A secluded beach at the head of Spring Cove near Manly, Collins Flat Beach offers sheltered swimming in North Harbour. At the end of the the beach is a picturesque waterfall.
The beach was significant to the Camaraygal people who used it for ceremonies, burials and gathered medicinal plants here. It was also the site where Governor Arthur Phillip was speared by an Aborigine in September 1790, when he travelled by boat to meet Bennelong, a senior member of the Wangal Aboriginal tribe. Accompanying Governor Phillip was Captain David Collins, a Judge Advocate with the First Fleet, after whom the beach was named.
There’s some shade around the beach, which is surrounded by thick forest and sandstone cliffs, and can only be reached by foot.
Getting to Collins Flat Beach
There are a few ways to reach the beach; the shortest and easiest route to the beach and waterfall is from the end of Collins Beach Road, where there is very limited parking along the road. A well-formed track leads down to the beach.
Alternate approaches are:
- follow a walking track around the bay from a carpark near Stuart St (0.8km return and fairly flat)
- descend an unofficial trail from North Head Scenic Drive along a sandstone wall (0.9km return and steep-ish).
More information
- National Parks (NPWS) – Collins Flat Beach
- Beachsafe – Collins Beach
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