is preceded by an easy drive from Berlang
Campground along Snowball Road, with a
short detour to check out Wyanbene Caves
before turning on to the Minuma Range Fire
Trail. This rugged track leads to the Dampier
Fire Trail, the steepest track of the day with
a mix of tight hairpins, steep, rocky surfaces
and incredible views across the ranges.
This descent takes time and caution,
before finishing on the doorstep of the grassy
Bendethera Valley campground. Originally
Bendethera was a cattle property, often
used by stockmen to rest cattle after they’d
come down the mountains from Cooma and
surrounding townships, before they were
moved on to the coastal towns.
Incorporated into the national park,
Bendethera is now a massive camping
area with no actual sites, so you can camp
anywhere from close to the Deua River to
beneath the trees bordering the cleared
valley. It’s a remote campground with limited
facilities (a couple of toilets and barbecues/
fire pits are dotted around the valley), so
you’ll need to ensure you’re self-sufficient.
It’s less crowded during autumn, spring and
winter, and it can be packed on summer
weekends and during the Easter break.
For the return to Sydney you can leave
Bendethera and travel northwest via the
same fire trail you came down, or you can opt
to experience more of the park’s famously
steep fire trails. By choosing the latter, you’ll
climb the Bendethera Fire Trail up to the
junction with Mericumbene Fire Trail, before
continuing on this undulating route and
(eventually) dropping down 700m, joining the
Dry Creek Fire Trail along the way. You’ll then
tackle the final crossing of the Deua River,
before reaching the comparative smoothness
of Araluen Road. From here you can opt to
wind back up the mountains to Braidwood
(via the awesome Araluen pub), or turn east
and head to Moruya and the coast. A quicker
and easier way to reach Moruya is following
the Bendethera Fire Trail up out of the valley,
and then turning right at the Mericumbene/
Bendethera junction and joining Little
Sugarloaf Road.
If you’ve got the time, head home via the
south coast; if pressed for time, the return
up Dampier Fire Trail and then back via
Braidwood and Goulburn to the Hume is the
go. No matter which way you return home,
you’ll be travelling with some cracking
memories of this iconic 4x4 destination.CAVING
Bendethera Valley
campground isn’t far from
Bendethera Cave, an easily
accessed family adventure. At
250m long and 320m wide, and full of
caverns containing huge limestone
rock formations, this is a must for
visitors young and old – just
remember to bring decent
boots, torches and
spare batteries.DEUA NATIONAL PARK
Grade: Moderately challenging
Best time to visit: Spring and
autumn. Summer can be busy
and hot, with high bushfire
danger. Winter is bloody cold, but
far less crowded.
More info: Berlang (off Cooma
Road) and Deua River (off Araluen
Road) campgrounds are $6/adult
per night; $3.50/night per child.
Bendethera Valley campground
is free. Due to the steep nature of
many tracks in Deua NP, camper
trailers are prohibited from
the following routes: Dampier
Mountain Fire Trail, Oulla Creek
Fire Trail, Minuma Range Fire
Trail, Merricumbene Fire Trail,
Mongamula Fire Trail and Dry
Creek Trail.
For the latest on track access
and other park notices, see: http://www.
nationalparks.nsw.gov.au/visit-a-
park/parks/deua-national-parkhttp://www.4X4australia.com.au 1171