This was hands down my kind of walk. I really enjoyed the wide open spaces. Range upon range of red rock mountains. The lightly wooded slopes. The waterless creeks, narrow and wide. The towering red gums. Kangaroos, emus, goats, sheep and parrots. All present and correct.
I went into the Heysen Trail with a lot of trepidation. Most of the write ups I had read had been less than complimentary about the trail. I felt I couldn’t get all the information I needed about the trail logistics, like availability of water and how to find the campsites, and once I found them I wasn’t sure what would be there. The official maps looked like artistic drawings rather than helpful navigation aids. I could leave my car in Quorn while I hiked but I wasn’t confident about returning to it afterwards on a hypothetical bus that only runs twice a week.
I ended up having problems with trail signage fairly often and I thought the shelters/campsites could be much improved and the whole thing made more user friendly, but in my opinion the Heysen sells itself short. It’s actually the website that is the main problem; the info I needed was there, well, most of it, but it was hard to find. The website focus is on day walkers rather than thru hikers. Also there is little actual trail so walking is along creek beds, fence lines and abandoned 4WD tracks. My northern section of 270 kilometres (of the full 1200) was a wonderful experience, a bit tougher than the Bibbulmun, and a perfect way to see this part of South Australia. I’m proud of the fact that I stuck exactly to my pre planned daily itineraries, probably the first time I’ve ever done this.
Day 1: Quorn to Dutchman Hut, 19.8 kms. I left Quorn on a long straight dirt road, seeing the Pichi Richi steam train on the way (the highlight of the Pichi Richi Marathon for me one year) as it prepared in a siding for its day out. The trail soon gave me my introduction to one of the features that I’ve read many complaints about: it followed a fence line and never deviated so there were frequent steep ups and downs as the fence crossed little dried up water channels. Soon it started raining and by the time I reached the Dutchmans Stern Conservation Park and the loop I intended to walk, which promised great views, the whole place was in mist. I did the loop hike because, well, I was there and had nothing else pressing on my agenda, but I saw nothing and just got wet.
At the end of the loop I had a short walk back to the Heysen and I located the Dutchman Hut without help from the trail signs. Despite this being the most talked about hut on the trail the signs failed to point it out. The hut was part of former farm outhouses and had electricity and flush toilets. This was great for me on a wet night and I was pleased to be alone.
Day 2: Dutchman Hut to Mt Arden South campsite, 30.2 kms. This was billed as a long hard day and I was a bit nervous. I had acquired a cold and didn’t feel a hundred percent, with a very sore throat. It was windy but not raining. I spent the day learning more about the tricks the trail plays. The signage was generally good but it would stop suddenly and then I didn’t know where to go. Or there would be an arrow on an angle which sometimes meant I had to follow the trail as it went round a bend and sometimes meant I had to turn immediately uphill; the problem was that I never knew which action to take and several times I clearly did the wrong thing. I was able to use the gps on my watch to get back on track.
I stopped at Eyre Depot campsite for lunch. This was the first Heysen campsite I encountered and an eye opener. There was just a small shelter comprising a roof to collect rainwater and a small 3-section rainwater tank, and a tiny seat. The flies were all of a sudden dreadful. I wanted to boil water for coffee but I couldn’t get a match to stay lit for long enough to ignite the metho so I gave up, not wanting to use up all my matches.
The main feature of the day was the three gorges on the trail. The first two were very rocky and slow going, with little ledges to scramble up or down. But it was so beautiful, the steep sides to the narrow gorges and huge red gums growing right through the gorges. Navigation was difficult in the gorges because obviously they couldn’t put the trail signs in the creek itself, and the placement of the signs seemed to be fairly random; I was never sure if I should be crossing the creek or climbing above it or just staying in the creek bed, based on the positioning of the sign. When I came to the third gorge my spirits dropped because I was tired and didn’t fancy any more of those incessant dilemmas, but this one turned out to be straightforward and led easily to the campsite. This one had a roof and water tanks but no seat. It was by now really windy and starting to rain and the roof provided no protection.
