Year: 2025

Heysen Trail closure dates over the 2025-2026 Fire Danger Season

Posted on

The Country Fire Service  (CFS) has announced some of the dates for the 2025/26 Fire Danger Season.

Many sections of the Heysen Trail are closed during the Fire Danger Season. As the trail passes through several fire ban districts, the trail closures commence progressively from Saturday November 1st.

Flinders District Fire Danger Season to commence on 1st November.

The Flinders District covers the Heysen Trail north of Wirrabara.  The trail in this section includes Melrose, Wilmington, Quorn, Hawker, Wilpena Pound, the Ikara-Flinders Ranges National Park through to the northern end of the trail at Parachilna Gorge.

This section of the trail will be closed from November 1st and is expected to re-open on May 1st next year.

Mid North District Fire Ban Season to start on 1st November.

The Mid North District includes the trail between north of Tanunda  and south of Wirrabara. The Heysen Trail between these locations will close on November 1st and is expected to reopen on May 1st next year.

Mount Lofty Ranges Fire Ban Season yet to be announced

The CFS has yet to announced the dates of the fire danger season for the Mt Lofty District.
(In past years it has commenced on November 15th)

As indicated above the Heysen Trail will reopen during April/May next year. The re-opening dates vary across the three Fire Ban Districts the Trail passes through.

Some sections of the trail remain open over the Fire Danger Season

During the declared fire danger season some sections of the Heysen Trail remain open to walkers. They are principally the sections of the trail that are not on private land. These include public roads, Conservation Parks and Reserves, Forests and vacant land.

Please note that Conservation Parks and Reserves and Forests are closed on days of Total Fire Ban. The CFS publishes these bans, as does the Bureau of Meteorology. In addition, the media also broadcast weather reports including fire ban information.

If you want to walk on the trail, check which Fire District you will be in. The Fire Districts are listed on the Fire Danger Season page and shown on the Interactive Map on the Friends website.

Friends of the Heysen Trail 2026 calendar available now. Only $14!

Posted on

The Friends of the Heysen Trail 2026 calendar is now available.

Make sure you order your copies of the calendar early to get in on the low price of $14.00.

Get one for your wall at home or work or buy some as Christmas gifts for family and friends.

Order from our On-line shop for delivery by post.

By ordering the calendar from our On-line shop you can request postage to an address in Australia or overseas.

Postage charges to any address within Australia (for a single copy) will be an additional $6.60.

Order online now

Save postage  – pick your copy from our Office.

You can also order the calendar for pick up from the Office.  If you can get into the Office you can take immediate delivery.

But wait there’s more…

Heysen Highlights – Companion Guide to the Heysen Trail is still available.

If you haven’t yet got a copy of Simon Cameron’s authoritative guide to the Heysen Trail now is the time.

Secure your copy at the members price of $20.00.

order now

The Friends Office holiday closure – 2.30pm Friday December 12th 2025

Posted on

Office Closure

The Friends of the Heysen Trail office will close for the Christmas and New Year period at 2.30pm on Friday, December 12th 2025.

Office Volunteers will return for an Information Day on Monday, February 2nd 2025 with normal office operations commencing the following day, Tuesday, February 3rd 2026 from 10.30am.

If you contact the office (by email or telephone) over the closure period, it is unlikely that we will respond to your enquiry until the Office reopens. We recommend that you refer to the website for any information you may need.

The 2026 Heysen Trail calendars are still available for purchase on-line or for collection at the office. If you want to save the shipping cost and can get into the Office, don’t forget to pick one up before the Office closes.

Online Shop Sales

While the office is closed, the online shop will remain open for business and we will endeavour to despatch shop orders within 5 working days of being received. If you want to shop for last minute Christmas purchases, we undertake to dispatch any orders received by midday on Wednesday, December 17th on that day.

Please note that Australia Post has advised that for parcel delivery by Christmas the following time frames will apply:

  • Send Parcel Post to SA addresses post by 2.30pm  22th December 2025 (NSW, ACT, Vic, Qld  & Tas by 19th Dec, NT by 17th Dec, WA by 18th Dec. )
  • For Regular Post (cards / letters) within SA, NSW, ACT, Vic, Qld send by 23rd December  (Tas and NT by 22nd December).

Walk Registrations

Although the office is closed you can still register for Summer and other walks online during the closure period.

Merry Christmas

The Office Volunteers wish all members and supporters a Merry Christmas and a happy and safe New Year.

Heysen Trail Closure – Cudlee Creek

Posted on

Cudlee Creek Closure

The advice below is from the Department  for Environment & Water (DEW).

Please be advised that Section 15 of the Heysen Trail, specifically the segment between Union Bridge and Tippett Road in Cudlee Creek, is now closed. This closure is effective as of 5pm on Friday the 8th of August 2025 and will remain in place indefinitely.

DEW has been unable to secure access to this section of trail and a safe detour has not yet been established.

As this area is private land, hikers will not be permitted to enter and will need to use Gorge Road and Tippett Road through this section to rejoin the existing trail. Please take care walking on these roads.

We understand this may impact your plans and appreciate your understanding. DEW is actively working with the Friends of the Heysen Trail and other stakeholders to find a safe and sustainable solution. We will provide an update as soon as a resolution is found.

If you should gave any comments or questions  please contact the DEW State Trails Officer: Jarrah.bailey@sa.gov.au.

