The scenic Gladstone Pass to Roberts Pass loop

Australia, Leura, NSW, Western Sydney & Blue Mountains
Blue Mountains National Park
Dharug, Gundungara Land

Summary: A short but challenging loop walk that combines the historic Gladstone Pass, Lindeman Pass and Roberts Pass in the Blue Mountains. A combination of rainforest and classic Jamison Valley views.

Trailhead: Fairmont Resort, Leura
Public transport options: Train
2.6km walk from Leura station
Distance: 7.5km
Duration: 4-6 hours
Grade: Moderate
400m total ascent
Route type: Loop
Best season/s: All year
Topographic map/s: 8930-1S KATOOMBA (1:25K). Buy / Download
Online map: https://www.alltrails.com/explore/map/gladstone-pass-to-roberts-pass-d240cb4
No Dogs
No mountain bikes

This half-day bushwalk descends to the Lindeman Pass via the Gladstone Pass, and then ascends via the Roberts Pass – you can also extend this walk by continuing further along the Lindeman Pass track and taking a different exit back up to the top of the escarpment. All of these historic passes fell into disuse from about the 1930s, until Jim Smith “re-discovered” and cleared these tracks in the 1970s and 1980s.

Gladstone Pass

After entering the Fairmont Resort in Leura and following a wide path through an unlocked gate, we reach the Gladstone Pass sign – with the standard warnings that this is a route, not a track, and you’ll probably die if you continue any further… Gladstone Pass is one of three historic passes which provides access to the Lindeman Pass. It was originally created in 1885 for mining workers to access a coal mine down in the valley from the village of “Gladstone” – but the mine was short-lived, closing after only a year after the owner was jailed for fraud.

1X3A8176 LR The scenic Gladstone Pass to Roberts Pass loop

The Gladstone Pass rapidly fell into disuse: there was almost no references to the trail except for The Mountaineers Tourist Guide in 1903 (“a striking narrow defile of rare beauty that leads down into the valley”) and a NSW Railways publication in 1906 and 1916 (“a narrow ravine of extraordinary beauty”). From the mid 1920s the track disappeared completely until 1982, when it was re-opened by volunteers, including Jim Smith and Wild Hilder.

There’s one more warning sign where the Gladstone Pass reaches the ends of a maintenance track at the bottom of the Fairmont Resort. A very well-constructed path goes to a small observation shed, which was illegally constructed by the resort in 2016, and now seems to have been completed but not used. The much-less-well-constructed Gladstone Pass descends steeply into the valley!

1X3A8177 LR The scenic Gladstone Pass to Roberts Pass loop

fairmont The scenic Gladstone Pass to Roberts Pass loop

The track is narrow and muddy, but is not difficult to follow…

1X3A8180 LR The scenic Gladstone Pass to Roberts Pass loop

1X3A8181 LR The scenic Gladstone Pass to Roberts Pass loop

…with a bit of easy scrambling and the ocassional fallen tree to negotiate.

1X3A8184 LR The scenic Gladstone Pass to Roberts Pass loop

1X3A8187 LR The scenic Gladstone Pass to Roberts Pass loop

As the trail descends, the gully becomes increasingly narrow and picturesque, with giant ferns and towering coachwood trees creating a Jurassic-like landscape.

Gladstone Pass is a natural pass in the escarpment, and the route follows the creek fairly closely.

1X3A8191 LR The scenic Gladstone Pass to Roberts Pass loop

1X3A8192 LR The scenic Gladstone Pass to Roberts Pass loop

At its most narrow point Gladstone Pass is only a few metres wide, and a narrow ledge with stone steps cut into it drops down next to the creek. It’s hard to avoid getting wet and muddy shoes… Jim Smith writes: “the Gladstone environment must be considered the wettest in the Blue Mountains”.

After the narrow ledge the trail continues to descend, but a little less steeply. Towering above is magnificent forest of Coachwood trees, which are trying to find some sunlight.

1X3A8213 LR The scenic Gladstone Pass to Roberts Pass loop

1X3A8217 LR The scenic Gladstone Pass to Roberts Pass loop

The trail crosses the creek a few times – it’s generally not too hard to follow, and some very ocassional tape on the trees provides reassurance that you’re going the right way!

