Kelly Hill Conservation Park, Kangaroo Island
| Location | Kelly Hill Conservation Park, Kangaroo Island |
| Start/End Point | Kelly Hill Visitors Centre, South Coast Road, Karatta |
| Distance | 300 m |
| Time | 5 minutes |
| Difficulty | Easy |
| Activity | Walking |
| Region | Kangaroo Island |
| Accommodation | Camping, mid-range and premium options — See accommodation options |
| Key Feature | Short introductory trail near Kelly Hill Caves |
A Brief Taste of Kelly Hill’s Bush
Mays Walk is the shortest trail in Kelly Hill Conservation Park — a 300-metre stroll near the Kelly Hill Visitors Centre that forms part of the longer Burgess Hike loop trail. While it can be walked in just five minutes, this little trail serves as a gentle introduction to the native vegetation that covers the park’s limestone landscape, and it provides an easy leg-stretching option for visitors arriving at Kelly Hill Caves before or after a guided cave tour.
Kelly Hill Conservation Park sits on the south coast of Kangaroo Island, protecting a landscape of coastal scrub, sugar gum woodland, and the famous Kelly Hill Caves — a system of limestone caverns decorated with stalactites, stalagmites, and other formations created over millions of years. The park’s walking trails explore the surface landscape above these underground chambers, where the native vegetation provides habitat for Kangaroo Island’s distinctive wildlife including tammar wallabies, echidnas, and the island’s endemic subspecies of kangaroo.
The Walk
The trail meanders through the bush near the visitors centre, offering a brief encounter with the park’s native vegetation. While the walk is short, it provides a snapshot of the coastal scrub and woodland that characterises the park — low heathland plants, native grasses, and the sugar gums that give the forest its distinctive tall, pale-barked character. For those wanting a longer walk, Mays Walk connects seamlessly with the Burgess Hike, which explores the broader conservation park in a loop that takes approximately one hour.
Planning Your Walk
Mays Walk begins at the Kelly Hill Visitors Centre on South Coast Road, Karatta. The trail is flat, easy, and accessible to all ages and abilities. Combine with a guided tour of Kelly Hill Caves for a complete park experience. The visitors centre provides information about the cave system, the park’s geology, and the broader natural history of Kangaroo Island’s south coast.
Mays Walk is a five-minute encounter with the bush of Kelly Hill Conservation Park — brief, gentle, and just enough to remind you that the natural wonders of this place extend above ground as well as below.
Where to Stay
Planning an overnight trip? See our Kangaroo Island Accommodation Guide for the best places to stay near this trail.