4wd day trips

We just got back from a great day in the Jenolan State Forest, heading towards the 6 foot track. We left Sydney at about 9 am, got back at about 7:30pm or so.

Some of the tracks in there are amazing - they go up and down the sides of the mountains. One of the ones we did was a definite one-way only - very steep clay - the vehicles just slid straight down in the wheel ruts.

Other than that, north-west of Lithgow, in the Clarence area can be good too.

Cheers

Think about joining a 4WD club. Besides offering driver training in aspects of handling 4WD's & recovery (should such be necessary) it's part of the membership, they also do short and long graded treks, ie A-B-C or D are degrees of difficulty. Also learn sand driving up at Stockton, it's a great outing. You'll meet a great bunch of family people with similar interests to you. It's money well spent for pleasure & safety.
Try this site where they take in all comers irrespective of vehicle make:

http://www.nissanpatrolclub.org/membership-details.php

An excellent publication is " 4WD Treks Close to Sydney" by Craig Lewis and Cathy Savage - if you can find one. They are very hard to find and are no longer being published. A new 2005 version is due out any day as I understand it.

If you have a GPS go this website:

http://www.gpsoz.com.au/Boiling_Billy.htm

and d/l the waypoints from the ' 4wd Tracks of NSW" and if you have OziExplorer you can use them direct into that programme

North of Sydney there is the Wattagans - plenty of trails and great views, except dodge the trail bikes on the weekends. Other places are from Wisemans Ferry take the ferry across to the nortern side of the Hawkesbury - from there either turn right and head to a nice picinic & camping spot called Mill Creek in Dharug NP or turn left and stop and walk approx 700m up the Old Great North Road (OGNR) - fantastic convict engineering works - then continue up to St Albans for a beer at the Pub. From here travel up thru the St Albans Common to Mogo Camping Area (Yengo NP) - approx 600m further on there is a track off to the right that you can go along to another section of the OGNR called Circuit Flat Bridge - return back to the road and continue to George Downs Drive (Bitumen). From here turning RIGHT takes you back via Managrove Mtn to the F3 at Calga (near Mooney Mooney Bridge). If you turn LEFT heading in direction of Wollombi you will see a trail called the Mt Simpson track next to a Yengo NP sign - take this to the Boree track - turn left and go down to a carpark on the right - walk to a Aboriginal engraving site called Burragurra. Turn back again again & follow signs to Finchley lookout (great views) & more camping & Aboriginal engravings. From Finchley you can follow the Finchley track to Wollombi township or head west along Yango Track to Howes Valley to the Putty Road. Along the Yango track you will pass "Big Yango" (NPWS controlled access - need to obtain key first) - great camping or you can rent the homestead. Nice 24Km 4WD trail going around Mt Yengo - you will need low range and preferably not be in a Subaru (need ground clearance). To get key need to arrange key thru NPWS Gosford 43 204260 & plan it 2 weeks in advance as to ensure key arrives by mail in time.
Hope this helps.
The Old Settlers trail - is closed on the eastern end at Paynes Crossing by the property owners - you can come in from the Putty Rd end thru Yengo NP but the last 100m the property owners will not let you thru. Unfortunately a 4WD group had an argument with the local after they went back & forth thru the Ck crossing and chewed it up - the private property owners said I'll fix ya - and he did, now no one can go thu. By the way the guy that stuffed it was a cop.
Cheers - have fun.

Abercrombie river nat park has good camping easy to medium tracks on road from taralga to oberon road,also yerranderie township,or hill end in bathurst area see trip notes on this site .happy camping

hi Franksy,

Wollemi N.p. is pretty easy going, just out of Lithgow.

Incorporate the glow worm tunnel, the lost city, and blackfellows hand rock and you would have yourself a reasonable 2 day adventure.

Camping a bungleboori or Newnes, well worth a look, plenty of history at Newnes Platue for the kids too.

i agree the "4wd Treks close to sydney" is a great little book, but there is plenty of info on this site also :o)

Lazy

A good day trip would be to the glow worm tunnel via the lost city, Bells line of road to Zig zag railway turn right follow to the glow worm tunnel road turn right follow to Blackfellows hand road turn left then left and follow to the lost city.

Back to Blackfellows then right you can have lunch at the pinic ground there then carry on down the glow worm tunnel rd to the glow worm tunnel and then drive home good day trip all easy.

Or you can follow Blackfellows hand to the end, a nice senic drive and there are Aboriginal drawings on Blackfellows near the end just after you go down a semi steep hill that turns left at the bottom, just after this in the open trail on the left, you have to walk up the small hill and they are in there.