balancing rock

This was exceptional and really unexpected. The walk was longer than we thought, but not difficult and a great balance of timbered areas with narrow paths, open woodland and, of course, those spectacular boulders and skywalk at the end. We were gob-smacked. Took us 55 mins up (taking lots of time for pics) and 20 mins back. The view was extra-ordinary. That said, I wouldn't recommend this for any one seriously overweight, unfit or with a weak heart. For the rest of us, highly recommended!

Well worth a trip. Medium level of fitness, but you can take your time if needed. The views at the top are second to none, but try and pick a clear day so you can get the best views available!

This is a good 90 minute return walk. Most of it is a gradual hill through woodland, but at the top things get interesting fast.Balancing Rock is an interesting attraction and there are plenty of other boulders to get around, under or over. There is then a ladder and walkway with nice views. Stirling Ranges can be seen one way, the coast the other.

It took us about 1 hour 20 minutes to walk up. We started early morning as it's summer in Australia and so it's not too hot. Can be quite hot around noon. Young kids may find it hard, quite steep but that's not the end. When you're up there, there's more climbing to do. Definitely not for the faint-hearted. Climb at your own risk. Coming down was quick, half the time it takes. There's a $12 fee for car. There's a booth with information. Definitely worth an adventure. Take lots of water on a hot day.

It's a bit of a slog up the hill (for those of us who are un fit anyway! ;-) ) but we went up with our 5yr old and had no issues getting up and back in 2 hours. And that was taking it fairly easy. It's a lovely shady walk. Steep and rocky. So worth it when you get up there though! What a great lookout! Fantastic engineering! Definately worth the stop!

We have not come across this attraction nor had the chance to do any research on this place before the trip. This lovely place, 20mins drive from Mount Barker, part of the Porongurup National Park was recommended by our B&B host. Without knowing what to expect, the walk up to the granite skywalk was a pleasant surprise. Wild flowers are to be seen all along the path, and we even saw wild wallabies hoping across our front path. Balancing rock is one of the first rewarding highlight, walk further in you will be greeted by a signboard asking you to decide your path, either the 'Karri Lookout' or the Castle Rock Summit'. Most people will do both like we did both and we love every bit of it. You don't need to be super fit to do any of these but it surely isn't for the faint-hearted. The built of the skywalk, hand/feet rails/ladder to guide hikers up to the skywalk is worth a mention, everything is well planned to help you enjoy the spectacular view up there. Do not miss this if you have a road trip down south.

What a lovely 2 hour walk (return) to the Skywalk at the Porongurup National Park. We went in October and the spring flowers alongside the path were beautiful. Once at the top it’s a bit of a scramble to get to the higher of the 2 lookouts but it’s well worth it. The only charge is the $12 car admission to get into the Porongurup National Park. This is the best value trip we have had in WA so far.

On our trip to Albany recently we ventured up to the Skywalk at the Porongurup National Park. We took our time on the walk up to the summit, enjoying the views and the flora on the way up. But the best was to come. After the Balancing Rock, you have the option of the easily navigated walkway, or the more adventurous Skyway. The Skyway is a bit trickier to find your way to the top, scaling over boulders, climbing up hand/feet handles, and stepping up the ladder to the Skywalk adds to the conquest, and the views at the top are spectacular. Our kids of 12 &10 managed the walking and climbing with ease and the minimum of whining, pretty happy once the got to the top.

Well worth the constant uphill walk to this. It is a 4.4km return walk but the skywalk structure at the end is a fantastic piece of engineering. The day we visited there was thick fog when we reached the summit, so there weren't really any views but it was eerie and beautiful at the same time. You will need a moderate level of fitness to tackle the last bit but most people should have no trouble. If you don't feel able for the last bit, there is a lookout lower down so the walk will not be wasted. This was one of the highlights of our visit to WA.

A 2.2km walk up a hill to a platform erected around a granite rock with fantastic 360 degree views of farmland, bush, vineyards, tree plantations, the Stirling Ranges and even to the sea in the distance. The walk is a grade 5 of a six level grade. It’s a fairly constant upwards path with natural rock steps in the final stages. It’s pretty hard if you’re not fit (like me) but easy if you are, like my husband who could carry on a conversation the whole way without sounding out of breath! We set off at 11.30am and were back at the car by 1pm. No special gear seems necessary, you could do it in thongs. Suggest just taking water and a camera, maybe a jacket if the weather is “iffy”. The area is national park, so no dogs, and no fires. There’s a gas bbq and picnic seating areas, and toilets. There’s also a fee - $11 per car, we paid this at the tearooms down the road. The tearooms are a gem, we had a coffee there before we set off, they also do lunch and is full of interesting “stuff”. There happened to be markets on the day we were, bonus! Also down the road are several wineries, including the Castle Rock Winery, however we went to Ironwood, which served food. And great food at that. And great wine. And more views.

Beautiful hike up to Balancing Rock and then on to Castle Rock. With the new Granite Skywalk we'll have to do this again to take in the 360 degree views from the skywalk.

Balancing rock and Castle rock in the Porongurups are magnificent. The walk is up but well worth the climb. It only took me one hour but they say 2. The view from on top of castle rock is fantastic and the walkway and ladder are amazing. Hard to comprehend how they built it. You do need to be fit and able to climb ladders. The garnet rocks are very impressive.

Be prepare to walk about 1.5 hours one way uphill, but you won't be disappointed.

Porongurup Nationalpark ist ein kleinerer Nationalpark mit einigen schönen Walks, meist bergauf und one way, bis auf einen kleinen Rundweg von 600m, direkt vom Parkplatz weg, der allerdings nicht sehr erhebend war. Nett anzuschauen war der tree in Rock, da wächst ein Baum förmlich aus einem Felsen heraus und man fragt sich schon, wo er seine Nährstoffe herbekommt. Es gibt auch einen 23 km langen Scenic Drive, der allerdings nicht geteert ist und den wir deswegen auch nicht gefahren sind.