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Recreation Activities All Here Waiting for You Wollongong's location, climate and lifestyle engender and amazing choice of recreational opportunities. Visitors can spend their leisure time parasailing, windsurfing, fishing, sailing or scuba diving. They can climb a mountain or soar above the escarpment under a colourful hang glider and gracefully glide to the earth below. There's even a choice of spectator sports, if a more sedentary pastime is preferred. On Your Bike An excellent cycleway network skirts the famous coastline. Starting at Thirroul, the cycleway winds its way through spectacular scenery. The city boasts over 60 kilometres of shared cycleway. Not only is cycling an excellent recreational pursuit, it's a great way to explore the region. Wollongong's Wonderful Waterways Wollongong's superb, golden beaches are an excellent source of recreation, including swimming and surfing. The lifesaving movement attracts numerous visitors during the summer months when local and national clubs compete at surf carnivals. Public interest in these events has soared in recent years, mainly due to the gruelling Iron Man series. This major national event is dominated by home-grown national champions such as the Mercer brothers and Jonathon Crowe. Surfing is another popular pastime with the numerous headlands producing top surfing conditions year round. Scuba diving, spearfishing and snorkelling are also well established. The tranquil waters of Lake Illawarra make it ideal for fishing, sailing, windsurfing and waterskiing. The Great Escarpment Escape A series of well established walking trails through rare tracts of pristine rainforest offers visitors of all ages and physical ability ready access to this outstanding natural resource. The more adventurous can choose to abseil sheer cliffs, climb challenging rocky outcrops, swim crystal clear mountain streams. Mount Keira also provides an idyllic setting for both field and range archery. Team and Spectator Sport Numerous sports grounds throughout the city provide top grade facilities for the more conventional sporting activities and spectator sports. Beaton Park Athletics Track is a world-class sporting venue that attracts both amateur and professional athletes. Nearby is Beaton Park Leisure Centre, offering gymnastics and aerobic facilities, indoor squash courts and a heated swimming pool. Local rugby league, soccer, baseball, and basketball teams are avidly followed by fans and are all highly successful in the competitive arena. Horse and greyhound racing attract many punters at local tracks. Motor cross is also a popular spectator sport and one that produced a local hero of world renowned, 500cc world motorbike champion, Wayne Gardner. Par for the Course Golfing enthusiasts are well catered for in Wollongong. First class facilities are available in a variety of picturesque locations including high on the escarpment at Helensburgh, near rolling foothills at Russell Vale, on the beachfront at Wollongong and Primbee, and surrounded by verdant green countryside at Kembla Grange and Albion Park. Most courses provide clubhouse, eating facilities and equipment hire. Top of Page

•  Getting to Wollongong •  Climate •  Culture and the Arts •  Museums and Places of Interest •  Shopping •  Entertainment •  Fine Dining and Cafés •  Recreation Activities •  Accommodation •  Wollongong's Beaches •  Itinerary Samples •  Registered Clubs •  Easy Access •  Illawarra Cycle Club Wollongong has a variety of courses from a links layout on the beach to the base of the Illawarra escarpment surrounded by nature.   Golfing in Wollongong [769kb]   Golf from Wollongong to Eden [3Mb] Click here to search our recreation database and find the perfect thing to do in Wollongong.