Mount Grenfell Historic Site is widely known as one of the best Aboriginal art sites in NSW. There are three separate galleries which are just a few minutes apart and showcase a huge variety of generally well preserved paintings. It makes for an easy day trip from Cobar or a short detour if you’re passing through the area on route to White Cliffs or Broken Hill.
The scenery surrounding the art galleries is likely to be your first taste of proper outback if driving from Sydney. The red dirt, kangaroos and emus all make a trip here even more special. The walk to the art sites is short, but if you’re looking for more of a leg stretch you can add on the Ngiyampaa Walkabout track.
Here’s what to expect at the Mount Grenfell Historic Site.
The Mount Grenfell Historic Site Walk
The stats
Distance: 1.3km return, or 4.7km partial circuit with the Ngiyampaa walking track
Elevation gain: 125m
Difficulty: Easy
Trailhead: Mount Grenfell Art Walk Car Park
The trail
The car park is now set slightly further away from the rock art sites than it used to be, but it’s still a short easy walk.
From the car park you’ll head first along a flat fire trail, reaching some picnic benches and a long drop toilet 200m later.
Just 50m beyond this point you’ll head onto the official walking track. The landscape is dotted with orange rocks, gum trees and plenty of goats - a common theme in this part of Outback NSW.
The path is in great condition (and well signposted) and arrives at a waterhole 200m from the start of the proper walking track.
The waterhole would be nothing of note if it were not in the middle of the outback, but it’s worth having a quick peek before you continue on to the first gallery, which is just 50m away (right from the waterhole on a separate path).
Art gallery one
The first rock art gallery is 500m from the car park, and as with all three sites, behind a metal grill. The grill does spoil the atmosphere, as it’s quite tightly done and set a way in front of the cave, but of course we understand why it’s there.
There are a couple of small flaps you can open to take some photos unhindered by the grill. The paintings are the work of the Ngiyampaa people and are located on the underside of an overhang.
The paintings are numerous and generally well preserved, though so close together that some paintings can not be seen as clearly as we had expected.
They are thought to be over 3000 years old and some of the paintings are now layered on top of each other.
Paintings depict people with boomerangs, emus, kangaroos and many more.
It is a good site but the viewing experience wasn’t quite as good as we expected and we actually preferred the Mulgowan (Yapa) art site which we’d highly recommend if you love Aboriginal art and have some time to spare in the Cobar area.
Art gallery two
The second art site is located 100m from the first along a flat path (600m from the car park). The set up with the grill and camera flaps is the same as at the first site.
The paintings are numerous and depicted in white, red and yellow. Many are very clear including more people in a warrior stance and various animals.
There’s also a large white painting made of lines which we recognised having also seen it in Mutawintji National Park. We think it’s the Rainbow serpent but please correct us if we’re wrong!
Art gallery three
The third overhang is just 50m away (650m from the car park). This is the least impressive of the three galleries as there are far less paintings to be seen.
However, the paintings that are there are well preserved, particularly the five yellow emus across the middle of the wall.
The Ngiyampaa Walkabout
The Ngiyampaa walking track adds on an additional 3.4km to the overall distance of the trail and circles back to art site three before you retrace your steps to the car park.
I’ll be completely honest and say this additional walk doesn’t have any sights to see or wow factor at all, it is more about stretching your legs in the quiet outback scenery. The highlight for us was seeing an emu!
We’d seen dozens on the road at this point, but this was the first on a walking track where we could really take it in properly.
The track conditions are generally quite good and though there are a few little hilly sections, it’s never overly steep. The path can be rocky but it’s never slippery.
The trail is marked with poles fairly regularly so route finding is easy.
At first you’ll be walking out in the open as you have up to now, before at just over 1.7km into the track (from the car park) you head into the bush.
You’ll climb gently uphill for 350m until you reach a no entry cliff edge sign and 50m beyond this there’s a slight view. You look out to a sea of green trees as far as the eye can see.
You continue along a flat track for 150m before the path curves right and heads downhill. Roughly 100m later the path turns right at the pole and you’re now just 350m from the trig (2.75km from the car park).
As mentioned there isn’t much to see from the trig, but there are some nice large rocks to sit on and relax before finishing the circuit.
Much of the descent from the trig is smooth but there is a relatively lengthy rocky downhill section too. It is uneven but wasn’t loose or slippery on our visit in dry conditions.
The final 350m before you rejoin the art site trail is smooth and flat. Overall it’s quite an easy walk if the weather isn’t too hot, but it’s by no means a must do if you are pressed for time.
Getting to the Mount Grenfell Historic Site
When navigating, ensure you put in “the Mount Grenfell Art Site Walk” into Google Maps, as the place marked as the “Mount Grenfell Historic Site” is incorrect.
The road to the Mount Grenfell Historic Site is sealed up to the last kilometre. It’s approximately 71km and a 50 minute drive from Cobar and 253km and a 2 hour 40 minute drive from Wilcannia. If you’re driving from Cobar to White Cliffs it’s roughly a 45 minute detour.
There are long drop toilets and picnic benches available.
Outback safety
There is little to no phone signal around Mount Grenfell Historic Site and it is very remote. Make sure you’re carrying some extra food and water incase of emergencies. We personally take a PLB with us on any outback road trip just to have that extra bit of security.
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