It was a last minute decision on my part to join this trip and I am so glad I did.

Tuesday 16th November four vehicles; Trip Leader Andrew Nairn with his mate Brenton Cole; Ian Williams; Geoff Green; Mike Fisher from the Mitsubishi Club and mine (Keith Plastow) set out from City Dismantlers car park to travel north through Mallala and Balaklava to stop for a caffeine fix at Clare then on to Orroroo for a counter lunch, where we were joined by the fifth vehicle with Greg and Leonie Young. There were no dramas apart from a minor hiccup when I, used to always arriving in Clare from the south was disoriented by coming in from the Blyth road and took off in the wrong direction after morning coffee. Thanks to UHF I did not go far before being frantically recalled.

We were the only guests at Bendleby when we arrived so we were given the choice of the three or four campsites on the property. After much discussion we decided to take advantage of the extra facilities available at homestead site, "The Springs" which included showers, toilets, a camp kitchen with hot water and a shed with tables and chairs. This made it easier for Mike and Greg’s caravans and gave shelter for Andrew and Brenton’s swags.

Geoff, Ian and I pitched our tents, the caravans were unhitched and we set out on a short excursion to the Bendleby Ranges: up the Kokoda Trail (not quite as daunting as its PNG namesake but interesting enough for a starter) along the North-South Ridge; the Link Track and back along Gum Creek Drive. With this relatively short insight into the scenery and tracks we could expect we returned to camp for pre-dinner drinks and ready to cook our evening meal. The owner delivered a load of firewood and we were able to get a good fire going on which some of us cooked our dinner.

Up bright and early next morning (Wednesday) with clear blue skies. It was a luxury to me not to have to pack up the tent and to have a shower.

Off to the other range on the property the Hungry Ranges with packed lunch to allow for a good days driving. The tracks at Bendleby are marked on a map which is given out when you register. They are colour coded by Skill by Skill Level—high; medium-high; medium; low-medium and low . The route planned for the day followed the one-way Ridge Top (medium-high) to Sandy Bore; the East Fence Track (medium) through Aeroplane Gorge to the East Side Bore; then up Billy Goat Ridge the first part of which is rated as high skill level and for which you are required to previously notify your intention on a board at the homestead.

We drove up to Eke’s Peak Lookout off the Ridge Top for our first stop and this required a climb on foot to get the most amazing view of the country around. Our fearless leader first sent us walking up the wrong hill; furthermore in leading from the rear he had to do the least walking to rectify the error. Nonetheless the view was well worth the effort.

Another lookout on the Ridge Top created an ideal spot to enjoy morning tea and to get yet another magnificent view.

The East Fence Track was down off the Range but by no means boring and it led us to the East Side Bore where we had a leisurely lunch before tackling the infamous Billy Goat Ridge.

For this ascent we had a change of leadership with Geoff in DTU Trainer mode leading the way and calling us up individually. It was certainly an "advanced" track being both steep, long and rocky, but it caused no one too much difficulty. With everyone safely up we continued down the other side and back to camp for a bit of a rest and afternoon tea. With everyone safely up we continued down the other side and back to camp for a bit of a rest and afternoon tea.

Out again before dinner we covered a few more tracks in the Hungry Ranges. We went out through the Quartz Gorge on to the North Fence Track. We followed this down to the East Fence the last section of which involved a descent measured at 80 metres drop in about 100metres. We went back up this section—the alternative being a long run back to Billygoat Ridge. Following the North Fence Track to its junction with the start of Quartz Gorge, we then took a series of tracks some of which by their appearance had not been extensively in use, back to camp, after some of us drove to yet another lookout with an amazing view. We were quite late back to camp but still in plenty of time to light up a great fire have a happy hour and cook dinner.

Thursday also proved to be perfect as far as weather was concerned. We had consistently every day blue skies sunshine with a light cooling breeze giving us day temperatures in the high twenties to low thirties.

Thursday we decided to check out the other camp sites on the property which generally had superior scenic surrounds but less amenity—only toilets, no showers or camp kitchen. We drove as far as we could to the Quarry Springs where slate had been quarried and finished up driving just about every track on the property, continually stopping to admire the view.

Again we finished the day around the camp fire finishing off all the wood provided

Friday morning we broke camp without a rush in readiness for the next part of the trip. Bendleby had proved to be an excellent destination, particularly with the weather we encountered, to spend two or three days with brilliant scenery and plenty of opportunities to gain or renew confidence in the capability of your vehicle and increase your own 4WD experience. Keith Plastow –Trip Recorder

After spending three days exploring the beautiful Bendleby Ranges led by Andrew Nairn it was time to say goodbye to Ian, Greg and Leonie who had to return to Adelaide where they had prior commitments.

So Friday 19thNovember the rest of us, Andrew and Brenton, Mike and Keith led by myself (Geoff Green) headed for Warren Gorge via Quorn. Arriving at Quorn around midday we stopped, topped up on a few supplies, had lunch and picked up the keys for the Mount Arden Property from the Austral Hotel. We then headed to Warren gorge mid afternoon to set up camp; did the usual thing—collected firewood for a fire, had a happy hour, cooked the evening meal and sat around the fire talking about the events of the last few days at Bendleby.

Saturday 20th—woke up to find a young fox cub had eaten poor old Andrew’s biscuits. We all had breakfast and prepared our vehicles for the day’s driving through the Mt Arden property. I decided to do the circuit around the property two ways; one anti-clockwise and then the other clockwise. Both ways were very challenging and everyone enjoyed the journey. Every now and again we stopped to soak in the spectacular views; take photos and just take it all in. This took us hours and was another great outing. Then it was back to our camp where we had the usual happy hour before getting ourselves dolled up to head to town to check the Quorn night life and enjoy a meal. After spending a few hours there we made our way back to camp at Warren Gorge, lit the fire again, had a night cap and it was bedtime.

Sunday 21st—It was decided that we head home to Adelaide our separate ways; Andrew and Brenton first; Keith, Mike and myself later.

I would like to say for those who have not travelled this part of our great state that it is a must go and explore when the weather is cool. SA Great !

For those interested next year I will lead another trip this way. For those who came along with Andrew and myself this year, new friendships were formed and I look forward to joining you on future trips. President Geoff Green