Tracks near Ballarat?

[Martynhpajero]

G'day all. Anybody know of any interesting tracks near Ballarat?
Heading there on Friday for four nights and hoping to fit in some offroading.

[Herman4x4]

G'day,
Up around Daylesford there is Wombat State Forest and Lerdederg State Park, both muddy and some holes will eat a 4wd. Up near Lancefield there is Cobaws, which can have some really challenging tracks. Up near Creswick is Creswick Park, not sure what if anything is around there, same with Enfield Park near Enfield. There is also State Forest out around Linton, again I do not know what is out there
Cheers,
Andrew.

[Herman4x4]

Around Ballarat there is some tracks around the mines, have been there once a while ago, nothng challenging that I came across and had to be careful of not going through an open gate onto the mine property.

[Martynhpajero]

Thanks guys I will check them out.

[Bully4]

Nerrina State Forest is also a good place for some tracks. If you go wallking, just watch out for mine shafts. Nerrina and Creswick Sate Park are next to each other, seperated by White Swan Rd.

[David V]

Just checking if anyone knows how these tracks are faring nowdays? I'm looking at doing a 4X4 holiday next school holidays somewhere round Ballarat/Daylesford or anywhere round that region.

We are from Bendigo, so anywhere semi-local would be great. Have a young family and a wife that's not really a happy 4X4 passenger.

Thanks

David

[ilikeachallenge]

Hi David V
If you head south on the Midland Hwy from Ballarat towards Geelong there are several spots worth checking out in the Elaine/Meredith districts.
Bamganie State forest is a great little spot for a look around.Its only a small area(probably about 300 acres) but you will generally have it to yourself especially on weekdays.There are some nice little camp spots there where kids etc can ride their motorbikes etc and nice for a short drive.No really hard tracks but there is a couple that run towards the river that can offer a bit of a challenge at this time of year.If you allow up to half a day you will see it all.
Also well worth a look is an area called Mt Doran.A much bigger area with old mine shafts etc and lots of bush tracks to explore.Be very careful if you take dogs because of the old mine shafts.Dont worry about the kids too much as you can always make more but a good dog is hard to find.Lots of local motorbike riders and fossickers on weekends so keep your eyes open.If you want a beautiful little camp spot on the west moorabool river nearby check out Hunts Bridge Reserve.Well worth checking out.Again at this time of year you will probably have it too yourself.Hunts is about 10 mins from Mt Doran,get your wood at MtD before heading to Hunts.Just near Hunts is Dollys Creek Reserve.Enter Dollys Creek Reserve near Hunts and follow the track along all the way to Morrisons for a nice little morning out.There are numerous side tracks that head down to the river to explore.From Morrisons you can also head toward a spot call Little Forrest.Nice easy tracks but I did have to do a quick winch recovery a few weeks ago to get through one spot.All of these places are within about 20 minutes of Mt Bunninyong for food and fuel and about 30 odd minutes from Ballarat.

[El_Freddo]

Just checking if anyone knows how these tracks are faring nowdays? I'm looking at doing a 4X4 holiday next school holidays somewhere round Ballarat/Daylesford or anywhere round that region.

We are from Bendigo, so anywhere semi-local would be great. Have a young family and a wife that's not really a happy 4X4 passenger.

Thanks

David

Hey David, loads of little tracks to day trip or even do an hr or two session on around Bendigo. One of my favourite tracks is off the spring gully/Mandurang Rd. Neat little track that can be done with one vehicle.

Then there’s the Epsom “4wd park” for some messing around in. I haven’t been there in ages.

It all really depends on what side of town you’re on. There are tracks in just about every part of Bendigo, if not then they’re only a short drive away PM me if you want to join up for a session

As for the Ballarat area, Mt Cole complex has some good tracks from basic 2wd bush touring to some technical stuff. There are some great climbing tracks and others that weave their way through the bush. There’s also some good huts in the area. Pack rodent traps that catch the animal alive as there are nocturnal natives that live in the huts. Last time we were up there all we had visit were mice, mice and more bloody mice!

A little further north is the Pyrenees Ranges. Apparently there are some good tough tracks out here. Tip: they’re not on the north western side of the complex I’m yet to really explore this area properly.

There are loads of good places to go in central Vic, we’re almost spoilt for choice!

Cheers

Bennie