MUNDARING POWERLINE TRACK
Through online boards and our
website we had been contacted by locals from around Australia and Geoff
from the Jeep Owners Club in Perth was following our trip on our site
and sent us an email to invite us on a run. When we called to let him
know that we had reached Perth he said: "I know, you have been spotted
on the road by a friend on the board!" We guess we can't hide anything
around here...
He organized a trail ride just for us and we met up east of Perth to go
on the Mundaring Powerline Track, a popular route for local four-wheelers.
The area here is very flat and these hills are about as high as it gets,
Geoff apologized. Because of a major construction site on the highway
we had to take an alternative route to the track. The trail runs, how
could it be different, along a power line and offers some nice obstacles
involving big boulders, sand and quite some twisting. There are also several
mudholes but because it hadn't rained in over two months, these were dry.
We came to a rocky slope and we all could test our rigs' articulation.
We crawled down the track and snaked beneath the power lines (pic01) until
we got to a wider area where several options were open. Steve in his YJ
lead the trail and worked his way downhill. Dennis steered his 1999 Wrangler
with 35 inch tires down a rock garden, a stretch of big boulders which
was off camber to the left (pic02). He successfully manouvered through
this obstacle. I took a similar line and after moving a rock with my left
front tire managed to drive it as well. All remaining vehicles chose the
twisty by-pass (pic03). A couple of stock Toyotas caught up with us; their
drivers enjoyed the show but took a third less tricky route and pushed
on. Further down an area which usually consisted of mud was dried up and
featured deep ruts to play in. On a tougher section one of our Bushwacker
fender flares got quite a beating. The rear part of the right rear flare
ripped off partly as the rig leaned into a solid dirt wall.
The track started to climb up the hill again and we tackled some steep
inclines with more photo ops. Just before we reached our lunch spot we
hit some opposing traffic. A group of trucks more typical for Down Under
passed: Nissan Patrols, Mitsubishi Pajeros (Monteros), and Toyota Land
Cruisers. They snaked down the trail and disappeared in the distance.
We enjoyed our snacks in the shade and talked about rigs, four-wheeling,
and touring. Soon after we reached a crossroad which we took back to the
main highway. The track actually continues for quite a while and contains
an obstacle known as the LR300 hill because a Mitsubishi LR300 (4x4 minivan)
once rolled down the hill.
Before hitting pavement, we aired up our tires and posed for one last
group shot. Geoff invited us to stop by his shop to fix our torn fender
flare and view his Jeep collection (see Cool
Rigs).
We were once again amazed at the hospitality of Australian four-wheelers
who went out of their way to hook up with us.
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pic01
pic02
pic03
for more pics click here
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