Invasion by NSW 4WD's

It is School holidays ;) and also the last opportunity of a decent amount of time to explore the high country before the majority of tracks are closed for winter.


Cheers Kev

I was in the Vic High Country a few years ago it was great the parks were open and you were allowed to use all they had to offer for free. Came across the boarder into NSW and things changed tracks closed carn't do that or go there unless you are supper fit and walk and the big one is the cost and I am from NSW the expensive state

OREJAP,
Could say the same thing about QLD registered vehicles traveling about the North Coast and Northern bits of the Gibraltar Range of NSW.
About 1 in 4 are QLD plated 4wd's.
But then again, there always seems to be a lot of QLD plated vehicles running about all over the place these days.
Also I tend to believe more and more people are realizing what a great thing it is to do, get out there amongst it.

While NSW has some great tracks to explore and places to go........

National sparks and wildfires (now under DECC) don't want you in there!!!
They only want the Paddy Palin set to hike in barefoot so they can photograph the out of control weed infestations and lack of maintenance.

From what I've seen (yes I'm one of those NSW plates that heads to mexico, love the high country) Vic Parks seem to do a half decent job of maintaining a balance between use and protection.

NSW just wants you out of the parks. Oh except for visitors centres and picnic grounds and overpopulated campsites where they are happy to help lessen the burden of a heavy wallet.

Why bother protecting it if you're going to let it go to ruin because you can't afford to maintain it?
Yeah, yeah, I know there's two sides to the whole conservation vs usage debate, but really the whole lockout policy is just plain stupid.
Tourism, transport, and retail industries suffer.
Police the idiots out of there and let respectable people enjoy what actually belongs to them (It is a "national" park after all).

Rant over, back to my meds now.
Cheers
Brian

Back in the 80's when the Alpine National Park was set up NSW closed huge numbers of tracks leaving the limited access they have today. At the same time the 4x4 association, High Country cattleman, & other user groups all banded together for big protests which ensured access in Vic was barely changed. Over time Parks closed quite a few tracks by stealth but a memorandum with 4x4Vic now ensures no track can be shut without consultation & has now been turned around to the point where MVO tracks are being reopened for clubs.
The Vic High Country was a bit of a secret up until about 10 years ago & as you have noticed recently we now get a huge number of interstate viisitors. This is probably due to a few things like as suggested access to tracks over the border is very restricted taking on the classic Parks model of pine post carparks with 1 km walks to the destination. There has also been a big increase in the number of guide books, GPS track logs & better touring maps (Rooftops) so people feel a bit more confident navigating around the maze of tracks.
Speaking with the SA ranger for the Ngarkat Park recently she was very keen to have Vic people visit her patch but I couldn't help noice that they close the Border track for 5 months of the year, charge to camp & provide less services than over our side of the fence. Same with SA desert Parks. Almost $100 to camp a few nights when doing a Simpson crossing.
In general Vic Parks rarely charge & have far more options for free camping yet still provide toilets, BBQ pits, shelters etc. In the Sunset Country over Easter they had even dropped off firewood to most of the camps.
There is currently a big push for more 4x4 tourism in Vic with 6 iconic touring routes being developed. While I don't agree with the extra pressure this will put on the bush I think you can expect to see far more other number plates here in the future.
Cheers Craig.............

last time on the way back to Sydney I took the opportunity to drive trough DARGO to OMEO and then further on towards to TOM GROGGIN.
Not sure which way to go I stopped at a convenience store in OMEO and got the most amazing service. Not only was I pointed to the right direction he also suggested some challenging tracks along the way.
The VIC high country is extremely 4WD friendly; not only are all the tracks well signed there is now a website that informs of tracks closure / conditions. (cant find it at the moment)
What is wrong w/ NSW???
JS