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Eagle View Trail (John Forrest NP) Walk overview

The popular Eagle View Trail is rightly considered one of the region’s “top trails”. It remains the only established trail in the Darling Range near Perth that offers bushwalkers a day’s circuit walk of good length and quality scenery. The walk covers varied terrain, partly along stream valleys and partly along the top of the Darling Scarp, past granite tors, and across laterite plateaus.  There are impressive views across the Swan Coastal Plain to Perth and across the local valleys. The track also passes through varied vegetation types, including heathlands, open wandoo woodlands and mixed jarrah-marri-wandoo forest. This page, the walk map and GPX file includes updates following partial re-alignment of the Trail in 2023.

  • Main features / Highlights

    The original alignment of this popular trail within John Forrest National Park was constructed by the Perth Bushwalkers Club during 1993-98. The Trail was first selected in late 2008 to be promoted as Trails WA “Top Trails”. It gives access to the less known northern area of the Park as well as the familiar Jane Brook area, including the National Park Falls and Hovea Falls. The walk covers varied terrain (including moderately steep in places), partly along stream valleys and partly along the top of the Darling Scarp, past granite tors, and across laterite plateaus.  There are impressive views across the Swan Coastal Plain to distant Perth and across the stream valleys. The track also passes through varied vegetation types, including heathlands, open wandoo woodlands and mixed jarrah-marri-wandoo forest.

    Some of the streamsides in the Park, especially along Jane Brook, are severely infested with Watsonia, an introduced pink- to red-flowering weed, which chokes out the native heathland. DBCA and volunteers are now using a selective herbicide 2-2DPA (‘Dalapon’) to destroy the weed with encouraging results so far, including re-emergence of native heathland plants. Efforts by community groups to locally control this highly invasive weed elsewhere along the Darling Scarp, and at Piesse Brook, also appear to have had some local success.

    Sections of this trail (about 1/3 of the walk length) are also incorporated into the WalkGPS  Northern John Forrest National Park Walk on this site. This additional walk provides for some off-track heathland and forest walking.

    This page, the walk map and GPX file includes updates following partial re-alignment of the Trail in 2023.

  • Route notes

    Most key turning points on the trail are indicated by yellow eagle emblem markers and provided you have a map in hand, GPS navigation is certainly not required.

