Garie Road Teased With Reopening Hopes - BOM Forecast Says "Not So Fast"

Finn Seabrook | Local Correspondent | Sutherland Shire Gazette

31 July 2025

ROYAL NATIONAL PARK - Locals briefly dared to believe. After more than two years of closures, heartbreak, and whispered legends passed down through trail runners, authorities announced Garie Road could reopen in August. But the weather forecast landed.

With torrential rain and storms now expected to roll across the region “for the foreseeable future, possibly forever,” many fear the long-lost access road to Garie Beach may once again be postponed into permanent mythical status.

“I have my board waxed, wetsuit on, and a playlist ready,” sighed Bundeena surfer Taz, 42. “Then I checked BOM and it looked like a weather-themed horror film. I thought I saw an ark on the radar.”

Closed since 2022 due to a landslip, Garie Road has become less a road and more a symbol of hope, futility, and what happens when water meets bureaucracy. One anonymous worker, ankle-deep in a puddle, muttered “every drop adds a week” before disappearing behind a tarp.

Locals had begun whispering about a ‘Welcome Back, Garie’ sausage sizzle, but abandoned plans once a rainbow was spotted - a sure sign another downpour was minutes away. “It’s not that we’re cynical,” said Lorraine from Loftus, clutching a poncho. “It’s just that… well, we’ve seen August before.”

There are growing concerns that another moderate landslip - or even a particularly dramatic magpie sighting - could push the road into permanent closure. A shrine of bleached beach towels and expired Banana Boat has already formed at the gate.

The sign still optimistically reads: “Expected Reopening: August 2025.” Optimists are calling it “progress.” Realists have already booked a weekend in Kiama and left a note that says “Tell Garie we tried.