16^th January 2005

A cool, overcast and drizzly Melbourne morning greeted us as we set off for another day trip, this time to Gentle Annie just north of Labertouche in West Gippsland, Victoria. This area is renowned for its difficulty when wet as there is very little rock in the tracks. They are mostly clay and black soil.

We headed out along the Princes Highway through Pakenham and then turned left at the Labertouche, Robin Hood turnoff. We kept heading left through Labertouche and towards the mountains.

The starting point for our trip was the T intersection of the Labertouche Road and Tea Tree Track where we reduced the tyre pressures and turned right. Tea Tree Track winds its way through the bush and eventually around the base of Gentle Annie.

At one point we stopped to check our map and were passed by six vehicles all jacked up with large aggressive mud tyres. We let them past so we wouldn't hold them up along any difficult bits, but it wasn't long before we caught their tail end vehicle having a little trouble on a greasy uphill section, a couple of tries and he was mobile again.

What trouble did we have at this section, well none. Sure it was slippery, but judicious placement of the front wheels kept us out of the ruts. Again the group got away from us, but not for long, when around a corner we found them all stopped at a particularly steep, slippery and rutted section of the track. When we got there, the first vehicle had made it up, but the second was having a lot of trouble, stuck in the ruts on the left of the track, spinning wheels madly. After a number of tries they realised that things would be better if both free wheeling hubs were locked in instead of just one.

A couple of other vehicles required a number of tries to get to the top, another, a turbo diesel with the engine revving on the limiter made it to the top first try in a very spectacular way, spinning wheels, throwing mud everywhere and fish tailing madly. Finally their last vehicle decided to take the less aggressive approach and made it to the top quite easily although still slipping into the ruts near the top.

Well it was our turn now and all the people from those purpose built vehicles were grouped together at the top to see what sort of predicament the standard looking Prado could get itself into.

Knowing the golden rule of difficult sections is to maintain traction, I had carefully looked over the track to determine the best line to the top. For the Prado, this meant staying out of the ruts and keep engine revs at a level that would avoid loss of traction.

Second gear low range was selected and we were off. It was pretty hard staying on the high part of the track, but we managed and made it to the top in the most fuss free manner, to thre total surprise of everyone at the top.

Again the group got away from us as we wound our way around the last part of Tea Tree Track, onto Bunyip Road where we turned left and then about fifty metres on turned left again onto Gentle Annie Track. It was surprisingly slippery and we were only about a third the way up when we completely lost all traction. It was time for us to swallow our pride and admit we could go no further without any help, so decided to reverse back down the long slippery section we had just climbed.

It was a long reverse with the Prado stuck in the rut on the left side of the track, the really tricky bit being when we reached a whoopty doo and the rut ran off the track down the side of the hill. Some judicious power and a heavy hand on the steering enabled us to pull out of the rut, over the whoopty doo and start sliding down the other side.

TIP:
Here's a technique that really helps control a vehicle in a slippery situation like this. Carefully put your left foot on the brake and lightly apply. At the same time apply a little more accelerator until you reach a situation where your left foot has a reasonable pressure on the brakes, but the accelerator usage has meant the engine is revving at about 1,000 RPM. This will stop the wheels from locking in the slippery mud from using the brakes only and maintain drive through all four wheels.

Back down on the Bunyip road we proceeded west for a couple of kilometers towards Bunyip Gap. Here is the intersection of Bunyip road, Sunset Firebreak, Sisters track and Lower Sisters track. Twenty five years ago the Sisters track used to be the hardest in the area. Hip deep ruts and a plethora of bog holes made this a real tough one. I remember spending weeks getting rid of the mud from my cruiser, especially from inside the brake drums. Today however, with the rain, it meant suicide for a lone vehicle to give it a go, so we took the Lower Sisters track, hoping to then travel along the Phasmid track to the upper reaches of the Sisters track but were halted by locked gates and big trees across the tracks.

It was then decided to head back to the Bunyip road, turn right and head for Seven Acre rock, take a little walk through the bush and admire the views across the plains to Western Port Bay. The walk was great, but the views weren't their best due to quite a haze.

After the view we kept heading west along the Bunyip road, turned right into Beenak road and proceeded to Mt Beenak. There used to be a couple of good tracks there, one up to the mount and the other down the back side of the mountain towards Gilderoy. Once again, when we reached Mt Beenak, the track was closed, so we turned right down Earth Dam track, negotiated our way down some steep stretches and turned right at the Torbet road intersection. Our idea was to see if either of the two tracks up the back of the mountain were open, but once again we found them locked.

Back up Earth Dam track and turn left at Beenak road and then a short distance later turn hard right into Bunyip road. We proceeded through Basin Corner (I still remember the house that used to be here when I was bushwalking back in my teenage years) heading towards Tomahawk Gap where we turned left along the Bunyip Valley road.

This was a great little track with a number of bog holes, some steep little descents and ever changing vegetation. It finally wound its way down to Back Creek road where we turned right and headed west towards Gembrook. We kept on this road passing the Link road turnoff where the road now changed its name to the Black Snake Creek road. A couple of K's past the Link road turnoff we reached Rocky Ridge Fireline on our left. This is a great little track in the dry, very steep and rutted, however, in the wet it would be an extreme track only attempted by experienced four wheel drivers in very capable vehicles.

At the top we turned left along the Williams Ridge Fireline, eventually coming out onto Link Road where we turned right and headed for home through Gembrook.

This was a great day of four wheel driving. Some excitement in the wet slippery conditions and a lot of varied tracks and vegetation. Remember when dry all the Gembrook area is reasonably easy, but the slightest hint of rain and some of the tracks can become a real challenge, even for hard core vehicles.

This time out we have not included any trip notes as there were so many closed and inaccessible tracks. So the best suggestion is get a good map of the area, pack a picnic lunch and come to the area and go wherever you can.