The Fortress Ridge and the Dr Dark’s Cave walk is one of the most mysterious walks in the Blue Mountains. Few people have even heard of the large cave which Doctor Dark and his family stayed in during the 1930’s and 40’s, which makes it a intriguing place to try to find.

The cave is still full of their personal possessions with clothes, pots and pans, bedding and even a game of backgammon! It’s been left as if the family have just popped out for the day! It’s really quite extraordinary and a true hidden gem.

Fortress Ridge itself is also one of the lesser known trails in the area, despite having two of the best lookouts in all the mountains. Combine Fortress Ridge and Dr Dark’s Cave for the makings of an incredible adventure.

Here’s what to expect from the trail.

The views from Fortress Rock in the Blue Mountains

The Fortress Ridge and Dr Dark’s Cave Trail

The stats

Distance: 10.7km (total including all side trails)
Elevation: 469m (total including all side trails)
Difficulty: Moderate for Fortress Ridge, hard when combined with the cave
Type of trail: Return

This trail is a complicated one to explain, so here goes!

Essentially it’s made up of three parts: Fortress Rock, Dr Dark’s Cave and Fortress Ridge. We recommend doing all three as it makes for a hike unlike any other in the Blue Mountains. If you do all three, you will need about 3.5 - 4 hours as it is over 10km long and has almost 500m of elevation gain.

However, you can do every aspect of it as an individual trail if preferred. The walk to Fortress Rock is an easy 2.8km return, the trail to the Fortress Ridge Lookout is an easy - moderate 6.2km return trail, and the hike to Dr Dark’s Cave is a tricky 5.2km return if walked individually (and it is much more difficult after heavy rain).

You can see the route marked on the map below.

Starting the trail to Fortress Rock

The walk begins on a wide and stony fire trail and you’ll head briefly uphill before the path flattens. The start of the walk is fairly mundane but it’s not long (700m) until you come to a junction, neither path is marked, which is a running theme for the walk.

The path that continues straight on will lead you directly to Fortress Ridge. Unless you want to do a shorter walk we’d recommend first taking the path to your left.

You’ll continue along the undulating fire trail for roughly another 700m before the path narrows to a bush track. It’s a little overgrown in places but the track is easy to follow.

It heads fairly steeply downhill until you come out at the cliff edge and one of the most majestic views in the Blue Mountains.

We couldn’t believe there was no one else at this lookout, the view was simply staggering. You can see into the Grose Valley, and out to Lockleys Pylon and Mount Hay.

You can even see Horseshoe Falls in the distance as it thunders down the mountainside.

Finding Dr Dark’s Cave

The elusive Dr Dark’s Cave. This is the place that no one online wants to give you the exact directions for…. until now.

Before we explain in detail, there are two hacks you will want to know about. The first hack is that the trail to Dr Dark’s Cave is actually on Google Maps of all things! It’s not accurate, but it can give you a rough guide as to whether you’re going in the right direction (it can be hard to follow in places). The second hack is to copy these co-ordinates into Google Maps or a GPS - S33° 39.013' E150° 21.229'.

However, make sure you try to keep to the trail and follow our instructions below. There are some severe drops in this area and trying to bushbash could be a bad idea.

Starting the trail to Dr Dark’s Cave

After the Fortress Rock lookout head back up the track the way you came, after 400m look for a narrow bush track on your left.

It is a much rougher track than you usually find in the mountains, take it if you’re looking for a bit or adventure, or continue straight on, back to the junction and on to Fortress Ridge if you’re not.

The trail to Dr Dark’s Cave heads steeply downhill on a distinct but uneven path. It’s actually a really short trail to get to the cave - just 800m each way - but the nature of the terrain makes it hard, unless you are one of those people that can skip down rough, overgrown paths!

The path is mainly quite obvious to follow, but we were unsure at points as it felt longer than it really is. The trail can suddenly lead you to a big pile of rocks and overgrown plants and despite it only being 800m, it felt much further.

The trail starts by heading sharply downhill, before you reach the valley where the trail undulates all the way to the cave. You will reach a dried up creek bed - follow this north-west all the way until you get to Dr Dark’s Cave.

There are two sections which I’d describe as a short scramble. Both are quite close to the cave.

The first I slid down on my bum (Joe just walked down so it’s not that hard!) and the second is a little scramble uphill on rock. It looks worse than it is because there are good footholds.

The second rocky scramble before Dr Dark’s Cave

On the way back we found a little route around this bit, to the left but it’s very overgrown. I actually preferred going up the rock on the way up, but was grateful for the alternative route on the way down as the rock was quite wet and felt like it could have been a little slippery going down.

After the second scramble you are virtually there, you’ll come first to a large overhang which is a pretty cool spot in itself.

Follow that round and within 100m you’ll be at Dr Dark’s Cave.

Dr Dark’s Cave

Dr Dark’s Cave is an incredible place, it’s such a unique spot and unlike anywhere else we’ve been in the mountains. Local Katoomba doctor, Eric Dark, found the cave in 1937 with his wife Eleanor and they used the cave as a holiday home for many years.

