Review Detail
3.8 2 0.5
Awesome but tough ride
Overall rating
4.0
Fun factor
4.0
Technical challenge
4.0
Scenic/cultural/historical value
4.0
Overall rating
4.0
Review
Updates
Did the recommended anticlockwise circuit (Saw Back Trail, Adamsfield, Clear Hill Road) on 19.03.2017 over five hours. Despite being very dry and hot for weeks earlier, mud holes were enormous and unavoidable due to the track being ripped up by 4WDers, water was everywhere. You will get very messy, but no big deal as it's just water on soft silt, charge right in!
The first pitch is not too bad, very scenic and damp, and then some up and down. Plateau is a lot of fun pumping up and down small rolling hills with stony/muddy pools at every drop. Some scrabbly descents are a bit iffy - I crashed on one and another was precipitous, with a nasty diagonal drop which I walked.
The roads near Adamsfield are blast and you really build up speed charging through small pools, really a lot of fun. We didn't find anything at Adamsfield itself, just an enormous field of ferns (we didn't visit mines) and had lunch at the excellent new shelter built near the huts.
Clear Hill road return is a mixed bag with very long exhilarating high speed downhills on a beautifully smooth pothole-free gravel road, and the two major climbs, which suck after a long tiring ride. My legs gave out at the final pitch and I walked the highway back up past Boyd lookout to the car, which was interminable and agonising.
Overall a fantastic, varied and challenging ride with plenty to see and do. I saw only about three good water sources, so bring plenty and of course emergency supplies (we had spare food, EPIRB, medkit etc) as there is no mobile signal and very few visitors.
The first pitch is not too bad, very scenic and damp, and then some up and down. Plateau is a lot of fun pumping up and down small rolling hills with stony/muddy pools at every drop. Some scrabbly descents are a bit iffy - I crashed on one and another was precipitous, with a nasty diagonal drop which I walked.
The roads near Adamsfield are blast and you really build up speed charging through small pools, really a lot of fun. We didn't find anything at Adamsfield itself, just an enormous field of ferns (we didn't visit mines) and had lunch at the excellent new shelter built near the huts.
Clear Hill road return is a mixed bag with very long exhilarating high speed downhills on a beautifully smooth pothole-free gravel road, and the two major climbs, which suck after a long tiring ride. My legs gave out at the final pitch and I walked the highway back up past Boyd lookout to the car, which was interminable and agonising.
Overall a fantastic, varied and challenging ride with plenty to see and do. I saw only about three good water sources, so bring plenty and of course emergency supplies (we had spare food, EPIRB, medkit etc) as there is no mobile signal and very few visitors.
Would you recommend?
AQ