Trips Places Foods Stories Newsletters

Take your next trip with Atlas Obscura!

Our small-group adventures are inspired by our Atlas of the world's most fascinating places, the stories behind them, and the people who bring them to life.

Visit Adventures
Trips Highlight
Central Asia yurt night stars
Uzbekistan • 15 days, 14 nights
Central Asia Road Trip: Backroads & Bazaars
from
A view of Brașov’s Old Town.
Romania • 12 days, 11 nights
Legends of Romania: Castles, Ruins & Culinary Delights
from
View all trips
Top Destinations
Latest Places
Most Popular Places Random Place Lists Itineraries
Add a Place
Download the App
Top Destinations
View All Destinations »

Countries

  • Australia
  • Canada
  • China
  • France
  • Germany
  • India
  • Italy
  • Japan

Cities

  • Amsterdam
  • Barcelona
  • Beijing
  • Berlin
  • Boston
  • Budapest
  • Chicago
  • London
  • Los Angeles
  • Mexico City
  • Montreal
  • Moscow
  • New Orleans
  • New York City
  • Paris
  • Philadelphia
  • Rome
  • San Francisco
  • Seattle
  • Stockholm
  • Tokyo
  • Toronto
  • Vienna
  • Washington, D.C.
Latest Places
View All Places »
Grotte de Glace
Sinquerim Beach Bastion
Port Tobacco Schoolhouse
Barracks / munitions storage.
Vloethemveld
Loading...
Recent Stories
All Stories Video Podcast
Most Recent Stories
View All Stories »
Green-Wood Cemetery, overlooking New York Harbor.
Where Our Team Looked for Joy During Pandemic Lockdowns
The 2,653-mile-long Pacific Crest Trail spans the entire West Coast from Canada to Mexico.
Meet the Volunteers Who Keep Thru-Hikers Moving
The Haskell Free Library and Opera House building on the U.S.-Canadian border.
Could New Border Restrictions Literally Tear the Haskell Free Library Apart?
A woman peering into the cave of Sarah Bishop c. 1900.
The Curious History of New England’s Hermit Tourism

No search results found for
“”

Make sure words are spelled correctly.

Try searching for a travel destination.

Places near me Random place

Popular Destinations

  • Paris
  • London
  • New York
  • Berlin
  • Rome
  • Los Angeles
Trips Places Foods Stories Newsletters
Sign In Join
Places near me Random place
All Australia Hyden Wave Rock

Wave Rock

This gracefully curving formation looks like a massive wave that was suddenly turned to stone.

Hyden, Australia

Added By
Sam
Email
Been Here
Want to go
Added to list
CAPTION
Wave Rock   Don Pugh
Wave Rock   Don Pugh
Wave Rock   Neelaka
Wave Rock   CamponeZ
Been Here
Want to go
Added to list

About

You might not be able to surf on it, but Australia's lovely Wave Rock is one of the most stunning swells in the world. Made out of millennia of layers of stone, this natural formation looks as though it is actually petrified water.

At almost 50 feet high and over 300 feet long, Wave Rock's impressive size and shape have been drawing crowds for decades. It's an example of what geologists call a "flared slope," which forms at the base of an inselberg (an isolated rock hill or mountain that juts from a plain). There are several other examples of this throughout Australia, though none as impressive as Wave Rock. The amazing formation is actually just one side of an entire hill known as Hyden Rock, The "wave" is just one side of it.

Along the top of the wave, a low stone wall has been built that looks too flimsy for protection and too ugly for decoration. In fact, it's there to guide rainwater to the nearby Hyden Humps Dam. The wall was built in the 1920s in order to help bring water to people living in the arid area, and it continues to serve the same purpose today. 

The incredibly fluid undulations of the wave are not the only incredible geologic sites in the area either. After uncounted millennia of erosion and sedimentary activity, there are also locations such as the Hippo's Yawn, which is a natural cave that looks, as it says on the label, like the wide maw of a giant hippopotamus. Besides being a tourist hot-spot with over 100,000 visitors per year, Wave Rock has been an important site for the local indigenous people for thousands of years.

