Aberfeldy Adventure
Dec 2011
		Trip Leaders:
		Laurie & Heidi Miles		Zebra	80 Series TD
		Convoy:
		Reg Schlipalius		Drifter	100 Series TD Auto
		George, Natalie(17) & Zoe(11) Vrsecky		Iceman	80 Series Petrol
		Ian Wells, Paul & Connor(4) Griffin		Demon	200 Series TD
		Gunther Scheffel & Alois Hartinger		Pioneer	Prado GX TD
		Rajeev Potineni		Raj	Prado TD
		Michael Schuettke		Michael	100 Series TD
		Tail End Charlie:
		Duncan Hopkins		Hoppy	100 Series TD Auto
Our Trip in Google Earth
Trip Pics
Trip Videos on YouTube
Heading for O’Tooles Flat
Saturday morning saw most campers up relatively early at the Erica caravan park. It was nice to have a descent shower where 20 cent coins were not required. The weather was on our side and everyone was eager to get going. Laurie and Heidi were ready on time and Laurie was busy getting the paperwork in order, although some trip participants took longer to provide all the required forms. The first leg of the trip took us via Coopers Creek Track to the old copper mine. Getting there was easy enough, however if one does not follow convoy procedure (as Demon found out), it is quite possible to end up on the wrong track!
After a short walk down a muddy overgrown track, we made it to the copper mine overlooking the picturesque Thomson River. It’s nice to be able to break up a trip with a short walk to stretch the legs. After morning tea it was time to catch up with Heidi. Heidi, being quite energetic, decided to ride “Lefty” the ‘one wheel drive’ Mountain Bike for an early morning spin. Quite frankly I don’t’ know how she does it, as it seems like a lot of hard work.
	The steep climb up Mormon Town Track took us past the now disused radio repeater tower, where the view on a clear day is pretty awesome. To be able to see the High Country from a high vantage point is the best way to be able to appreciate the grandness of it. After some more 2WDing on Binns Road, you headed north up the Army Track. This track has many steep climbs and some tricky descents. Everyone negotiated the afternoon tracks with ease. Our planned camp site was next stop, but not before heading down to O’Tooles Flat via the exciting Steep Track.
It was nice to see our trip leaders to try to find alternative camp sites along the way there. Some of the best camp sites I stayed at were found by exploring a bit. Some adventure and exploring new tracks on trips is always fun, as long as nobody gets stuck (for too long). Well, who wants to miss out on happy hour? I think the best part of any 4WD trip is to get safely to a nice camp site, preferably next to a creek or river, and unwind and relax. O’Tooles Flat camp ground is next to Donnelly Creek, is quite large and has a drop toilet. Everyone pitched in to help make a great campfire. The kids, of course enjoyed cooking (or burning) marshmallows before bed time.
Climb up to Mt Useful before heading home across the Aberfeldy River
		After a fantastic end to the day one, day two started with a little rain and dew overnight, The team, with their tents, were ready to leave at around 8:45am. The day was a bit cloudy with no sun to be seen anywhere. Our journey this morning, started with a steep climb up White Star Track. This track took us up to Mt Useful, up at 1,500M. After viewing the Mt Useful fire tower, we spent a few minutes taking in the beautiful surrounding views.
It was time now to descend, as we headed down the McGuire Track and Toomstar Track. After a short descent our trip leader decided to return back to the McGuire Track as the Toomstar Track was becoming overgrown. After back tracking, it was time for a tea break. We were soon turning onto Toombon Track, which had a good 4WD descent plus some great bog holes to negotiate.
We finally returned to the Donnelly Creek, where we stopped at Jorgenson Flat campsite for a lunch break. At the lunch break Pioneer found a very very steep and badly rutted track leading down into the campsite. Gunther walked up the track to see if he could 4WD it, but he appeared to have trouble walking up the track. So, the next best thing - he reversed up the bottom section of the track, and set his 4WD up for a photo shoot.
After lunch we crossed Donnelly Creek. It was now time to take the steep climb up Flats Tk (strange name for a steep track). This track was more challenging than the previous tracks we encountered. It is a rocky track with many steep ascents, so all the participants had some great fun on this track. The section where Flats track joins the Williamson Spur Tk was very steep and everyone took the alternate route (aka chicken route). Well, except for Hoppy (tail end charlie). Duncan took the challenge of tackling the last bit and, with both diff locks engaged, he did it with ease. After getting a good applause from the whole team he asked how many in the team have took the hard route - we all said in a chorus "only you".
			After turning right onto Northeast Track, we headed for One Speck Track. The famous Trig Track (with 12 switchbacks) was on our itinerary, but with track maintenance closing it on the previous Tuesday, we were forced to take an alternative route. Hopefully we will be back in the future to tackle the famous switchbacks. Every track was a challenge to each driver and vehicle. Some of the rocky tracks were a challenge to my standard suspension but made through without any incident. This has given me a good reason/excuse to get a suspension lift and aftermarket bash plates, so I and am hoping Santa will get me those for the new year if not for Christmas.
After a splendid trip with expert guidance from our ever energetic Trip leaders Laurie and Heidi, we all gathered at the car park near the visitors area (after crossing the Thomson Dam wall). This marked the end of the trip after airing up. We all enjoyed the trip and hope to meet again on future trips.
Trip Report written by George Vrsecky #1454 & Rajeev Potineni #2514