Point Danger Lookout to Currumbin Alley

This is the southern end of the Gold Coast Oceanway, a sealed coastal path from the Point Danger lookout at Coolangatta north to Currumbin Alley, flat and wide and about 19 kilometres return. Dogs are welcome on the path itself on lead, but the sand beside it carries separate and mostly stricter rules, and that distinction is the one to get right.

The walk. The recorded route is 19 kilometres and roughly four hours return, graded easy. The path is sealed and level the whole way, tracking the headlands and beaches through Rainbow Bay, Greenmount, Coolangatta, Kirra and Tugun. It breaks into segments neatly, and Coolangatta to Kirra is a comfortable hour with a dog. Whales pass offshore through winter and spring, and the headland lookouts are the place to watch from.

The rules. The City of Gold Coast is the land manager, and dogs must be on lead on the shared pathway and foreshore reserves. Beach access is the part people get wrong. The sand sections along this route are governed separately and are mostly tighter than the path, including stretches closed to dogs altogether, and patrolled swimming areas between the flags are off limits. Read the sign at each beach access point rather than assuming the path rule carries onto the sand. Rangers patrol this stretch regularly.

Hazards. The route is almost entirely unshaded and the concrete gets hot enough to hurt paws by mid morning in summer. There is no natural water on the path. Carry your own and plan around the heat rather than through it.

Getting there. Free parking at Point Danger off Tweed Terrace, Coolangatta, though it fills early. Beachside car parks along the route give you shorter entry points, and Surfside buses run along the Gold Coast Highway if you want to walk one way and ride back.

Nearby with the dogs. Atkin Park dog park at Tugun sits close to the midpoint, Melaleuca Dog Park is a short drive north, Cafe Kirra is handy to the southern end, and Kirra Beach Tourist Park takes dogs if you are staying over.

When to go. Before eight in the morning, year round. Winter mornings are the pick, with cool concrete, whales offshore and a fraction of the summer crowd. Good for big runners, given how far it goes without a single hill.

Sources

• Gold Coast Oceanway - City of Gold Coast · www.goldcoast.qld.gov.au
• Point Danger Lookout to Currumbin Alley - AllTrails · www.alltrails.com

Compiled from public sources and verified listings. Always confirm current rules with the venue or council before you travel.