Heysen Trail Closures for Feral Animal Control

Advance Notice for 2025

The Friends is pleased that we have received early notice of closures for the 2025 season following consultation with Parks, Landscape Boards and Feral Animal Control Project staff about communication challenges in 2024.  The closures aim to protect public safety during aerial shooting operations.

Deep Creek & Fleurieu Peninsula Parks

Sunday 18 to Friday 23 May:

The following parks/trails will be closed:

• Deep Creek National Park
• Talisker Conservation Park
• Ballaparudda Creek Recreation Park
• Eric Bonython Conservation Park
• Waitpinga Conservation Park
• Wild South Coast Way on the Heysen Trail (except Newland Head Conservation Park and Natunyuru Ngawanthi/Sand Dunes Campground)

Click here for further information.

Northern Adelaide Hills including ForestrySA & private land

Monday 2 June to Friday 6 June

Shooting over Pewsey Vale zone and Mt Gawler/Old Kersbrook/Para Wirra/South Para. Rossiter’s Hut Heysen Trail (Pewsey) will need to be closed for public access. Trail at Pewsey Vale / Kaiserstuhl will have closure signage.

Tuesday 10 June to Friday 13 June

Shooting over eastern side of Mt Crawford – campsites to consider: Chalks, Rocky Paddock, Cromer Shed, Fromm’s Farm, Old Schoolhouse, Ponderosa, Old Schoolhouse, Centennial Drive and Scott’s Heysen Trail hut. Closure signage will be erected at all public land gates in this area, including at points along the Heysen Trail.

Campsite & event bookings will be blocked for the dates above. Any bookings already in place will be managed through communication with option to change dates or cancel and get refund. (at time of preparing details are not yet listed on ForestrySA website).

Mid-North Rangelands: 

The feral animal control program is scheduled in April during the Fire Danger Season Closure period. The Friends welcome this decision that will have no impact on hiking for 2025.

Fire Danger Season Closures remain in place until mid-April/May 2025

The end date remains subject to confirmation by the Country Fire Service assessment of risk in each region. Click here for further information.

It’ s good practice to review the “Know Before You Go” sites before starting any hike.

• For information regarding Parks click here.
• For ForestrySA information click here.

The Country Fire Service  (CFS) has announced the dates for the 2024/25 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 October 15th.

Flinders District Fire Danger Season to commence on 15th October 2024.

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 between October 15th 2024 and April 15th 2025.

Mid North District Fire Ban Season to start on 1st November 2024.

The Mid North District includes the trail between north of Tanunda  and south of Wirrabara.

The Heysen Trail between these locations will close between November 1st 2024 and April 30 2025.

Mount Lofty Ranges Fire Ban Season to commence on 15th November 2024

The CFS has also announced the fire danger season for the Mt Lofty District will commence on 15th  November 2024 and continue through until midnight on 30th April 2025.

As indicated above the Heysen Trail will reopen during April/May 2025. 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.

The Buckaringa Sanctuary will be temporarily closed for a few days in August and again in October.
As the Heysen Trail passes through the sanctuary, we advise walkers to consider the closure if planning to walk in the area.

A closure will commence on Friday 2nd August through to Tuesday 6th August 2024 inclusive .
Another closure will commence on Thursday 10th October and continue until Sunday 13th October 2024 inclusive.

The Buckaringa Wildlife Sanctuary is home to many Yellow-footed Rock-wallabies and is located between Quorn and Hawker. You can find it on map 6, chapter 4, of the Heysen Trail Northern Guidebook and on Sheet Map 7b – Dutchmans Stern Conservation Park to Mernmerna Creek.

The Heysen Trail enters the southern boundary of the sanctuary at grid reference 195 440. The northern section on the trail exits the sanctuary at 257 490.

The closure affects the trail in the following walk sections:

51 Warren Gorge to Buckaringa Gorge

52 Buckaringa Gorge to Callabrinda Creek

The closure is because the Australian Wildlife Conservancy (AWC) will be undertaking feral animal control in the sanctuary.

AWC will place closure signs at all entry points to the sanctuary to warn walkers of the danger.

The Heysen Trail through the Deep Creek Conservation Park will be closed from mid­day Sun­day 30 June until 12pm mid­day Fri­day 5 July 2024.

