Jefferys Track, Wellington Range

[Tortoise]

Toying with doing some walks in the area - does anyone have an idea of the current state of Jefferys Track? Last I read it probably needs more ground clearance than my old Forester has. Thanks

[stepbystep]

Toying with doing some walks in the area - does anyone have an idea of the current state of Jefferys Track? Last I read it probably needs more ground clearance than my old Forester has. Thanks

Yep, you'll need high clearance. It's nicer to walk from Collinsvale to Charles/Patrick etc anyhow...

[Tortoise]

Toying with doing some walks in the area - does anyone have an idea of the current state of Jefferys Track? Last I read it probably needs more ground clearance than my old Forester has. Thanks

Yep, you'll need high clearance. It's nicer to walk from Collinsvale to Charles/Patrick etc anyhow...

Thanks, SBS. That was my original plan, which has got a bit more complicated, with moving furniture for friends and staying near Huonville. Ah well, it was worth asking the question.

[north-north-west]

Charles and Patrick are easily reachable from Big Bend, if you have concerns about your car . . .

[Tortoise]

Charles and Patrick are easily reachable from Big Bend, if you have concerns about your car . . .

Not necessarily the car as much as the driver. I have friends who can do fairly serious 4wd tracks in an old Mazda 323. Mais pas moi.
Thanks for reminding me of the obvious. Went to Trestle from there. I would like to visit Charles and Patrick and their big sister, as it happens.

[north-north-west]

Trying to remember which one's which. The one to the north (or do I mean west? - to the right if you're heading out from Big Bend) of the track has a fairly good pad most of the way to the high point. The other has a roughly taped route which is trickier to follow but still pretty straightforward for those with any understanding of Tassie bush. It's mainly a matter of finding the right turnoff point. The 'tracked' turn off is close to a major corner, easy to spot.

[Tortoise]

Trying to remember which one's which. The one to the north (or do I mean west? - to the right if you're heading out from Big Bend) of the track has a fairly good pad most of the way to the high point. The other has a roughly taped route which is trickier to follow but still pretty straightforward for those with any understanding of Tassie bush. It's mainly a matter of finding the right turnoff point. The 'tracked' turn off is close to a major corner, easy to spot.

Thanks, nnw. From what I've read, I need to allow a bit of extra time for the 'roughly taped route' one. Will keep my brain in gear.

[Azza]

Regarding Jefferies Track - just have a look on youtube.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DcFgDLBfy8Q

Its pretty horrendous even in a proper 4wd.
I took a mountain bike in and ended up pushing it most of the way. The part from Jefferies Track up into the range was okay.
The bike did make for a quick trip back to the car, which I left pretty much at the start of Jefferies.
But I've also done it from Collins Cap via the fire trails on a bike as well. That is much nicer.

Mt Patrick was just a matter of hunting around for the tapes, the only tricky bit I remember was open section not far from the start where it doesn't go straight ahead, the next tape is left or right a bit... can't remember.
But it was only like 20-30 minutes each way, even if you didn't follow the route it wouldn't take that much longer.
The first time I did Charles and didn't realise about the taped route, it was getting late in the day and I didn't want to get caught out scrub bashing in the dark.

[Tortoise]

Regarding Jefferies Track - just have a look on youtube.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DcFgDLBfy8Q

Its pretty horrendous even in a proper 4wd.
I took a mountain bike in and ended up pushing it most of the way. The part from Jefferies Track up into the range was okay.
The bike did make for a quick trip back to the car, which I left pretty much at the start of Jefferies.
But I've also done it from Collins Cap via the fire trails on a bike as well. That is much nicer.

Mt Patrick was just a matter of hunting around for the tapes, the only tricky bit I remember was open section not far from the start where it doesn't go straight ahead, the next tape is left or right a bit... can't remember.
But it was only like 20-30 minutes each way, even if you didn't follow the route it wouldn't take that much longer.
The first time I did Charles and didn't realise about the taped route, it was getting late in the day and I didn't want to get caught out scrub bashing in the dark.

Thanks, Azza. Yep, it's a doozy! I don't think even my very clever friends could manage that in the 323! Not sure why my searches didn't come up with that, but thanks. Might see if I can get hold of a mountain bike.

[stepbystep]

It's worth keeping an eye out for the stone hut ruins on Patrick, pretty interesting, very close to the summit pad. I quite enjoyed the walk from Collinsvale. VERY snakey on those fire trails though...

[Tortoise]

Thanks, SBS. I think it might be a very full day - especially if on foot - but I'll certainly keep those ruins in mind. And Joe Blake. Especially if there's dappled light on the fire trail...and if I have hay fever at the time...and if I don't have a friend to yell "STOP!!!!" when I'm mid-sneeze...3 times.

[L_Cham_67]

VERY snakey on those fire trails though...

Yep, I remember nearly walking straight into one of the largest tiger snakes I've ever seen on the East-West trail near the junction with the Collins cap fire trail.