The cave, which is more of a huge overhang, looks like it is still pretty much as the family left it. It’s great to see that visitors have been respectful and left things as they are.

There is a big fireplace with lots of pots and pans, as well as sleeping mats and a sleeping bag, clothes, a shovel and even a backgammon game.

Just beside the cave is a waterfall which they used as a water source. It’s a fantastic spot to just sit and soak in the atmosphere of the place.

It’s hard to believe that it’s not fenced off and you feel like you’ve walked right into someone’s living space.

Please leave everything exactly as is, so that visitors can go on enjoying this little piece of mountains history for years to come.

Heading on to Fortress Ridge

The climb back up to the fire trail is in my opinion easier than the descent as you don’t really have to worry about taking a stumble. It’s fairly steep, climbing 79m over an 800m stretch, but it doesn’t take too long to reach the main trail again.

You then retrace your steps back to the junction and take the trail leading to Fortress Ridge. You now have around 3.5km to reach the final lookout at Fortress Ridge.

The path would normally have fairly dense vegetation on either side of it, but following recent bushfires it’s now quite open.

On the one hand you get a bit more of a view but the downside is the charred bushes are really spiky and looking to jab you at any opportunity.

For this reason we’d recommend wearing long trousers to offer at least a bit of protection for your legs before the area regenerates.

This part of the trail undulates but is never steep and you will get glimpses out to the mountains but no big open views at first.

You’ll then come to a small hill, we took the left fork and from here the walk gets prettier. There are some great ridge lines and a few more hills to climb but the views are a lot more expansive and it’s a really lovely section of track.

After a couple more short climbs you’ll reach a rocky outcrop and you follow this for a few minutes to the final lookout.

There’s a short and not very distinct path to your right when it looks like you can’t go any further which will take you around to the Fortress Ridge viewpoint.

It’s hard to describe just how incredible the view is, we didn’t think it could beat Fortress Rock but it did!

It’s a huge panorama and the quietness of the area really makes you feel like you’re out in the wilds. We didn’t have to share the view with anyone else and it was a really special feeling. Photos really don’t do it justice, particularly as we arrived just as it was getting dark.

As much as we love views like Govetts Leap and Evans Lookout, we much preferred Fortress Ridge because the mountains feel so much closer, almost like you could reach out and touch them.

It was a spot we really didn’t want to leave and it was only losing the light that eventually pushed us to head back to the car.

You can see into the Grose Valley as well as Govetts Leap, Lockleys Pylon and Mount Hay from the ridge.

Heading back

The walk back is fairly easy, you have a small amount of uphill to go, but it’s predominantly downhill or reasonably flat. The only thing to watch for are those horrible spikes!

Essential information about the Fortress Ridge Trail

Parking for the trail

Parking for the Fortress Ridge trail is pretty limited, and it can get busy as it’s the first major hiking trail on the Mount Hay Road. There are plenty of spots around the designated parking area though, so you should find a spot somewhere, even if it’s to the side of the road.

The car park is 8km down Mount Hay Road, and about 25 minutes from Katoomba and 1 hour 45 from the centre of Sydney.

The Mount Hay Road

The Mount Hay Road has been labelled one of the worst in all the Blue Mountains. However, that’s not always the case! It’s a dirt road which when recently regarded is actually very good.

We’ve tried to get to this trail and turned back before due to ginormous pot holes and ridges that are only suitable for high clearance vehicles, but we’ve also managed in a small car at other times when it has been recently done. It’s worth checking conditions ahead of time if you’re coming without a high clearance vehicle.

Heavy rains tend to cause trouble on the road, so exercise caution.

Public transport for the walk

Unfortunately the walk is not accessible by public transport. The nearest train station is Leura but that’s still 12km away and there are no buses. Depending on the condition of the road I’m not even sure a taxi would want to do it.

Packing suggestions for the Blue Mountains

Having the right gear can make a huge difference, especially in the Blue Mountains. The trail to Dr Dark’s Cave is very slippery (so you will want good grip) and it can rain at any time, so packing correctly can make a big difference.

Here’s what we pack and have relied upon for years:

Sunscreen: Cancer Council Active. With a high SPF, but not the greasy feel of other sunscreens. Makes a big difference when you’re working up a sweat on a sunny day! Check it out on Amazon
Good Rain Jacket: North Face This is an essential item we always pack in our bag! This jacket from North Face is designed to keep you dry but also comfortably warm (many rain jackets will make you feel like you’re in a sauna). Check it out on Amazon
Day Pack: Osprey Talon 22 (we’ve owned this for years). Check on Amazon or direct with Osprey
Hiking Boots: Merrell Moab (for men and women). We’ve both used these for over three years and they just keep going. Check them out on Amazon
Trekking poles: We’ve used Black Diamond for years as they are light, solid and durable. This can help with the hike down to the cave. Check them out on Amazon.
Reusable water bottle: To avoid single-use plastic. Check them out on Amazon

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