The Nature Trail - Mt Lofty Botanical Gardens (0.8km)

A popular walking trail winding through a seven hectare area of natural scrub in the Mount Lofty Botanic Gardens.

Native plants and animals on the trail vary with the season and the bird life is truly remarkable.

The trail takes about an hour to walk and can be started at either end.

The main tree of the Piccadilly Valley is the Messmate stringybark, Eucalyptus obliqua. At the turn of the century the whole valley was clear-felled with the exception of a few individual trees. The timber was harvested for use in the copper mines at Kanmantoo and as firewood in the factories of Adelaide. Since then, some parts of the valley have regenerated and, with the exception of competition from weeds and interruption by fire, a second generation forest has grown.

The trail is an official alternative route for the Heysen Trail. It is 850m long and drops about 100m, very steeply in some places.

Ten points of interest are marked along the trail. Follow along with the Nature Trail brochure.

GPX file courtesy of Walking SA. File may not contain elevation data and may only represent half the length on return hikes.