1X3A8238 LR The scenic Gladstone Pass to Roberts Pass loop

1X3A8237 LR 1 The scenic Gladstone Pass to Roberts Pass loop

The Gladstone Pass drops about 300m, reaching the Lindeman Pass at the bottom… turning right (west) takes you to Copeland Pass or you can continue all the way to the Federal Pass. Turning left (east) takes you to Roberts Pass and Valley of the Waters.

Lindeman Pass

It’s easy to miss the unsignposted junction with the Lindeman Pass; if you’re heading east, you need to cross the creek again (if you don’t look out for the junction, you’ll end up walking along the Lindeman Pass towards the west).

1X3A8237 LR The scenic Gladstone Pass to Roberts Pass loop

There are some views out towards the cliffs below Sublime Point – the Lindeman Track follows the base of these cliffs in the other direction to us.

1X3A8241 LR The scenic Gladstone Pass to Roberts Pass loop

The Lindeman Pass is in pretty good condition; like the Gladstone Pass it’s considered a “route” rather than a trail. The Lindeman Pass was conceived by Charles Lindeman (a local business man and member of both Katoomba and Blue Mountains councils) as a way of linking the walking tracks of Katoomba with those of Wentworth Falls. Despite many setbacks the Lindeman Pass was almost completed by 1911, but remained largely neglected until track reconstruction by Jim Smith and Wilf Hilder in the 1970s and 80s.

The Lindeman Track was formally re-opened in February 1985, but not without some controversy. Just before day of the opening, the Blue Mountains Council deemed the track unsafe and tried to cancel the event:

The council ranger presented his report which stated that the track contained a number of safety hazards which made it unsuitable for tourists. He recommended that signs be erected at either ends of the track to warn that it was not maintained by council and was suitable for experienced bushwalks only.
Jim Smith

1X3A8246 LR The scenic Gladstone Pass to Roberts Pass loop

1X3A8243 LR The scenic Gladstone Pass to Roberts Pass loop

1X3A8249 LR The scenic Gladstone Pass to Roberts Pass loop

Ironically, this section of the Lindeman Pass is technically closed “due to a landslide”… so we’re expecting at some point we’ll have to retrace our steps. When we reach Lawton’s Creek, we lose the track as we descend into the gully and make our way across what appears to be an old landslide. Making our way back up the side of the gully, we soon re-gain the Lindeman Pass track. Looking back the way we came, the track is covered with debris. But in the direction we are going the track is well-defined again.

1X3A8250 LR The scenic Gladstone Pass to Roberts Pass loop

1X3A8253 LR The scenic Gladstone Pass to Roberts Pass loop

1X3A8252 LR The scenic Gladstone Pass to Roberts Pass loop

There are some nice views again through the trees of the cliffs across the Jamison Valley.

1X3A8254 LR The scenic Gladstone Pass to Roberts Pass loop

1X3A8255 LR The scenic Gladstone Pass to Roberts Pass loop

We make good progress along the Lindeman Pass track, and soon reach what appears to be a more recent landslide. Perhaps this is the reason that the track is closed – but it’s very easily and safely traversed.

1X3A8256 LR The scenic Gladstone Pass to Roberts Pass loop

1X3A8257 LR The scenic Gladstone Pass to Roberts Pass loop

Apart from a few minor obstacles, the rest of the Lindeman Pass to Roberts Pass is in great condition.

1X3A8258 LR The scenic Gladstone Pass to Roberts Pass loop

1X3A8262 LR The scenic Gladstone Pass to Roberts Pass loop

Our plan was to continue along the Lindeman Track to Valley of the Waters, as the NPWS Web site indicated that the Roberts Pass was closed… but again this seems to be erroneous information and there are no signs of any closures. So, we decide to exit here…

Roberts Pass

Another historic pass, Roberts Pass is another natural pass between Inspiration Point and Moya Point. It may have been named after Robert Henry Reynolds who was a prospector, shareholder and director of the infamous Gladstone Coal Company (Blue Mountains Geographical Encyclopedia) or Sir Alfred Roberts, a surgeon and honorary secretary of the Prince Alfred Hospital who lived in Wentworth Falls (Jim Smith).