Vale David Rattray OAM

Posted on
David Rattray being presented with Honourary Membership by Friends of the Heysen Trail President, Robert Alcock

David Rattray being presented with Honourary Membership by Friends of the Heysen Trail President, Robert Alcock

We were saddened to hear that David Rattray, one of our treasured volunteers died on July 16th 2025, at the age of 77 years.

David was a lover of the outdoors and as well as his service to the Heysen Trail, he had extended involvement with service and community groups including the Naval Reserve and Scouts Australia.

David was awarded the Order of the Australia Medal in 2007 for his service to youth through the Scouting movement.

As far as his association with the Friends is concerned, David became a member in the early 1990s and received his End-to-End certificate (no 104) in the winter of 2003.

In 2005 David commenced service as a volunteer in the Office, soon after retiring and joined Council in 2008. Within a year he added the role of Membership Secretary to his list of responsibilities.

Around the end of 2010 David also took on the position of Chair of the Office Committee. He continued to carry on all of these responsibilities. It is a credit to David that he steered the Office Committee and volunteers through several years of substantial change while ensuring that we provided advice and service to members and walkers.

In recognition of his service, he was awarded Honorary membership of the Friends in 2016. His nomination was accompanied by the following  recommendation:

Those who have worked with David in the Office over many years can attest to his amazing dedication.

Always at work well before anyone else, he has everything organised for the rest of the team when they arrive. No problem is too difficult and David’s knowledge of every aspect of how the organisation and the office systems work is second to none.

At times when the pressure is on, David’s calm professional approach prevails.

He always had the interest of volunteers, walkers and members in mind in the many roles that he held with the Friends.

Sadly, David relinquished his position as Chair of the Office Committee in 2020 due to increasing impact of Parkinson’s disease. It is to his credit that he kept up his attendance at the Office every Tuesday until illness forced his resignation only a few months ago.

David may have left us, but he won’t be forgotten.

We extend our condolences to Dianne and family.

FOHT new Council & Annual Report 2024

Posted on

Member News: FOHT new Council & Annual Report 2024

The Friends AGM on 16 April 2025 at Torrens Rowing Club was well attended with an upbeat vibe and lots of chatting among members.  Thank you all for your membership, engagement and volunteering to keep the Friends and Heysen Trail alive.

Please welcome the incoming Council Members listed below who will continue that commitment.

2025 FOHT Office Bearers & Council Positions

Reminder that the revised FOHT Constitution adopted in 2022 included provision to assist renewal that all member are elected for 2 year terms, a limit of 3 x 2 years continuous in an Office Bearer position and maximum 12 years continuous for any Council member.

  • President – Neil Hendry for an additional term
  • Vice President – Melanie Sjoberg for an additional term
  • Secretary – Vicki Stewart continuing in current 2 year term
  • Treasurer – Rudy Pieck.

Council Members

  • Continuing in current 2 year term – Margaret Fletcher.
  • For an additional 2 year term – Mark Fletcher, Ross McDougall, Kathy Wright, Judy McAdam.
  • Newly elected: Daniel Jardine, John Wilson (the younger).
  • Retiring – John Babister, Paul Bond, Basia Samcewicz

FOHT achievements and financial statements were presented and approved at the AGM.  The FOHT Annual Report for 2024 outlining those presentations is available view the link below.

View 2024 Annual Report

Heysen Trail GPX files update for GPS: version 4.9 issued 15/5/2025

Posted on

Latest update to the Heysen Trail gpx and Interactive Map

With the opening of the walk season upon us, we have updated the Heysen Trail gpx file to include all re-routes since the last version of the consolidated gpx file was released in February 2024.

The trail changes include five re-routes and a new spur trail:

  • Mapsheet 1D: Willowburn reroute of 1.1km which takes the trail along a series of fencelines on the Willowburn property.
  • Mapsheet 1D/2A: permanent re-route at Chookarloo Campsite, Kuitpo Forest.
  • Mapsheet 2B: a minor re-route of the trail through Mt Lofty Botanic Gardens.
  • Mapsheet 3B: a new spur trail trail north of Kapunda to a campsite and pub at Allendale North.
  • Mapsheet 4C: a re-route on Olive Road, Spalding East to get some of the Heysen Trail off of the main highway.
  • Mapsheet 5B: in August 2024 a re-route was created to get some of the Heysen Trail back on land it was previously on prior to May 2021.

The reroutes have been added to the downloadable GPX file (version 4.9 released 15/5/2025) and the Interactive Map as displayed on Friends of the Heysen Trail website.

You can find instructions for downloading the updated file onto your GPS unit on the Maps & GPS page.

The reroutes have had a very minor impact on the Heysen Trail Distances.

Please note the the revised gpx file does not include temporary reroutes such as :

  • Those frequently established around Forestry SA logging operations in the Kuitpo and Mt Crawford Forest reserves (Mapsheets 1D, 2A & 2D)
  • The Maryvale reroute, south of Hamilton (Mapsheet 3B)
  • The Goyder Windfarm reroute, east of Huppatz Hut (Mapsheet 3D

Improvements to the Walk Selector pages

Walkers are reminded that following recent improvements to our website,  the Heysen Trail Walk Selector pages now include:

  • Re-routes – all current re-routes (permanent and temporary) are listed for each of the 61 ‘day walk’ sections from Cape Jervis to Parachilna.
    Before before setting out on any walk, you should check the relevant Walk Selector page to make sure you are aware of any recent trail changes.
  • Vehicle access to End to End points – there are a limited number of ‘End to End’ start and finishing points that do not have close access to a public road.
    In those cases, the Walk Selector pages now include an advisory note to independent/through walkers wishing to get vehicle access to End to End points.