Black duck valley - scrutiny

Hi Shane,
I will probably open a can of worms here but am only presenting my opinion.
I have been there, and to cruiser park and every other park around Bris and Nthn NSW. I have only been to Black Duck once and wont ever go back, as the grading (classifying) of the tracks and their maps are terrible. Went out for a good fun drive in a standard 4wd, so took the easy tracks first. Ended up having to build a rock ramp on the jump up on a track on the edge of a cliff that required a three point manoeuvre to make the turn, (easy track). I know of others who have tipped on their tracks, have even heard a very experienced tour operator came to grief there. I have done other parks, properties, tracks etc around Aust over the past 20 years and haven't had any real problems. This park you have mentioned should be checked as it is just downright dangerous, IMHO.
Mike

Let me start by saying that I have not been to any of these parks, unless you count Boat Harbour at Kurnell.

There are a number of questions that come to my mind when I read a post like this.

1) Why is this particular park attracting the attention?
2) Do other parks have the same problems?
3) How are these parks managed and how much difference does managment make?
4) How accurate and understandable are any track grading systems?
and 5) How much responsibility ultimately rests with the driver?

Questions 1,2and 3 all require knowledge that I do not have so I won't even attempt to answer them, but I will suggest that if one park is having a significantly higher serious accident rate then the park management needs to have a look at what is happening on their property and put some systems in place to address the probelm.

On question 2 I have had some experience with track grading systems as contained in guide books. Like most of us I have used numerous different books which describe tracks and 4wd routes in various parts of Australia. Some of these books don't even describe what their system means ie. is level 1 harder than level 2 or is it easier? In some ways I have been fortunate that I have been dissapointed when I found that tracks described as difficult have actually been much easier than expected. I have never found one that under rated the difficulty of a track. Most of the track rating systems though, even those with detailed descriptions of how the ratings work, have been inconsistent. I once used a book as a guide on a through route where I travelled on 2 consecutive tracks both rated to the same level of difficulty. The first section was disspointingly easy and took about half the time that the book suggested. Thinking the book would be consistent we decided to follow the second section because we had time up our sleeves. The second section turned out to be difficult and took much longer than our experience with the book lead us to believe it would. Had the book been consistent we would have arrived at our destination on time rather than late. My wife would be more likely to trust the book for trip planning and I would get to spend more time in the bush rather than on the highway. Of all the books I have used as guides only one has had an accurate, consistent track rating system. It can be done, I don't expect them all to be the same but it is imperative that any track rating system is consistent, if it is not then you are better off without it.

Question 5) How much responsibility ultimately rests with the driver? 100%! 4WD's and the tracks we drive them on are tools. Like hammers, saws, chisells etc they just sit there until someone picks them up and uses them.

On a property I visit frequently there is a track which is very steep and has a couple of nasty holes on it about half way down. I have driven this track in every 4wd I have owned and it presents no problem at all. The guy who lives there reckons the track is dangerous and won't use it in any vehicle. The difference is the driver. His car won't go up or down the track with him in the drivers seat but it will if I drive. My point is this if a vehicle has an accident on a track what ultimately causes the accident, other than mechanical failure, is the driver. If you don't like it don't go.

Finally there are legislated cotrols and standards imposed on the operators of all kinds of businesses which operate on private property. Theatres, theme parks, swimming pools etc all have legistated standards for things like fire protection, equipment maintainance and training standards of the staff. Not only do we accept these, we expect them to be there. Why should 4wd parks be immune from these standards? The legislators will ask this question and impose standards if the industry itself fails to address the safety concerns of people like the doctors at Toowoomba Hospital. We would expect that of them in most other industries.

Duncs

We have been going to the 4wd parks around Brisbane for the past 10 years. I know the exact place where the last guy was killed at Black Duck and it scares the cr*p out of me!! We have been over the rock twice and my husband is an EXTREMELY experienced and excellent driver but I am scared for the all the other people out there. You are driving along the track which is reasonably normal and suddenly there is a rock that is an accident waiting to happen and there is no way around it and because its a one way track you cant turn around and there never used to be any warnings on maps, etc about this particular area.

Black Duck has gone down the drain in recent years and full of dirt bikes. They have several ambulance callouts nearly EVERY day at weekends and because there is only one ambulance in Gatton then the one from Toowomba needs to come to Gatton to service other people.

The camping area is terrible as it looks like someone went berserk with bobcat and ripped up all the grass and put big ditches everywhere and he is always having arguments with neighbours about noise, etc. Imagine living in the same valley as a swarm of buzzing bees going from sunrise to well after sunset!!

This is the only park that I swear and declare will never go back to again.