What are the best things to do in Wisemans Ferry, NSW?

The best things to do in Wisemans Ferry, NSW, include taking the state’s oldest ferry over the Hawkesbury River and enjoying a beer at the historic Wisemans Inn Hotel. You can also walk along the convict-built Old Great North Road in the Dharug National Park.

Wisemans Ferry is a small town to the north of Sydney, which straddles a tight bend on the Hawkesbury River. It’s also one of the most appealing river towns in Australia.

As you might have guessed, the town’s name comes from the ferry service which still operates across the Hawkesbury. It’s the oldest ferry service in New South Wales, and there are two cable ferries operating today.

Want to stay the night? Wisemans Ferry accommodation includes the Retreat at Wisemans and the Del Rio Riverside Resort.

Things to do in Wisemans Ferry, NSW: Cross the Hawkesbury River

The first Hawkesbury ferry crossing is at the end of the Old Northern Road. It crosses onto Settlers Road. The Wiseman’s Ferry journey only takes four minutes to make it 366 metres across the Hawkesbury River. However, drivers are advised to expect waiting times of around 15 minutes. The cable ferry can carry 24 cars at once and operates on demand, 24 hours a day, seven days a week. There is no charge for the ferry crossing.

The second ferry crossing in the town of Wisemans Ferry (the town doesn’t have the apostrophe) is at Webbs Creek. The Webbs Creek Ferry takes you to west of the Macdonald River confluence rather than east. The journey takes five minutes. Again, it operates at all hours on demand and the crossing is free.

Things to do in Wisemans Ferry, NSW: Wisemans Inn Hotel

The small town was essentially built by the ferryman, Solomon Wiseman. The former Thames bargeman and freed convict successfully lobbied for the New South Wales government to build the planned Sydney to Hunter Valley road through the land he owned.

The two-storey private residence Wiseman built in 1827 very quickly became the local hotel. And the Wisemans Inn Hotel is one of Australia’s classic historic pubs to this day. You’ll spot a statue of Solomon Wiseman outside the Wisemans Inn Hotel.

But aside from the ferry crossing and a couple of beers at the Wisemans Inn Hotel, why is it worth visiting Wisemans Ferry?

Well, on the south side of the river, there’s the Wisemans Ferry Historic Site, which is a gussied up name for a big park. There’s also Ferry Artists Inc – a community-run art gallery – and the Wisemans Ferry Golf Club.

Walking the Old Great North Road in Dharug National Park

But the best things to do in Wisemans Ferry are on the north side of the river. Here the convict-built Old Great North Road runs through the Dharug National Park

Here, the Old Great North Road World Heritage Walk takes the form of a Grade 4, 9km loop, coming back via Finchs Line. It starts on Devines Hill Loop, and quickly passes the quarry where much of the sandstone rock for the road was dug out. Stone buttresses and culverts are still preserved in the quarry, and you’ll see graffiti carved in the rocks by the convicts.

Also along the Old Great North Road is Hangmans Rock, a cave-like overhang. Rumour has it that convicts were hanged here, but this is almost certainly imaginative storytelling rather than fact.

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