Hammock camping the Heysen Trail End to End?

[jakeyarwood]

Is it feasible? Which sections would 1) prove the trickiest 2) prove the easiest to hang out in?

[eggs]

I suspect the big issue with the Heysen Trail would be watering points [particularly up north] and food supplies.
Check out the Heysen Trail website for locations of water and food.

With respect to hammocks - I presume your chief requirement is some nicely spaced trees.
There will be trees from end to end on the trail. Even in the northern Flinders it traverses tree country.
Having said that, the biggest difficulty might be when road walking in the mid north farm lands. [I tend to avoid those parts ]
But there would still be trees in most road reserves.

[jakeyarwood]

I suspect the big issue with the Heysen Trail would be watering points [particularly up north] and food supplies.
Check out the Heysen Trail website for locations of water and food.

With respect to hammocks - I presume your chief requirement is some nicely spaced trees.
There will be trees from end to end on the trail. Even in the northern Flinders it traverses tree country.
Having said that, the biggest difficulty might be when road walking in the mid north farm lands. [I tend to avoid those parts ]
But there would still be trees in most road reserves.

My bad, the whole post was in reference to hammocks - I'll probably start another topic for specific info about the trail itself but thank you for the tip nonetheless. I'm only just starting my initial planning so I've a ways to go before I'm in the know. I've edited my post to reflect this so it's a little clearer anyway

Yup you got that right! The Flinders was the section I was most concerned about so that's great to hear. Good point re: farm land. I suppose those areas also entail more private land which could make site selection a little more troublesome and/or limiting if hanging instead of ground dwelling.

[eggs]

I don't want to mislead you about trees.
The section of the Heysen Trail over Mt Arden is quite bare - the trees are in the valleys at either end of that section.

Bare tops when crossing over Mt Arden

See also the trip report - http://bushwalk.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=49&t=18689

There are also some bare sections heading north from Horrocks Pass - http://bushwalk.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=9&t=2501

But the rest of the Flinders - south and north should be ok.
The mid North farm areas / road walks could be an issue as noted.
The Adelaide Hills and southern sections should be fine - though the start of the track out of Cape Jervis has long stretches with fairly bare slopes.
http://bushwalk.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=40&t=7641
OK when you get to Deep Creek Conservation Park but a hammock along Tunkalilla Beach would be difficult.

[photohiker]

I've hammocked from Victor Harbour up to Adelaide. Plenty of opportunities there.

Cape Jervis to Victor is a bit of a mix for hammocking, you could do it if you are keen. Once you get up north, I think it could be a bit of a challenge especially in farmland. Might be worth making your hammock groundable.

[jakeyarwood]

I don't want to mislead you about trees.
The section of the Heysen Trail over Mt Arden is quite bare - the trees are in the valleys at either end of that section.

ArdenTop1894.jpg

See also the trip report - http://bushwalk.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=49&t=18689

There are also some bare sections heading north from Horrocks Pass - http://bushwalk.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=9&t=2501

But the rest of the Flinders - south and north should be ok.
The mid North farm areas / road walks could be an issue as noted.
The Adelaide Hills and southern sections should be fine - though the start of the track out of Cape Jervis has long stretches with fairly bare slopes.
http://bushwalk.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=40&t=7641
OK when you get to Deep Creek Conservation Park but a hammock along Tunkalilla Beach would be difficult.

Thanks a lot for the links and info. Sure looks like a wonderful track from what I'm seeing so far. Nice work on those posts.

Any idea on the distance of those patches on the trail where it's truly bare? No problem if not.

[jakeyarwood]

I've hammocked from Victor Harbour up to Adelaide. Plenty of opportunities there.

Cape Jervis to Victor is a bit of a mix for hammocking, you could do it if you are keen. Once you get up north, I think it could be a bit of a challenge especially in farmland. Might be worth making your hammock groundable.

Your post as noted above by eggs provided some valuable information for that first stretch so your efforts are appreciated for sure. Thanks also for your input. I'll see what my options are for making my hammock system ground worthy! I've got a few things in mind so will have to test them out when funds allow. A simple and lightweight CCF pad could be all that's required but more research is needed regardless.

[eggs]

When planning the walk, the Heysen trail website has a google maps link with the full trail marked.
You can use it to show start/end points and accommodation/camping options.
Switching to satellite view will give a good indication of tree coverage along any section.

As for the bits I mentioned, about 12km north of Horrocks Pass is bare, and about 12km over the top of Mt Arden [great views though]
In the mid north its a bare traverse over Mt Bryan for about 9km, and not much cover in Tourilie Gorge
See http://bushwalk.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=9&t=5013
That report may also show what some of the farmland walking is like.

[jakeyarwood]

When planning the walk, the Heysen trail website has a google maps link with the full trail marked.
You can use it to show start/end points and accommodation/camping options.
Switching to satellite view will give a good indication of tree coverage along any section.

As for the bits I mentioned, about 12km north of Horrocks Pass is bare, and about 12km over the top of Mt Arden [great views though]
In the mid north its a bare traverse over Mt Bryan for about 9km, and not much cover in Tourilie Gorge
See http://bushwalk.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=9&t=5013
That report may also show what some of the farmland walking is like.

Apologies for the delay! Thanks for the additional information, I do appreciate it