I put up my tent and got inside as it was raining. I knew I wouldn’t be able to cook in the wind and rain. It was only 5pm but I got into my sleeping bag and lay there in a daze. No dinner, no bedtime podcast. I soon fell asleep. I was happy to notice that the rain stopped during the night.
Day 3: Mt Arden South to Buckaringa North campsite, 22.3 kms. I was not happy to wake up and find one of my shoes had a pool of water in it while the other one had dried out. I went down into the creek to make coffee with shelter from the wind.
From the campsite I climbed steeply up Mt Arden. It was blowing a ferocious gale up on top but the expansive view was great. Initially I went wrong coming down from the peak so I had the pleasure of climbing this one twice. After I corrected myself I loved the ridge top walking, and it was a lovely cool temperature for walking. There were mountains in all directions, surprisingly green. I saw my first emu, having already seen lots of kangaroos and the feral goats that persist here. There were animal carcasses and skulls all over the place.
Tiny Buckaringa Gorge was today’s highlight. It had high rock sides and was difficult underoot but not very long. I managed to not get lost. Then the trail went though a nature sanctuary, basically wide open space with lots of kangaroos. And parrots. I ate lunch sitting under a tree. Later on I had another long creek bed walk with the beautiful red gums and a bit of road walking. I came to Buckaringa North campsite which had a roofed tank and a curious slatted raised platform, uncovered and of no clear purpose. I again did my cooking down in the creek and went to bed early.
There was a log book at the shelter, one of only very few that I came across, that had a recent entry mentioning a group of 54 hikers having passed through two days before. They were doing an end to end in portions over an extended period. I couldn’t imagine such a group in the tiny gorge, or elsewhere for that matter, and I hoped I wouldn’t run into them. I soon worked out that few people hike this trail; one log book went back ten years and was barely started. The Bibb log books never went back more than two years.
In the middle of the night I was suddenly woken by the sound of a person unpacking their gear close by. I wanted to peer out but didn’t want to draw attention to myself with the sound of zips. It was all very odd because I could hear that the person was eating and then all went quiet, without the sounds of a tent going up. Eventually I peered under my fly and saw someone lying on the strange platform. After that I slept.
Day 4: Buckaringa North to Mt Elm campsite, 35.2 kms. In the morning the interloper's alarm went off at 6am and we both got up. The visitor was a teenage boy who said he had arrived at 7.30pm. He said his tent wasn’t suited to the terrain. I puzzled over this. He was gone by 6.30am.
Something new today: a formed footpath. I had great ridge top walking with extensive views. It was still and cool, and I looked over an amazing landscape of green rounded hills. Again there were lots of kangaroos. I had to take shoes and socks off to cross a water hole and after that it was days before I got the sand out of my socks. After this came a long stint of road walking.
I stopped for lunch at Calabrinda campsite, which had something I had not seen for a while: a toilet. The Heysen pulled a stunt of siting the campsite on the far side of a steep sided creek so it was an effort to reach it, and when I arrived there wasn’t even a seat.
I continued on the road, which undulated pleasantly, and then went cross country through a succession of paddocks, following fence lines. I didn’t mind these fence lines at all since it was easier to stay on track.
The sun had come out but the air was cold and I wore my gloves all day. Towards the end of the day I had to cross several boulder fields which was hard going, and passed rocky outcrops, then descended to Mt Elm campsite which also had a toilet. The campsite was a lovely location and I looked forward to a starry night but it clouded over and the wind again picked up. This was my longest day's hiking and I was getting over my cold.
Day 5: Mt Elm to Mayo Hut, 26 kms. This was the day I had to decide whether to go into Hawker, where I could buy food and sleep in a bed, or stay on the main Heysen Trail and bypass the town. I opted for the latter and was soon climbing the Yourambulla Range. This was a highlight of the trail so far as I climbed high above the valley and had an excellent view of the plains surrounding Hawker. The trail was rocky and narrow in places on the cliff edge. I had difficulty following the trail signs and repeatedly used my watch gps to guide me back the right way.
