Trip Report – YENGO TRACK
Saturday, 25th February 2023
Alex and Paul Ford Ranger
Linda and Phillip Nissan Patrol
Sally and Jane Land Rover Defender
We met at the Corrugated Café Peats Ridge at 8.00am. Some of us enjoyed a hot cup of coffee and we chatted for a bit and then headed off at 8.25am. A very sunny day not a cloud in the sky.
Turned left into George Downes Drive off Peats Ridge Road. Drove through a quaint little town called Kulnura and the bush was so green and lush.
Passed a sign saying Mangrove Creek Dam was closed.
Soon we saw a sign saying Cessnock. I assume we are now in the County of Cessnock. Passed Mt McQuoid on George Downes Drive. Traffic on The Great North Road at the landside (months ago) was controlled by traffic lights as they were fixing the road.
We passed a sign telling us not to take grapes passed this point and the air wave were alive with chatter. By the way we are having a Grape Day today. We thought it would be interesting to stop at Murrays Run Culvert. This was built by the convicts in 1830.Alex and Paul went down and took pictures of a plaque while we look our pictures from the road.
After Thompsons Bridge, we passed a Rhinoceros on our left but he was harmless. Thank you Alex for warning us of his potential charge. Three kit cars passed us going in the opposite direction along the way. I have no idea of their make but it was just interesting to see.
Soon we were turning left off The Great North Road into Yengo Creek Road. From here we turned left onto Boree Valley Road passing Knight Road. The area was covered in lots of tree ferns, very pretty.
We are now in Yengo National Park and heading onto Finchley Aboriginal Track. We decided to take the left track (Boree track) to Boree 2.7km. On our left we came across a swimming pool/dam but to me it didn’t look too inviting probably has snakes nearby.
Devils Rock was about half an hour away. Left onto Boree Valley Road and saw a sign “Wallabadah Valley Road (Private Access)” then turned right to Boree and proceeded through a creek crossing.
Along our way we stopped and spoke with a local and he advised us that the track ahead was overgrown that we wouldn’t be able to drive through. It did show on Phillip’s map a loop track that would take us back to where we started from before our detour. So we turned around and went back the way we came.
Alex came across a huge tree partly across the track. It looked like someone had used a chainsaw and removed just enough to get through but making it difficult to avoid. So Alex hooked up the winch and proceeded to move the tree off the track but that meant we had to use a bush axe to chop the branches off the tree. After that bit of excitement, we continued on, coming across more side trails marked private access like Weerong Creek, Simpsons Creek and Pademelon Road. We proceeded straight ahead.
We stopped for a short break at the Finchley Aboriginal campground and looked around the campsite. National Parks have put in a new toilet block and raised numbered camp sites with fire pits. This is all located behind large sandstone blocks. So you need to carry your tent to the camp site from your vehicle. We then proceeded a short distance to explore the Aboriginal Carving site. We turned right onto Finchley Track and drove a short distance to our lunch spot.
It was approximately 12 noon when we reached the Finchley Trig lookout. We walked up to the lookout and took in the views. Lunch was under a shady tree in the car park.
At 1.00pm we continued our trip toward the Putty Road. First on the Finchley Track then the Yengo Track and finally turning right onto Howes Trail. At 1.50pm, we stopped along the way for a short break and stretch. We were near the turn off to Big Yango, The sun was shining with just a few clouds, it was a perfect day. We noticed that some of the plants had blue ribbons tied to them and there was sign explaining that these plants with the ribbons on them were threatened species (olearia cordata).
Then we came across some slashers on the side of the track. We did notice that there were several areas on either side of the track where they have been slashing overgrown shrubs and small plants.
The trip after lunch was the more interesting four wheel driving. We were going up and down hills. The tracks were in good condition but not like the track off The Great North Road.
Alex said he spotted a goanna but we couldn’t see it ourselves. We were travelling through private property where we were opening and shutting gates along the way.
A few more gates to open and shut and a creek crossing.
We finally came to the Putty Road and the end of our 4WD trip. A fellow traveller offered to shut the gate at the Putty Road and we all turned left. We stopped and said our goodbyes Alex, Paul and the girls proceeded towards Windsor while Linda and Phillip turned around and headed for Broke and The Entrance.
Hope to see you all on the next TRAX trip.
Linda & Phillip