1X3A8272 LR The scenic Gladstone Pass to Roberts Pass loop

It’s a relatively easy exit, although there is still a 300m vertical ascent: “It has less steps than the Valley of the Waters track, is relatively dry (unlike Gladstone Pass) and has none of the exposure that Copeland Pass on Sublime Point has”. After winding it’s way up the lower section of Roberts Pass, the gully gets narrower and more spectacular – a bit like Devils Hole but on a smaller scale.

1X3A8282 LR The scenic Gladstone Pass to Roberts Pass loop

At the narrowest point of Roberts Pass, the track ascends via steel steps through a narrow cleft in the rocks. There was originally a wooden ladder here, which perished in the 1930, before being replaced with another ladder that lasted until the 1950s. After the Blue Mountains City Council refused to replace it, the current steel ladder was funded and replaced privately by Jim Smith and Bruce Forbes in 1985. It’s still unique among all Blue Mountains tracks in that you have to change direction at the end of the slot.

1X3A8285 LR The scenic Gladstone Pass to Roberts Pass loop

1X3A8286 LR The scenic Gladstone Pass to Roberts Pass loop

1X3A8289 LR The scenic Gladstone Pass to Roberts Pass loop

From the top of the slot, the track continues ascending – less steeply – to the end of Roberts Pass where we are greeted with a plethora of warning signs.

1X3A8295 LR The scenic Gladstone Pass to Roberts Pass loop

1X3A8299 LR The scenic Gladstone Pass to Roberts Pass loop

There are a couple of routes to “close the loop” from the top of Roberts Pass. We make a small detour to Moya Point Lookout, which offers some nice (but not particularly spectacular) views over the Jamison Valley and Wentworth Falls.

1X3A8307 LR The scenic Gladstone Pass to Roberts Pass loop

Next stop is Gladstone Lookout, which offers a more impressive vista down the Jamison Valley to Mount Solitary.

1X3A8308 LR The scenic Gladstone Pass to Roberts Pass loop

Ignoring the main trail back (the Inspiration Point Track), we follow the less-used Gladstone Lookout Track back up towards the Fairmont Resort.

1X3A8316 LR The scenic Gladstone Pass to Roberts Pass loop

1X3A8317 LR The scenic Gladstone Pass to Roberts Pass loop

Just off the track is an informal lookout with an even better of the Jamison Valley and Mount Solitary than the signposted lookouts.

1X3A8321 LR The scenic Gladstone Pass to Roberts Pass loop

There’s a glimpse of the gully through which Lawton’s Creek flows, and the end of Isobel Bowden Ridge.

1X3A8324 LR The scenic Gladstone Pass to Roberts Pass loop

1X3A8326 LR The scenic Gladstone Pass to Roberts Pass loop

Just before reaching the Grand Cliff Top Walk – which runs through the Fairmont Resort – the Gladstone Lookout Track gets a little overgrown and indistinct (but there are red and white track markers at regular intervals).

1X3A8329 LR The scenic Gladstone Pass to Roberts Pass loop

1X3A8334 LR The scenic Gladstone Pass to Roberts Pass loop

1X3A8336 LR The scenic Gladstone Pass to Roberts Pass loop

The last few hundred metres follows the Grand Cliff Top Walk along a service trail, which takes us through the resort and back to the main entrance drive.

1X3A8338 LR The scenic Gladstone Pass to Roberts Pass loop

1X3A8340 LR The scenic Gladstone Pass to Roberts Pass loop

1X3A8341 LR The scenic Gladstone Pass to Roberts Pass loop

It’s taken us about three and half hours (with only a brief stop at the two lookouts near the end) with an actual distance walked of about 7.5km. Allow plenty of time to navigate Gladstone Pass and the landslides and obstacles along Lindeman Pass. You can do this loop in either direction, but it’s a bit easier descending Gladstone Pass and ascending Roberts Pass.

Getting to Gladstone Pass and Roberts Pass

Regardless of which direction you do this loop walk, park just outside the Fairmont Resort in Leura on Sublime Point Road. It’s a 2.6km walk or drive from Leura station, and 4.3km (7min drive) from Katoomba. As you walk down Fairmont Place, which is the main entrance to the resort, a small turning circle on the right is where the walking track starts; there’s no signage, but a wide path leads to an unlocked gate.