It's rare to find one of Sydney's rare and hidden gems, and when I come across one, it's an…read moreexhilarating feeling. On one hand, I want to keep the place hush hush so that it doesn't become spoilt by mounds of people, and on the other hand, I want to recommend it to everyone I know. (I guess I've chosen the non-selfish route this time around!) The garden itself is quite small and is a bit steep - it leads down to some very steep bush. During Spring, the flowers are in bloom and the gardens are a kaleidoscope of colour. There's also a scary looking water dragon.

I had a lovely afternoon walk here. But you need to wear enclosed shoes if you go in the bush as…read morethere are lots of leaches.

Me: "So Mr5... what did you think of the park..?" Mr5: "It…read morewas AWESOME!" Me: "What did you like about it?" Mr5; "um... because we played with scooters... and Mr2 was playing with the bike... on the track..." Me: "Anything else..?" Mr5: "I was climbing ... on the pirate ship...and I looked happy." So.... what else do you need to know about this park. It has been given the seal of approval. It has a BBQ area that you can use, undercover seating, and even tennis courts for those so inclined. It is an "awesome" park. :-)

This park is hidden amongst houses. There is a playground and BBQs. It was once a lunatic asylum…read moreand soldier barracks. Care has been taken to erect signs with the history of the place. It is a wide open area and a terrific place for a picnic.

In the early 1920s a guy by the name of Jimmy Bancks invented a part of Australian cultural…read morehistory. The character he invented was Ginger Meggs, a red headed little mischief-maker (who I am pretty sure I have no relation to). In any case, Jimmy apparently lived around the Hornsby shire area and this park was one that he played in while growing up. As such, in 1997 it was renamed in his honour. The park itself has all the things you would expect to see in a play ground these days. Under cover tables, swings, slides and an expanse of rope areas to climb all over. It also has a large open area in which the kids can safely run riot. The only thing to be careful of is that while the back of the park is surrounded by bushland, there is no fence. One of the attractions near the trees (all the way off to the left hand side) is a small little duck pond. In any case, not that you should ever not pay attention to your kids in a park, but this one may require more attention than most. Otherwise, it is an awesome park on a very quiet stretch of road. Come and check it out.

Located about 5km from Hornsby or 25km from Sydney, this has got to be one of the best National…read moreParks on offer. There is not much that you can not do here no matter your interest. If you are after camping, picnic areas, hiking, bike riding, BBQ areas, canoeing, fishing, swimming, or even boating/sailing, then this is the place for you to head to when you get a spare day. I say day as to make the trip here worthwhile, that is about how much time it will require. Besides that, as entry to the park is not free, if you are after your money's worth, you should try and stick around a bit. While the obvious fee is the $11/car ticket machines you see everywhere, the website goes into a little bit more detail. While I have not yet had to pay anything more than the $11 before, the details of potential other charges from the website include: Daily entry fees: if you're arriving by bus or car and walking or cycling to The Basin you'll need to pay daily entry fees of $4 adults, $2 children (pre-booked groups) or $4.40 adults, $2.20 children (groups without a booking); there is no daily entry fee for teachers/educational supervisors (1 adult per 10 children). Also, while I added an approximate opening and closing time for the gates to Yelp, different gates have different opening and closing times depending on the time of year. Thus... Gates to Bobbin Head and Appletree Bay are closed from 8pm to 6am during daylight savings periods, and 5.30pm to 6am at other times of the year. Gates to West Head are closed from 8.30pm to 6am during daylight savings periods, and 6pm to 6am at other times of the year. In this park, vehicle entry fees are $11 per vehicle per day. Be sure to check this park out if you have the chance as it really is stunning. Best of all, the Bobbin Inn actually has half decent coffee and breaky on offer (review http://frid.co/smNIYr ) so you might want to start your day there... :-)

Sigh. I heart Wahroonga Park…read more It's the perfect place for picnics, for climbing trees, or for scribbling in your notebook and soaking up the sunshine. Strolling through just this afternoon I was delighted by the sweet aroma from the rose gardens and the dappled light streaming through the latticed walkway. There were families strewn about with balloons, eskies and blankets - there was even a teen strumming on a guitar. Yes, it's that idyllic. And with the stylish rotunda and stunningly manicured gardens, you can understand why couples would get married here. For parents, Wahroonga Park has the added bonus of a fenced playground (though it could do with another bench or two for weary souls!), which is a mere stone's throw from a caffeine fix at Coonanbarra Cafe across the road. I think that might just make this park worth its weight in gold!

Wahroonga Park is one of the most picturesque parks I've ever seen, but it's one kids will…read moreappreciate as much as adults. The park has a fenced off playground with a sandpit, seesaw, slide, train and other equipment, as well as a set of swings just outside. Open grassy space provides plenty of places for families to have a picnic and play games, though the trees dotted everywhere do limit larger sports. The park is right next to Wahroonga Station. On the other side of the train line is a set of shops including bakeries, newsagents and more. However, you don't have to walk that far to get something to eat, as opposite the park there is a small cafe which sells milkshakes and biscuits for the kids.

First time visitor to this awesome place where we decided to catchup over a bbq with friends…read more Access is by boat, ferry or water taxi. Unsure if you can drive here as I didn't see any cars. What struck me immediately is the local swamp wallabies that coexist with the visitors and rangers. Sightings on the day included kookaburras, various birds and reptiles. It is the only place in the Ku-ring-gai Chase where you can camp. Being part of a national park, ongoing conservation and preservation is by way of entrance fees ($3 per head), which is separate to camping fees. Restrictions applies to this beautiful place i.e. fires. The campsite is well maintained and very clean. Plenty of hiking opportunities for those who are keen as it is surrounded by hills and mountains There is a body of water that is safe for some water sports. Bbq facilities is also available which we took advantage of. Beechwood Cottage is a historical property which is available to hire for functions and events. This place is great if you want to get away for the weekends with or without the kids. It overlooks Pittwater and is just a beautiful place to hang and chill.

This is a great beach and camping area, with mountains all around. Access is by boat or trails…read more No vehicles allowed. It's not a pristine sand beach, more like sand based mud, but has nice calm clear water on the back harbour side. The place has lots of space to picnic and relax. Everything is clean. And the kids get to run after the wallaby(ies) when they hop by. We went in by boat, which is a great way to arrive. There are lots of tent campers, most of which seemed to arrive and bring their gear in by boat. Several ferries service the area.

Nice place to play cricket. Lots of fun to be had. The toilets were open so that was great.read more

Fred Caterson Reserve is close by to the centre of Castle Hill yet once you enter the grounds you…read morefeel as if you have escaped to the bush. I don't know how many hectares it covers but it is large. It contains a baseball diamond, cricket pitch, basketball centre, bike tracks plus a number of other things that I can't remember. Lots of kids play sport there and there is a natural friendliness about the whole place. The Hills Hornets have their home base there. There's plenty of parking for each one of the separate fields and during the week they're full. A great place to take kids if you have just moved to the area, let them choose which discipline they want.

Fred Caterson is a basic rec centre for basketball. It has 4 courts and the surface is generally…read morewill maintained. There's no air conditioning though so it can get quite hot, but I've never seen anyone leave the game due to cramping (take that, LeBron) The refs are either hit or miss, and you can usually get a good game during the week when they don't have camps on.