Tracks around Toowoomba

[middy]

Next weekend I have to go up to Toowoomba to take my son to his school basketball game. I thought maybe after the game I could look for a track in the area and/or maybe come back via a more scenic route.

Can anyone recommend some tracks in that area that are suitable for a bog standard NX with factory tyres. Nothing too hard because the driver is also inexperienced.

cheers,
Andrew

[conquistador]

Not familiar with that neck of the woods.

Recall a few threads about forest drives around the foothills at murphies creek and lockyer valley.

[middy]

Well, we went up to Toowoomba on Saturday and came back the scenic way through Hampton and down to Gatton via Ravensbourne national park, Seventeen Mile Rd and Wallers Rd ( Wallers being the 4WD only section ). We basically followed drive ‘C’ from this website. The drives were described as ‘soft 4WD driving’ so I thought “They shouldn’t be too hard”. It may not have been too hard if we took the same route as described but there was some confusion on Wallers Rd and we ended up on an extremely narrow, deeply rutted track that was heading downhill. Turning around was impossible and reversing back up the rutted track didn’t sound like a good idea so we were basically committed to trying to get down this track. Talk about baptism by fire! Note to self: pack some clean underwear next time.

We started out very slowly down the first rutted section. I was trying to keep to the left to stay out of the deep rut but I felt the back end start to slide into the rut and had to stop. I tried to turn out of it but every time we inched forward the back end slipped in a little more. Let’s try reversing a bit then. Nope, back end still sliding in. By this stage we were 45 degrees to the track and I had visions of us getting wedged into this rut and being stuck with nobody else around. I decided to not fight the rut anymore and reverse while steering the front end into the rut a little bit. Somehow I managed to reverse enough so I could then drive up and out to the left and the back end followed this time.

Phew. Time to stop for a while to re-compose myself. The next little section didn’t look any better. Still some gnarly looking ruts (to me anyway) and now with an added bonus of a few ‘sticky up bits’ perfect for ripping things out from underneath. I told my son I needed him to get out and guide me through from now on. We walked down and I told him what I wanted to avoid and where I wanted the wheels to be. What a champ! I inched it down with him guiding me. That section was a bit less stressful than the first. I even got a front wheel in the air at one point, inched it forward until it tipped and the back wheel lifted. My son shouted in an alarmed voice “Dad, your back wheels gone up in the air!!” I leaned out of the window and said “Yeah, I know. Don’t worry. That’s supposed to happen. Isn’t this fun?”. My partner sitting next to me certainly didn’t think so. I think her finger imprints are still in the dash.

The next sections had obvious chicken tracks around them so I decided that was enough excitement for one day. Although they weren’t without their challenges given it was downhill on dry, fine gravel with a slight side slope. Needless to say we crawled down very slowly.

One of the worrying things was not actually knowing how long this was going to go on for. Is it going to be kilometres of track like this? As it turned out it was just a 200 metre section, but it still took over half an hour to get down that bit. After that I think it joined up to the track we were probably supposed to take because it was more like a ‘soft 4WD driving’ experience from then on.

All in all it was a fun day although I would be less stressed if I had some underbody protection. Next time there is a group buy for Bushskinz I think I’ll be buying some.

I took my camera and the video camera imagining getting some nice photos and video footage, but in all the panic and stress I didn’t even think about that. The only picture we have is from my partners phone. The photo makes it look flat and tame but in actual fact it was downhill and some of the ruts further down could swallow a small hatchback! That was one of the sections where we took the chicken track.

[conquistador]

Good to see you lived to tell the tale. I reckon lifting a rear wheel feels worse.

Thanks for sharing the link.

[nj swb]

Nice read - thanks for posting.

To me, one of the most frustrating parts of 4wding is taking photos that do the tracks justice. Tracks that can be a struggle to walk up can look boringly flat in photographs.

But be warned - you may have been bitten by the bug. That can get expensive.

[gringo]

Yeah that's how it all starts,and before you know it you are spending thousands of dollars on your paj so you can go back there to try even harder tracks

[whynot]

Sounds like it's time to join a 4WD club and gain some more fun experiences.
There are plenty of clubs around Brissie, maybe check out

http://www.mitsu4wdclubqld.org

Cheers
Tim