Canberra to the Coast

why not have a go at making your own trek notes for the trip? there are still none for canberra and you score a years free subscription to eo

go to the southern tablelands club site - they have plenty of info. when i was over there a few years ago i joined in on a trip through the mountains and ended up on the coast somewhere (have no idea where). rgds

Yes a nice trip brings you out near Eden, follow the monaro hwy towards bombala take the cathcart turn off then to mount darragh, wyndham, lochiel... head east there are several routes and they all come out on the princes hwy near merimbula / eden. You are so right about the kings hwy at Xmas or at any time in summer... not only is it chockas with traffic its a very bad road... narrow and suits clockwork cars ( very windy). Braidwood to the coast via Araluen is not to bad dirt road, not straight, but very few cars.... Personally I stick to the main road so that I can get a nice pie at Nimitabel or Bemboka....

There sure is goes through the famous yowrie camp site.It pops out at corbargo if I remember right? it was the road for the 1998 rough road rally for motorcycles i got a gold badge {over 500cc road bike with a pillon}. Now for the bad news back in 98 ithe road was in a bad way, we had to do some serious bridge building.{AND everyone laughed at me for taking a chainsaw}. If the road had not been fixed you could be faced with 3 bridges you will need to rebuild. plenty of trees so take 2 large bars and a good chainsaw. It shouldnt take more than 4 hrs a bridge to get it passable if you got hand winch and prise bars.

shadow

There are two roads.

Both start at Countegany (33 kms east of Cooma)
The 1st is Forest R/Belowra Rd - it is a good Rd - this can take you out to Cobargo or further north, depending on which tracks you take?

The 2nd is Wadbilliga trail to Yowrie/Cobargo - I haven't been on this track for a while so I can't comment on its condtion.

Good luck

G'day Alan,
Another option from Canberra would be to go to Queanbeyan, Captains Flat, through the forests east of there which will bring you out onto the Cooma/Braidwood road. (Along the way through these forest tracks, you could find your way to a great little site for lunch at an old forestry/logging area which has a large water wheel...sort of rain forest surroundings etc.) From there, you turn south and look for the "4 wheel drive" sign off to the left (can't remember how far to the sign, but guessing around 40klm). This takes you into the Bendethra region. Some good tracks and a nice camp site at the bottom. This was the place that some idiots tore up with their 4bys and motor bikes earlier this year or last year. From there you climb out of the valley and come out south of Moruya. You'd be well advised to get a forestry map of the area.

I used to know all those roads fairly well when I lived in Canberra, then moved to Batemans Bay for 4 years, then had 3 years in Cooma. My work used to take me into those back roads occasionally to do property inspections etc.

Have a great time......I guess it depends what part of the coast you're heading for as to whether you choose the tracks around Cathcart as mentioned by another respondent, or the Wadbilliga track etc. Indeed, you could go to Braidwood and turn north about 1klm west of the town and go along the relatively easy dirt road that'll bring you out just south of Nowra.

Alan,

I would go the following:

Easy Route.

Wadbilliga through to Bermagui

Less Easy Route

Minima Fire Trail through to Moruya

Regards

Stuart

Many thanks for all the responses, lots of options now, I just have to look them up on a map and see which one best suits what we want.

I think there is also a Boiling Billy Book , that covers these tracks to the coast.