Related Tags

Geology Geological Oddities Rocks

Community Contributors

Added By

SamM

Edited By

Mom0ja, Blindcolour

  • Mom0ja
  • Blindcolour

Published

February 10, 2016

Edit this listing

Make an Edit
Add Photos
Sources
  • https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wave_Rock
  • http://www.australiasgoldenoutback.com/travel-destinations-outback-australia/Wheatbelt_and_Wave_Rock/Pathways_to_Wave_Rock/Hyden_and_Wave_Rock
Wave Rock
114 Wave Rock Road
Hyden, 6359
Australia
-32.444867, 118.896061
Visit Website
Get Directions

Nearby Places

Rabbit Cemetery

Varley, Australia

miles away

Tin Horse Highway

Kulin, Australia

miles away

Yilgarn History Museum

Southern Cross, Australia

miles away

Explore the Destination Guide

Photo of Australia

Australia

Oceania

Places 610
Stories 94

Nearby Places

Rabbit Cemetery

Varley, Australia

miles away

Tin Horse Highway

Kulin, Australia

miles away

Yilgarn History Museum

Southern Cross, Australia

miles away

Explore the Destination Guide

Photo of Australia

Australia

Oceania

Places 610
Stories 94

Related Places

  • Colorful sandstone cliff just west of the Colorock Quarry.

    Moapa Valley, Nevada

    Buffington Pockets

    The rocks exposed at Valley of Fire State Park also occur in a much less known but equally spectacular area a few miles to the southwest.

  • Fluorescent Andersonite from Utah.

    Tempe, Arizona

    Miners Rock Shop

    A family-owned store specializing in minerals, geodes, gemstones, and more.

  • Grampian, Pennsylvania

    Bilger's Rocks

    Rocky outcrops containing overhangs, caves, fissures, clefts, and alcoves that invite exploration and scrambling.

  • Mexican Hat

    Mexican Hat, Utah

    Mexican Hat

    This balancing rock is one of Utah's most unusual geological formations.

  • Mortana, Australia

    Murphy’s Haystacks

    These oddly shaped pink granite formations got their name after being mistaken for massive piles of hay.

  • Edmaier’s Secret

    Big Water, Utah

    Edmaier's Secret

    This hidden gem in Arizona is truly worth the rugged journey.

  • Mina de Mármol

    Cuatrociénegas, Mexico

    Mina de Mármol

    A former travertine mine traces the geological history of this unique desert filled with crystalline blue pools.

  • Brady’s Rocks are the southernmost surface exposure of the massive Niagara Escarpment.

    Eagle, Wisconsin

    Brady's Rocks

    These modest Midwestern formations are kin to Niagara Falls' impressive cliffs, more than 600 miles away.

Aerial image of Vietnam, displaying the picturesque rice terraces, characterized by their layered, verdant fields.
Atlas Obscura Membership

Become an Atlas Obscura Member


Join our community of curious explorers.

Become a Member

Get Our Email Newsletter

Follow Us

Facebook YouTube TikTok Instagram Pinterest RSS Feed

Get the app

Download the App
Download on the Apple App Store Get it on Google Play
  • All Places
  • Latest Places
  • Most Popular
  • Places to Eat
  • Random
  • Nearby
  • Add a Place
  • Stories
  • Food & Drink
  • Itineraries
  • Lists
  • Video
  • Podcast
  • Newsletters
  • All Trips
  • Family Trip
  • Food & Drink
  • History & Culture
  • Wildlife & Nature
  • FAQ
  • Membership
  • Feedback & Ideas
  • Community Guidelines
  • Product Blog
  • Unique Gifts
  • Work With Us
  • About
  • FAQ
  • Advertise With Us
  • Advertising Guidelines
  • Privacy Policy
  • Cookie Policy
  • Terms of Use
Atlas Obscura

© 2025 Atlas Obscura. All Rights Reserved.