Accommodation
Shelter (medium),
'Walk-in' site,
Water Tank
'Walk-in' site,
Water Tank
Water Tank Level
View latest reported tank level.
Report the tank level.
Mapsheet
Mapsheet 2C, Stone Hut Road to Tower Hill
Guidebook
Southern Guidebook, chapter 3, map 8
Location
Mt Crawford Forest
Coordinates
Contact
Bookings
Yes. Commencing with 2023 Walk Season Heysen Hikers need to book this site for an overnight stop. Please call ForestrySA on (+61 8) 8391 8800 between 9-4pm Monday to Friday. As this is a new process FSA understands that some hikers may not be aware but Rangers will monitor sites to assist in educating hikers. For urgent afterhours issues requiring a ranger, please call (+61 8) 8391 8800 and press # 2.
Notes: Bookings are required to gain a camping permit to stay in the forest overnight. These sites are not suitable for large groups but bookings may be made by more than 1 hiker per night recognising that tents may be used as well as bunks in huts.
Notes: Bookings are required to gain a camping permit to stay in the forest overnight. These sites are not suitable for large groups but bookings may be made by more than 1 hiker per night recognising that tents may be used as well as bunks in huts.
Fees
No
Facilities
Shelter, tank.
Scotts is a ‘walk in’ campsite reserved for hikers, including those walking the Heysen Trail.
Scotts is a ‘walk in’ campsite reserved for hikers, including those walking the Heysen Trail.
Notes
Please note that in addition to fire bans applicable to the Mount Lofty Ranges Region, special fire restrictions apply to ForestrySA accommodation and campsites.
Provided that a Total Fire Ban has not been imposed by the Country Fire Service (CFS):
Wood fires are permitted within the forest from 1 May to 31 October each year.
Gas fires are permitted from 1 April to 30 November.
Fireplaces should be cleared of all flammable material for a distance of 4 metres. Someone must be always present and ensure that the fire is fully extinguished before leaving.
Forests are very sensitive to fire, so please ensure all restrictions are followed.
Occasionally access to Forest Reserves may be restricted. Refer to https://www.forestrysa.com.au/before-you-visit/forest-closures-and-alerts/ for forest closure information.
Camped here 10/9/22. Shelter and facilities in good condition. Water tank is full. Toilet is getting close to being uncomfortably full.
Camping here 17/5/22. Hut is generally clean. Difficult to gauge tank water level but it seems to be quite full.
Water tank is full. Hut is great as the rain comes down. Nice and clean and well maintained. Thanks
14 October 2019 Tank is at approximately 90% capacity. Water quality is good.
Visited on 4th August 2019. Noted that a screen has been erected in front of the opening to give more protection from the elements, plus privacy. There was a broom in the shelter, which was clean and tidy. Tank was full, water clean and in good condition.
I have planned a hike for my scouts next week and was wondering if the site is accessible by vehicle so that we have a more convenient method of carrying out everything we bring in. I have hiked to the shelter in 2010 however we did not have the need for a vehicle and so I do not remember about its accessability.
Hi Toby, you can’t get a vehicle in as the gates are locked. The people to talk to see if you can (you might be able to) is Forestry SA at Mt Crawford office.
https://www.forestrysa.com.au/contact/
Thank you for the info. I will get in contact with them again.
I’m planning a 30km hike with scouts for the near future. Just need to clarify, is the water drinkable at this campsite or does it need to be treated first?
Also, am i able to use a trangia stove in the campsite? I know that there are some restrictions regarding fires so it’s probably best that i follow them.
Thanks 🙂
ps. will be sleeping in tents, so no problem with the shelter having leaks
Hi Elise, water in all the tanks along the trail is drinkable. As with all such water tanks, we recommend as best practice that the water be treated by yourself prior to consumption.
There are no restrictions on the use of trangia stoves during the non-fire danger season. During the fire danger season, from December to April, trangia stoves aren’t permitted on fire ban days – however much of the Heysen Trail is closed during this time anyway.
I slept here night of 12/11/15. Warm day, cool night, very cold morning. I slept in back platform with my head under the left side platform. Stowed my gear on left hand tip platform, between joists.
