Wendy’s Secret Garden is more of an open secret to those of who call Sydney home. But if you’re new to Sydney, or visiting the city, this is one secret you deserve to be let in on too.
Located in Lavender Bay, Wendy’s Secret Garden is the creation of Wendy Whiteley whose work on the site began in 1992 after the death of artist Brett Whiteley, to whom she had previously been married.
Today, the garden is verdant sanctuary, appreciated by all who stop to picnic, wander the meandering paths, sit quietly in the shade, and enjoy the harbour views.
| Location: | Lavender St, Lavender Bay |
| Public Transport: | Train to Milsons Point Ferry to Milsons Point |
| Facilities: | Bench seats The nearest toilet and water bubbler is in Quibaree Park |
| Accessibility: | The park has uneven natural surfaces and is set across several levels with steps and steep paths to navigate between the upper and lower gardens. |
History of Wendy’s Secret Garden
It’s hard to believe that the garden was once a derelict block, overrun and unkept, strewn with garbage and infiltrated by weeds.
Before its transformation into the garden we know and love today, the block of government-owned land alongside the Lavender Bay railway line sat abandoned for decades.
The railway line at Lavender Bay serviced passengers in the years before the opening of the Sydney Harbour Bridge. At that time, to reach the city from the North Shore, people would take the train, alighting near Milsons Point to board the ferry across to the city.
When the Sydney Harbour Bridge opened in 1932, trains were able to run directly across the bridge into the city, and passenger trains at Lavender Bay ceased.
And so the land alongside the Lavender Bay railway line was forgotten, except by those who used it as something of a dumping ground.
In 1970 Wendy and Brett Whiteley made Lavender Bay their home.
When Brett Whiteley died in 1992, Wendy turned her attention to that unkept block of land between her Lavender Bay home and the harbourside railway line —first clearing the block of rubbish and weeds before transforming it into a lovingly tended garden.
Wendy’s gardening is driven by aesthetics, colour, form, beauty and whimsy.
Wendy sought no permission and certainly needed no forgiveness for her work creating a garden that today is a place of beauty and respite on the harbour’s edge at beautiful Lavender Bay.
Wendy’s Secret Garden Highlights
Pathways and stairs connect the garden’s tiered levels, and the mighty fig tree provides a focal point shading a large area of the garden below.
Throughout the garden you’ll find many benches and places to sit. In addition to the plants, there are also sculptures and artefacts throughout the grounds.
A particularly special time to visit Wendy’s Secret Garden is at sunset when you’ll enjoy the golden hour light through the trees, and the changing sky over Sydney Harbour.
How to Get to Wendy’s Secret Garden
You can reach Wendy’s Secret Garden via ferry or train to Milsons Point, or by walking across the Sydney Harbour Bridge from the CBD.
You can enter the garden from the walking path alongside the harbour, or from Lavender St and Harbourview Cr.
Walking from the City
If you’d like to walk to Wendy’s Secret Garden from Sydney CBD, you can take the pedestrian footpath across the Sydney Harbour Bridge to Milsons Point where the stairs to exit the bridge land you near the train station.
From there, you can cross to Alfred St, following it up to Lavender St, where you’ll turn left, before making your way through Clark Park to Wendy’s Secret Garden.
By Ferry
Take the ferry to Milsons Point. From Milsons Point wharf you’ll turn left towards Luna Park, following the Peter Kingston Walkway along the harbour’s edge for about 10 minutes before taking a right hand turn through a tunnel and immediately up a set of stairs where you’ll find yourself right alongside Wendy’s Secret Garden.
By Train
Wendy’s Secret Garden is about 7 minute’s walk from Milsons Point train station. Coming out of the station, you’ll head up Alfred St, turn left at Lavender St, and then left again through Clark Park down to the garden.
Facilities
While there are no facilities in the garden itself, there are options close by should you require toilets, water, or food.
Food & Drink
On Alfred St in Milsons Point you’ll find many cafes and an IGA supermarket where you can pick up items to enjoy a picnic in Wendy’s Secret Garden.
Water
There is a water bubbler available in Quibaree Park on the edge of the harbour.
Toilets
There are public toilets at Quibaree Park, and if you’re travelling via Milsons Point train station you’ll also find toilets at the station.