    From the Start point below the carpark (at waypoint ‘START’) cross the footbridge to ‘1’ on the north side of Jane Brook. Turn left to follow the Trail west (in downstream direction), initially passing under the old iron railway bridge at ‘1-1’.  Follow the Trail down the valley. It shouldn’t be necessary to refer to the waypoints as the Trail is quite well marked with an Eagle symbol on a yellow background. Make a short diversion to National Park Falls (at ‘4’) but rejoin the track at ‘5’ and take the trail which is signed to the ‘Eagle’s View Lookout’ and heads initially northward and around the hillside. After crossing a gully at ‘7’  the track climbs westward, with good views southward across Jane Brook to the Railway Heritage Trail. The track veers around the ridge top after ‘9’ and reaches large boulders at a lookout point at ’10’, at the top of the Darling Scarp. From here there are excellent views across the coastal plain to Perth. Follow the track initially northward. It soon veers NE-ward, after ’11’, heading gently downslope, on a newer 2023 re-alignment. The track veers left (NW) at ’12-13′ to continue downslope with a gully to the right. Cross a stream course and then a vehicle track on the north bank at ‘14’. The Trail then climbs towards a ridge where. at ’15’ it  turns eastward to follow the valley of Christmas Tree Creek  upstream (via ‘16’) away from the Scarp through heathlands and past granite tors. Meet a vehicle track at ’17’. Veer left to follow it initially eastward and then northward, crossing the Creek at ‘18’ and passing small rapids hidden just to the right (east) of the track (see ’18-1′). When the vehicle track meets a wide W-E vehicle track (at ’19’; along a former park boundary), the Trail continues north as a foot-track and begins rising away from Christmas Tree Creek through open wandoo woodlands. (NOTE: For a shorter walk, you can turn right at ’19’ to follow the vehicle track eastward for 2km to rejoin the track at ‘27-1′, reducing the total walk by about 3km, but missing the very pleasant northern section. Alternatively, for an even shorter walk, follow the marked Christmas Tree Creek Trail which veers southward after about 800m after leaving ’19’). After ’19’ the Trail continues northward and soon rises more steeply to traverse a laterite ‘ breakaway’ slope and reach a laterite plateau and jarrah forest ‘20’.  The track follows the edge of the plateau/valley rim and provides some excellent views across this secluded northern valley. Turn right at ‘22’ onto a vehicle track which heads generally eastward before curving southward and descending to cross a tributary of  Christmas Tree Creek at ’24’. Cross another sidestream at ’25’ and then immediately cross the intersecting vehicle track on the south side of the stream to continue on the Trail as a foot-track (this section was also re-aligned in 2023, bypassing a previous steeper, eroded original track, but also now unfortunately bypassing a very nice view across the valley and Scarp toward Perth.). The Trail rises  initially SE-ward through pleasant woodland to cross another laterite-capped ridge. After ’26’  it veers ESE-ward to rejoin the original trail alignment along the edge of the laterite surface. At ‘27-1’ the foot-track veers right (SSW), crossing a vehicle track. Soon cross another vehicle track and continue descending gently downslope. Wildflower Walk merges from the right at about ’28-1′.  Then, in less than 50m, the foot-track meets a vehicle track at ’29’.  Veer right to follow the track southward. After 100m, the Noolbenger Off-road Cycle Trail crosses the track. After a further 30m, at a Y-junction at ’30’, take the right hand fork to follow the Trail SW-ward  along slope. When the vehicle track veers left at ’30-1′ the Trail continues ahead as a foot-track. At ’30-2′ the foot-track veers sharply left to begin zig-zagging down the hillside toward Jane Brook. It then rejoins the vehicle track at ’30-3′.  From here you have the option of a short, very worthwhile deviation from the main Trail to visit the nearby Hovea Falls which is less than 200m eastward.  To visit the Falls, follow a sidetrack which leaves the east side of the vehicle track at ’31’ and mainly crossses a large granite outcrop.  After reaching ’32’ you also have the option of descending a further 50m to the foot-bridge right at the top of the falls. Then head SW across the large granite outcrop to rejoin the vehicle track at ‘33’. (If you prefer not to visit the Falls, simply stay on the Trail by continuing downslope on the vehicle track from ’30-3′ to ’33’.) Follow the vehicle track to ’34’ to meet and cross the Railway Reserves Historic Trail (the path of the former railway) onto a smaller track on the southern side.  At ‘35’, veer right, above the rock outcrop, to follow the Trail along the northern bank of Jane Brook and follow the north bank via ‘36’, soon passing by the small weir to then re-cross the Brook via the footbridge (at ‘1’) to get back to the carpark and Start point.

  • Access / Directions

    Turn left into John Forrest National Park off Great Eastern Hwy and follow the sealed road to the main carpark/picnic area. A park entry fee applies.

    Walkers should register at the Ranger’s office both prior to commencing the walk and on return.

    Google Map

  • Nearest campsite/s

    N/A.

  • Escape route/s

    In the north, follow vehicle tracks to Toodyay Road.

    In the south, return to the main carpark.

  • Other Info.

    “John Forrest National Park Management Plan”, CALM, 1994. -This also includes summaries of the flora & fauna, geology, history, future park plans, etc.

    “John Forrest National Park: A Place of Beauty”, article by George Duxbury, in Landscope magazine (CALM), Vol.11, No.4, Winter 1996, pp.16-21.

    “Travellers guide to the Parks & Reserves of Western Australia”,  Simon Nevill, 4th Edn. 2011, pp. 44-45 (Simon Nevill Publications) –  Includes a summary of the Park.

    Other map availability

    “South West WA 25K Scale Topo Maps”, Greg Harewood & Landgate,  2015.  – Digital raster; ECW format on 16GB USB. See tiles #320-2134-III-SW and #318-2134-III-NW  for relevant map coverage.

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