I descended along fences and crossed the Outback Highway. Then I had to follow a dirt road for a while and I decided to stop and eat lunch. As I was sitting there I looked at the map on my phone and realised I was a long way off course; I should have turned into a creek bed about a kilometre before. Instead of backtracking I set out in a diagonal line heading for the creek, across the vacant scrubby land, and I imagined a very odd glance from a guy in a ute who happened to drive by.
Wonaka Creek bed was wide and full of trees. The day had warmed up and I found the walking made me hot so I stopped often. I made it to Mayo Hut, which had bunk beds and yucky mattresses and a toilet. I slept in my tent. The moon was almost full and was high in the sky before I went to bed. It was a lovely starry night for the first time this trip.
Day 6: Mayo Hut to Red Range campsite, 19.2 kms. I knew I had to be careful to leave Wonaka Creek in the right place but despite keeping vigilant for signs I completely missed the turn and ended up a long way off course. I had to climb several fences and I surprised a lot of sheep before ending up back on track on a wonderful undulating wide track. There were mountains to both sides, light forest and it was perfect. It was so good that I stayed on the track for longer than I was supposed to and I was again lost. To be fair this was not entirely my fault as there must have been a re-route sometime recently but it was only partially signed. I used the gps on my phone to get back to where I was supposed to be and it sent me completely cross country with no attempt to have me use trails, so I went up and over a big hill, bush bashing, and ended up in a creek which led to the proper trail.
When I got to where the campsite was supposed to be according to my gps and the map I couldn’t see it. I wandered around and eventually spotted a water tank with a hose. The tank had water so I wondered if this was the campsite, but it was an unusual set-up. I could have continued on but I thought my navigation was so poor today that I ought to stay put, and I made an impromptu camp by a creek near the water tank, well hidden from view.
Day 7: Red Range to Wilpena Pound, 29.6 kms. Within five minutes of setting out I saw the Red Range campsite but I ignored it as I had water from the other tank. I started out wearing shorts for the first time but this wasn’t to last long. Rain was coming. I saw a pack of nine emus. I had a forest trail, sometimes stony, and then a creek bed as far as Black Gap where there was a little notch leading into a small wooded bowl. It was very pretty but soon engulfed in misty rain. The climb to Bridle Gap, the trail entry into Wilpena Pound, was steep and rocky in thick bush and I went off course soon. My phone gps wasn’t working but my watch was ok and I was guided back to the trail markers.
Just a note on why I kept going off course. Sometimes the signage ceased. They could have been hidden by vegetation or animals ate them or the farmers replaced fences that had signs atached. Often there were a lot of animal tracks which were as well formed as the trail I was following, or better formed because there was no physical trail, just a route with waymarkers. It was too easy to start following animal tracks without even noticing and then realise I hadn’t seen a Heysen sign for a while. I had thought that 54 people walking the same trail so recently would have left some indentations but this wasn’t the case. My gps was invaluable, since even hiking back to a last seen sign was not always easy.
As I came into the Pound I was in mist and forest so the true effect of this amazing natural circle of mountains was not on show. I descended gradually through the centre of the enclosed area, seeing mountains intermittently and lots of kangaroos who were not shy. I stopped for a toilet break and as I stood someone walked by, the first person I’d seen in many days. I got very frustrated coming into the main part of Wilpena Pound; I couldn’t find the visitor centre, shop and camping area. It seems I walked right past the sign. Eventually, exhausted, I got to the shop and was able to have a coffee, muffin (awful) and cookie (not great). The rain cleared and I had a nice evening at the pub with a beer and a schnitzel. Everywhere was teeming with people, something I was definitely not used to and did not really like.
Day 8: Wilpena Pound to Middlesight Water Hut, 32.7 kms. This turned out to be the best day of the entire hike, for scenery and weather. Perfect blue sky, no flies, no wind. I set out crossing open hillsides where I saw a pair of wedge tailed eagles. Then I met the trail, fairly wide, lightly wooded and undulating. This was a maintained national park trail. Great walking in shorts all day. I crossed paths with a mountain biker and then a hiker so I had two pleasant conversations, the first and only two of the whole hike. I said to the hiker that it looked to me from the map as though I had a long downhill day of hiking and he half agreed; he must have had a sense of humour because I was about to climb two long and steepish hills. But the views from the top, 360 degrees, were stupendous. Basically: mountains. Some rocky and reddish, some more rounded and greener.