The purpose of the closure of the entire conservation park is to protect public safety during a feral animal control program.

Campsites and other walking trails in The Deep Creek Conservation Park will also be closed during this time.

The trail will be closed between Blowhole Creek (GR 425 507 on mapsheet 1A) and the eastern boundary of the Deep Creek Conservation Park at Tunkalilla (end of McGregor Rd track – GR 543 527 on mapsheet 1A).
(This covers from the eastern end of section 1 up to the western end of section 3 of the trail)

Warning signs and trail closure signs will be placed at several locations along the trail and at the western and eastern approaches to the park.

If you have any enquiries, please call Nation­al Parks & Wildlife Ser­vice SA — Deep Creek Nation­al Park Office.
Ph: 8598 0263
Further information can be found on the Parks SA Alerts page.

An aerial pest animal control program will mean the closure of sections of the Heysen Trail in the Mount Lofty Ranges from Monday 17th June to Sunday 30th June, 2024. The program will include forestry reserves, reservoir reserves, conservation parks and private properties, over native scrub, plantations, and farmland in the areas around Millbrook Reservoir, Para Wirra, Mount Crawford Forest and Kaiserstuhl.

The Heysen Trail and Heysen huts will be closed from Pewsey Vale/Kaiserstuhl in the north (GR 170 727 on Mapsheet 2D, Southern Guide Map 4.3) , south to Scotts and as far south as Millbrook (GR 014 442 on Mapsheet 2C, Southern Guide Map 3.7).

This represents the southern part of section 18, the whole of sections 17 through 16 and the northern portion of section 15.

For further information contact Theo Goldsworthy of PIRSA at Theo.Goldsworthy-Hess@sa.gov.au or phone 0461 284 454.

You can find further information on the Forestry SA page.

Caroona Creek Conservation Park :   www.visitburra.com

An aerial pest control program will mean the Caroona Creek Conservation Park (Including Caroona Creek Campground), Mimbara Conservation Park and Hopkins Creek Conservation Park will be closed from 6.00 pm Tuesday 28th May to 6.00 pm on Sunday 2nd June, 2024. The closure will also extend to surrounding private land.

The Heysen Trail from Gerkie Gap (GR 113 250 on Mapsheet 3C, Southern Guide Map 5.5) all the way to Dares Hill Summit Road (GR 188 017 on Mapsheet 4B, Southern Guide Map 6.6.) will therefore be closed
This represents the whole of sections 23 through 28 of the trail.

If you have any enquiries about the Park Closure  please contact the National Parks & Wildlife Service, Yorke & Mid North on (08) 8841 3400.

You can find further information on the Parks SA Alerts page.

The entire length of the Heysen Trail has now re-opened following the conclusion of the Fire Danger Season in the Mount Lofty Ranges and Mid North Fire Ban Districts.

The northern half of the trail, from Wirrabara, reopened on April 15 following the conclusion of the Fire Ban Season in the Flinders Ranges Fire Ban District.

The entire length will remain open until November 2024 when the Fire Danger Season is expected to begin.

View more information about how the Fire Danger Season affects the Heysen Trail.

View the CFS media release confirming the conclusion of the Fire Danger Season.

Map highlighting the ‘no shooting/buffer’ zone

Warning to walkers on the Wild South Coast Way on the Heysen Trail.

There will be an extensive animal control cull of feral deer on the Fleurieu Peninsula by PIRSA and other organisations, between 1 and 14 May 2023.

Walkers may be affected if in the region of  Boat Harbour Beach, Tunkalilla Beach and the trail to Ballaparudda Creek campground.

The cull will use helicopters carrying thermal technology to detect deer, allowing them to be culled even in dense scrub. Flights will be on week days and weekends, mainly around dawn and dusk, when thermal cameras can detect targets most easily.

The Wild South Coast Way will remain open to walkers during the operation

No shoot and low flying buffers will be put in place around the Wild South Coast Way (Heysen Trail) and Bullaparudda campground, as well as public roads and infrastructure.
The buffer zone relating to the Wild South Coast Way is displayed in orange on the map above.

There is no risk to people or livestock, but if you are in affected areas you may hear low flying helicopters and the sound of gun shots in the distance.

You can find out more information about the operation on the Parks Closure and Alerts page.