SIMS Harbour Hike September 4th

by Minta Burn on 4 Aug 2011
Did you know there are more than 570 fish species living in Sydney Harbour, or that Mosman Bay was once home to a whaling station and coal was mined at Cremorne Point?

Experience Sydney as you’ve never seen it before by being part of the SIMS Harbour Hike, a new community event benefiting the Sydney Institute of Marine Science (SIMS) on Sunday 4 September – Father’s Day.

It is one of Sydney’s best kept secrets but now you have the opportunity to discover Sydney’s unique history and spectacular beauty on the Harbour foreshore paths from Kirribilli to Chowder Bay– described as one of the greatest walks in the world.

Registrations are now open on the Harbour Hike website for the inaugural SIMS Harbour Hike - an 11km easy to moderate walk from under the Sydney Harbour Bridge at Kirribilli, around the Harbour foreshore paths on the lower north shore to Clifton Gardens Reserve, Chowder Bay, Mosman.

'SIMS Harbour Hike is a great way to get in touch with Sydney Harbour and we’re hoping that residents throughout greater Sydney will join this fun family day out,' said Kim McKay, AO, Harbour Hike’s event director and a SIMS Foundation board member.

Enter a team with Dad, family and friends or work colleagues and be in to win great prizes. Each team will be issued with a Harbour Hike ‘Passport’ and stop at 10 checkpoints along the route where they will answer multiple choice questions about Sydney Harbour, its marine life and history. The teams with the most accurate answers will win great prizes including ASICS walking shoes and weekend stays at some of the Sydney Harbour Federation Trusts’ idyllic properties.

A marine-themed festival at Clifton Gardens Reserve will await hikers who complete the walk, with a sustainable seafood BBQ, live entertainment and children’s activities including sea kayaking and kite-making operated by Land’s Edge, along with displays and information about Sydney Harbour. SIMS marine scientists will be on hand to describe their work and answer questions about protecting Sydney Harbour’s unique environment.

Entry fees for the SIMS Harbour Hike are: $25 for a single, $45 for a team of two, and $55 for a group of three to five people or families, with the funds raised going to SIMS Foundation. All entrants receive a SIMS Harbour Hike water bottle and registration bib. Participants will also be encouraged to have their friends and families sponsor their hike with additional prizes for the top fundraisers. Participants in the SIMS Harbour Hike must register here.

The event is limited to the first3,000 people who register. The event starts under the Sydney Harbour Bridge between 7am and 12 noon on 4 September and follows a path taking in Kirribilli, Neutral Bay, Shellcove, Cremorne Point, Mosman Bay, Sirius Cove, Taronga Zoo, and the Sydney Harbour National Park at Bradley’s Head around to Clifton Gardens Reserve, Mosman, a distance of 11km.

SIMS Harbour Hike is supported by the Sydney Morning Herald, National Parks and Wildlife Service, North Sydney Council and Mosman Council. Supporting sponsors include Sydney Harbour Federation Trust, ASICS, Lands Edge, Over Forty Fitness, Green Tomato Cars and Climate Friendly. More information about SIMS is available here.