The main gates on Macquarie Street open at 6am & close at 6pm
(8pm during daylight savings). The Westmead gate opens at 10am and
closes at 3pm on weekdays, but on weekends and public holidays this
gate opens at 6am and closes at 6pm (8pm during Daylight Savings).
The park is a great place to come for a bike ride, walk or run,
or a relaxing picnic. There are playgrounds, BBQs, picnic tables,
and a cafe near the river.
This cache is hidden near the Old Government House.
Old Government House is Australia’s oldest surviving
public building. For seven decades, it was the
‘country’ residence of 10 early governors of the
colony, including Governor and Mrs Macquarie who, from 1810 to 1821
preferred the clean air and space of rural Parramatta to the
unsanitary and crime ridden streets of Sydney Town.
The central block of the house was completed in 1799 by Governor
John Hunter, however the appearance of the house today owes most to
Governor and Mrs Macquarie. Their 1815 extensions, designed by
Macquarie’s Aide, Lieutenant John Watts transformed the house
into an elegant Palladian style residence in the English
manner.
After 1855, the house was used for various purposes, including a
boarding house and for the King's School junior boarders, until an
Act of Parliament placed it under the control of the National Trust
of Australia (NSW) in March 1967.
Today the building is open for guided tours and functions.
The container is a bison tube, so BYO pen. You could do this as
a park & grab if you really wanted to, but I think it would be
nicer if you slow down a little, get on your bike for a ride and
spend some time enjoying the park.