In between I grew despondent when I saw I had another creek to follow, through Bunyeroo Gorge, just because of the navigation issues, but either I’m getting better at this or the signage was more accurate and I had no problem.
After I descended to Yanyanna Hut, set in pastures, I stopped for lunch. The hut was basic, no bunks and no toilet, but there was a sleeping bag laid out - with no sign of anyone intending to return for it and no mention in the log book. The hiker I’d met had stayed there so maybe he left it behind.
I pressed on to Middlesight Water Hut on a 4WD track. I wondered for a while what a water hut was before realising there was a natural spring called Middlesight Water near the hut! This was a track across a wide open space, quite green and I saw a pack of five emus. I slept inside the hut as the ground was rocky.
Day 9: Middlesight to Aroona campsite, 18.1 kms. The morning was very cold and there was plenty of frost but by 9am I was warm. The flies came out to play. Again being in national park the trail was of good quality, and I walked past a series of ruined shepherds' huts before climbing for another great view. More sets of red rock peaks on all sides. I saw my first echidna; it retracted its face and then sat in the middle of the trail. I came through a narrow high-sided gorge and had a long descent to Aroona campsite and ruined homestead.
Heysen himself had painted this area, staying in a timber hut which I found very convenient for getting out of the wind to boil my water. I’m fairly sure I should not have been creating big flames inside this historic building but there weren’t huge crowds to witness my activities. The campsite was deserted, so quiet that emus came out to feed at dusk.
Day 10: Aroona to Northern trailhead (Parachilna Gorge), 18.1 kms. Again the early morning was really cold. At sunrise the rocks above me shone a bright crimson. I walked along feeling cold, with all my clothes on, and didn’t even notice Pigeon Bore. Or maybe it was where I (again) went wrong. I saw feral goats and sheep grazing very high up, and I nearly stepped on a short-tailed fat lizard, who just stared at me.
In the final kilometres the Heysen had a new stunt: the signs said Walkers follow trail but there was no trail, only a creek bed. I knew I was in the right place because for once I could see a lot of footprints.
I got to the final campsite and found there was no water in the tank. There was another tank up at the road not much further on at the trailhead which had a trickle of water. Just as I got there a car pulled off the road so I asked them for some water, as I wanted to camp there, and also got a photo by the trailhead sign. I was lucky because the rough road through the gorge had a car an hour if that.
I went back down towards the campsite to camp out of sight of the road. By mid afternoon it was very windy and I anchored the tent with large rocks inside and out. I still had to get up in the middle of the night when the fly had half blown off. It was a very interrupted night as the wind was deafening and then there would be a sudden silence.
Day 11: Trailhead to Parachilna, 21.2 kms. So I had reached the trailhead on Saturday and wasn’t getting the bus from Parachilna (as yet unconfirmed) until Tuesday. This left me with time to kill. I decided to walk the three kilometres to Angorichina Tourist Village, buy food and return to the trailhead to camp again. But although I had two good cups of coffee there the food available wasn’t great so I decided to walk all the way to Parachilna (the town), about 18 kilometres. The first half of the walk, back past the trailhead and on through the Parachilna Gorge, was really nice with hills all around and a wide river bed. Then the road straightened and flattened and was dead straight into the wind. I could walk down the middle of the road as there was very little traffic. But there was also nothing to see and it seemed hard work. Two cars stopped to ask if I needed water and tell me I was crazy.
I got to Parachilna and went straight to the pub. Actually there is nothing else there. The pub was still doing food so I had a beer, a bowl of wedges and a garlic loaf. Bliss. But having eaten I had exhausted the possibilities of the place. Time for something I had not attempted for many decades: I hitchhiked back to Quorn in two stages via an overnight in Hawker.
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