Ewen Maddock Dam walk is easy and scenic, accompanied by a playground, swimming and BBQ area – making one of the best bush walks near Brisbane for children.
Ewen Maddock Dam, and it’s surrounding walking tracks are located near Mooloolah in the Sunshine Coast Hinterland (just over one hours drive from Brisbane CBD).
Ewen Maddock Dam Bush Walk
- Walking Grade: Relatively Easy
- Distance: There are various trails which span up to 16 km if you follow all loops. Turn around at any time.
- Pram and Wheelchair Accessible: No
- Picnic Spot: Yes
- BBQ: Yes
- Other Activities: Swimming, Fishing, Playground, Biking, Horse Riding
- Toilets: Yes
- Drinking Water: No
- Off street parking: Yes
- Dogs allowed: Yes – on leash only
Maddock Park on Ewen Maddock Dam
The beginning of this Sunshine Coast Hinterland great walk starts at Maddock Park which includes:
- a small covered playground including swings and a slide
- picnic area
- BBQ
- sheltered tables and chairs
- Toilets
These facilities, along with the scenic surroundings make this a great place to end your walk.
Ewen Maddock Dam Walking Tracks
The track itself begins along a boardwalk which follows along the edge of the dam and offers some beautiful views. You will then enter the bushland where you can spot some incredible wildlife. We saw a large goanna, birds, lizards and spiders.
This walk crosses over the dam again – a nice spot to rest. Our son loved throwing stones in the water.
The walk continues through bushland all the way to Landsborough, which is approximately a 5 km walk in total. If you were to return to Maddock Park this would obviously double your walking time. We chose to stop half way and return to the park for a picnic.
You will share the walking track with bikes and horse riders in parts – although we didn’t see any on the day we visited.
Ewen Maddock Dam Swimming
After your walk you can cool off in the Ewen Maddock Dam. This is a freshwater dam and designated buoys mark where you can swim – off a sandy part of the bank, just near the playground.
You can also kayak or canoe in Ewen Maddock dam, if you bring your own. Please note there are no lifeguards on site.
Ewen Maddock Dam Fishing
You may like to bring your fishing equipment and throw a line in as fishing off the boardwalk or bank is permitted.
What to Bring
We recommend you bring the following on this walk.
- Drinking water – there is no drinkable water at Ewen Maddock Dam or Maddock Park, so it’s important to bring enough to last everyone.
- Insect repellant
- Hats and sunscreen.
- Swimmers and towels.
- Food – bring a picnic to enjoy on your walk or food for a BBQ at the end. An IGA supermarket seven minutes up the road in Mooloolah Valley.
Mooloolah Valley Things To Do
We rented an Airbnb and enjoyed a weekend in the Mooloolah Valley. If you do choose to stay we recommend you try the Mooloolah Valley Country Club for dinner which has a great kids play space.
There are also other child friendly walks around including at the Dularcha National Park which features a historic railway tunnel!