Lots of condensation when I woke up. Dripping off the joists. All my stuff was dry, but had I slept in any other spot I would have got wet. The whole ceiling had drops on it.
So I guess the atmospheric conditions there are to blame. Maybe some sort if roof lining would help.
This was a poorly maintained site. No broom, rubbish left. The plastic sheeting out front badly needs to be reattached. A shame. Plenty of water.
HI, has anyone done the trail in early summer? I know it is officially closed, but we have bikes and were thinking of doing one or two nights at these huts for something completely different. ps I am from WA, used to hiking and biking in the summer heat!
Certainly have done some mtn biking through the forests here in December. It’s warm, but cycling still works 🙂
The Heysen Trail is officially closed during the summer Fire Danger Season, however, sections through forest remain open (except on days of Total Fire Ban). So your plan sounds a go-er. The Heysen Trail huts are open to anyone, this would be a good one to camp at whilst mtn biking.
Thanks for your help.
Yes, there is water at this campsite. You care correct, there is a water tank.
Just checking whether there is water at Scott’s. There is no mention of it, but photos do show a tank?
Hi Photohiker,
This is most useful information which I will pass on to the relevant Section Leader and the maintenance coordinator
Cheers
Visited Scotts on an overnight hike on Friday.
Facilities are good and there is currently plenty of water in the tank. The overflow pipe from the tank is missing past the elbow at the top of the tank. You can see in this photo.
Don’t know if that is intentional or not, but I imagine birds might enter the tank through the elbow..
We didn’t stay in the shelter, instead we camped in the pines you can see in the background. The weather was cool with light breezes. In the morning there was mist running over the ridge from the east. I’m guessing this would be a common occurrence there.
The result is that there was a lot of condensation on the underside of the roof which then runs down the joists and drips on the sleeping areas and floor. see photo 1, photo 2, photo 3 and photo 4.
I doubt this is easily resolved but I suggest anyone sleeping in the shelter note the drip marks and protect their sleeping gear from the drips with a groundsheet or whatever to avoid waking up with a wet sleeping bag.
Matthew,
Delighted you liked it. I think is much better since the screen was installed.
New Guide books-if I knew I could be a rich man! They were a couple of weeks away last November!!
Supposedly a couple of weeks away-TRUE
Cheers
Thanks Julian, we found it a great stopover. Amazingly huge colonies of ladybugs like it too 😉
Any idea when the new map books are going to be out?
cheers,
Matthew
Matthew,
You are correct, since the previous correspondence on the forum, a wall has been built to try and stop wind eddies etc which we found caused some of the problems
Visited this one in May 2010 with some Angle Vale Scouts/Venturers, nice convenient shelter – appears to have had a wall added in front since the photos on the site here. We had no problems with water/condensation, but previous campers had logged this in the book there. We only left gear in the shelter and used tents, but our gear stayed safe. Thanks to those who volunteer their time to maintain this and other facilities 🙂 matthew
Kodiak,
It sounds like a design problem, which is probably DEH’s responsibility.
Interestingly, the money you pay I think goes to Forestry SA, not DEH and certainly not the Friends.
Nevertheless, we are the maintainers and without your input, we would not be aware of the problem.
It has been logged and a couple of our manic maintainers will deal with it.
Cheers
hey Julian,
Anger not directed at Friends of the Heysen but at DEH as I know they are the ones who are supposed to be responsible for this trail. Seems they are happy to take the money but not fulfil their obligations.
From what I could understand of the situation the water was seeping through the roof where the roofing sheets overlap. It then trickled down onto the rafters where it collected in large droplets and every minute or so the droplets would all fall and soak anything under the rafters. The only safe spot was on the floor underneath the bunks. Everywhere else was affected. I could see moisture on the entire surface of the roofing sheets.
Kodiak
Sorry to hear about your soaking.
We will look into it.
Was the water coming through the roof or between the roof and the walls?
this shelter is atrocious during rain. It gives the false impression of shelter from the rain but in reality the entire roof leaks. I woke up to find that my down sleeping bag, which I can’t afford to get wet was covered in water. Nice to see that the camping fees are going towards the badly needed maintenance… not!