauty of the Cooloola Great Walk runs more than skin-deep: the remote trail is the best way to immerse yourself in nature, passing through Great Sandy National Park's rainforest, coastal woodland, and heath-clad plains.
Linking Noosa North Shore with Rainbow Beach—and with access at either end—this Great Walk will take you over the eastern high dunes of the Cooloola sand mass, between the pristine upper Noosa River and the coast.
Climb over vast sand blows, discover perched lakes and long sandy beaches and be rewarded with sweeping views of the Cooloola coastline. Relax at night in the four walkers’ camps—Brahminy, Dutgee, Litoria and Kauri—where it’s just you and the wildlife. Camping permits are required in advance.
The Cooloola Great Walk is closer than you think
The Cooloola Great Walk may look remote, but its access points are remarkably accessible from Brisbane or the Sunshine Coast. You'll find the southern entrance to the Cooloola Great Walk on Noosa North Shore via Tewantin, and the northern entrance is accessed via the Carlo Sand Blow in Rainbow Beach.
If a challenging five-day hike isn't for you, exploring some of the great walk's highlights can easily be done in a day. Check out the Cooloola Sandpatch directly from the Cooloola Recreation Area car park at Elanda Point on Lake Cootharaba (you don't even need a 4WD). You will need the grunt power of 4WD (or some strong paddling arms) if you want to go any further, up to Harry’s Hut for example.
You’ll also need to be fully self-sufficient if you’re planning on camping a few days in this area of the Cooloola Great Walk—it’s definitely off the beaten track.
Check out the Cooloola Great Walk map to plan your trip.
Learn about the region's rich cultural heritage
Cooloola Great Walk, Cooloola, Great Sandy National Park
The Cooloola Great Walk is a personal experience that'll put you in touch with Mother Nature's finest. Take your time, breathe deeply, and appreciate your surroundings.
Along the way, learn about the heritage and culture of the local Gubbi Gubbi people and spot native animals before being rewarded with sweeping views of the Cooloola coastline.
You'll get a little sandy
Cooloola Sandpatch, Great Sandy National Park, Sunshine Coast
From the Carlo Sandblow to the sweeping Cooloola Sandpatch, hiking the Cooloola Great Walk is like being inside a full-size sandcastle.
The landscapes look a little other-worldly, but this is one of Queensland's most diverse biospheres. Giant in scale, the Cooloola sandmass is one of the state's largest accumulations of wind-blown sand that's built up over 500,000 years. It also conserves unique dune, lake and vegetation systems.
Get ready to shake a little sand out of your hiking boots along the way.
You'll have an unforgettable adventure
The views are non-stop when hiking the Cooloola Great Walk. You might even spot migrating whales, or be treated to plains bursting with wildflowers if you’re hiking late winter or springtime.
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