Current status on Bare Hill Rd/Borradaile Road

[ryantmalone]

Hi! I’m considering a lazy wander into Basil Steers Huts 1&2 on Sunday, and was just wondering if anyone knew the current status of Bare Hill And Borradaile Roads, whether they are open or not, and whether they are 2WD accessible or not.

Cheers!!!

[Lostsoul]

Drove in a few weeks ago and road is fine for 2wd from Rowallan side

[ryantmalone]

Excellent, thankyou! Wasn't too sure if there was a gate or not. I'd heard that there was one somewhere, but I think they may have been referring to the one at the start of the track to the huts. Will check it out tomorrow regardless. Thanks again!

[Lostsoul]

There are no gates.Small parking area where the road gets overgrown and a sign to the hut.Nice loop walk to both huts

[ryantmalone]

Went to Basil Steers Hut #2 today. Such an amazing area, there is so much there that begs exploration.

The road in - the last few kilometers was sketchy. My Yaris bottomed out a couple of times, and had to take it really slow. 2WD no dramas at all on that road, but I'd definitely recommend some clearance to be able to avoid bottoming out. Parked about 100 meters from the gate at the end of Borradaile Road, on the national park border.

Re - this sign. This is the sign that is at the parking area at the end of Borradaile Road. I followed the old 4WD track for a few kilometers to the track that leads to hut #2. It looked like there was a track leading off behind this sign though, but cant see anything on any maps. I'm assuming this track leads to hut #1, creating a loop?

[Lostsoul]

Yep if you do the loop of both huts,that’s where the track comes out

[Letstryagain]

Is the start of that road clearly signposted?

[Lostsoul]

Is the start of that road clearly signposted?

Not with signs directing you to the huts no.Easy enough to find with gps maps though

[Letstryagain]

Thanks for the response, the road I meant though, it's easy enough to find?

[Lostsoul]

Thanks for the response, the road I meant though, it's easy enough to find?

Not sure whether there is a sign on the junction off Mersey Forest Road.Its called Clear Hill Road,pretty straightforward once you’re on it

[Letstryagain]

*thumbs up emoji

[Tortoise]

Not sure whether there is a sign on the junction off Mersey Forest Road.Its called Clear Hill Road,pretty straightforward once you’re on it

i think you mean Bare Hill Rd. Depending on where you're coming from, it can be quicker and easier via Gads Hill Rd. No update on that, but I've never heard of it being a problem.

[ryantmalone]

Thanks for the response, the road I meant though, it's easy enough to find?

When I went up there, there was only a sign pointing up Bare Hill Road. Apart from that, it was all up to the GPS to point me in the right direction towards Borradaile Road and towards the end of it (it branches off into multiple other roads).

The track is easily found on AllTrails, and that has a good map and instructions on how to find the start of the track.

Not sure whether there is a sign on the junction off Mersey Forest Road.Its called Clear Hill Road,pretty straightforward once you’re on it

i think you mean Bare Hill Rd. Depending on where you're coming from, it can be quicker and easier via Gads Hill Rd. No update on that, but I've never heard of it being a problem.

From memory, the continuation of Bare Hill Road and Borradaile Road as it leads away towards Gads Hill Road looked pretty spicy. The overall quality of the roads up there was really poor when I was up there, and although I considered whether to try shave off a bit of time on the drive in by going via Gads Hill Road, I ended up actually being relieved that I didn't try. My poor little car got pummelled on that final stretch to the carpark! :'(

[MrWalker]

We tried to go up Bare Hill Rd on Saturday (13 Jan 2024) and found the road blocked by a "Road Closed" sign.

There were noises up ahead an another sign claiming Forestry Operations were happening and we could only proceed if we had suitable ear, eye protection, etc.

The Forestry website had no mention of road closures in this area, so we don't know if this was a one off for that Saturday, or whether the area will be closed for weeks or months, until they finish.

We didn't want to go all the way round to Gads Rd, so we went to the next nearest local attraction - Arm River Falls. There were three tracks marked and a sign saying "Track Closed", that possibly applied to all three tracks, or maybe only to two of them. There were not enough details to be sure, and the contact phone didn't help in that area. We could not find any mention of these tracks being closed on any website either.