The Heysen Trail (South) - Part 4

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Today (11/1) Tim and I completed the Dashwood Gully Rd (Meadows) to Kyeema Conservation Park leg of the trail. I left my car on Wick Rd and then guided Tim to the entrance to Kyeema Conservation Park on Woodgate Hill Rd getting lost only briefly along the way. The first section through the Conservation Park was probably the highlight of this walk, lush stunning natural bushland for about a kilometer and a half before crossing a stile and entering the Kuitpo Forest.

For the next 13 or 14km the walk was pleasantly flat and shady and we were fortunate to spot the occasional Kangaroo or Black Cockatoo, we stopped briefly at Kiutpo Forest headquarters where we ate a snack at the picnic tables before continuing on to the Cookarloo Campsite. At the site there were quite a few horse floats as the Kidman Horse Trail runs through here as well and later we would see an Equestrian or two.

Here we crossed Brookman Rd reentering the Forest following the trail along the edge of cattle farm before crossing a bridge an emerging at the Golf Club on Wicks Rd. The trail then enters an area of regrowth where the forest has been logged some time in the recent past. The trail here finally gets a bit tougher, trudging through at times deep sand and climbing up steep slopes with little shade for about 6km before emerging from the forest onto Old Coach Rd. A brief walk down this quiet back road led to my car, it was then time to get Tim's car back at Kyeema before getting lost a bit on the way back to Meadows.

We of course made our traditional stop at the pub where I indulged in a pretty good chicken bushman (schnitzel) and a couplr of pints of pretty good pale ale. This leg of the trail was probably the least interesting so far but we still had a pleasant walk and a great lunch.

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