This article is from Sydney WeekendNotes for Friday the 8th of May 2009

Red Hands Cave is one of the finest examples of aboriginal rock art in the Blue Mountains or the Sydney area. The best guess is that the hand stencils were created from 500 to 1600 years ago.

The effect of all the painted hands overlapping on the cave wall is quite startling as you can see from these pictures:

Picture 1
Picture 2
Picture 3
Picture 4

Visiting the Cave makes for a great day out. You can drive or walk to the cave and there are a number of picnic spots in the area to enjoy lunch.

Red Hands Cave is located near Glenbrook and was discovered in 1913 by a search party looking for a lost child. By the mid 1930s the cave had been severely affected by vandalism, and it was not until 1987 that a viewing platform and perspex guard was erected to protect the art.

The perspex does obscure the view a little, but it's better than the alternative.

Glenbrook is the first major town on the Great Western Highway as you enter the Blue Mountains. Driving from the CBD takes just over an hour if the traffic is flowing.

Once you have taken the Glenbrook exit make your way to Bruce Rd, which you can see on this map.

After crossing the railway line you will come to the entrance to the national park. Here you can park and walk to the cave (3 hours return) or pay the park entrance fee of $7 per vehicle and keep driving.

Bruce Rd turns into gravel and dirt Oaks Fire Trail which is fine for most cars. Follow this for 9km, then turn right onto the Red Hands Fire Trail which you follow for 5.5km until you reach the Red Hands car park and picnic area.

From here the cave is an easy 15 minute walk.


Why? See spectacular ancient Aboriginal rock art in it's natural setting.