Welcome to the Huts! Sunday 4 th July 2021

Attendees: Richard & Naomi – Pajero (Trip Leader) Matt – Pajero Rex – Landcruiser David – Prado Simon & Jacob - Triton Tony & Anna - Ranger Shane – Triton Penny & Spence - FJ

Firstly, I would like to say a big thank you to all the members who were able to come out at short notice, 8 vehicles & 13 volunteers was a fantastic turn out. As I had officially signed off on the Adoption in June, we decided to slot in a quick trip to both Moitch & Ridges to introduce any members who had not been out to them before and to also conduct a sort of baseline clean up. Matt, Naomi & I had actually popped out there the day before to do a quick recce and as Matt knows the area better, he showed us a way of getting from one hut to the other with next to no bitumen. We thought this way at least participants actually got to do some driving. As we gathered on the side of the road before heading in.

It was obvious my relying on an early forecast in the week for fine'ish weather was turning out to be very dodgy. When we got home, Naomi looked up that BOM had said 30mm of rain had fallen between 9am & 4pm, tbh I do not think we copped that much of it, but what we did get certainly stopped the dust that you normally get out here. When we had gone in the day before there was a discarded swag and the usual mess of plastic spread everywhere,

as we drove in on the Saturday, I was surprised to see three hikers who had just walked into Moitch and were planning to camp the night. I went over and talked to them explaining what we were doing, that the club had entered into an adoption agreement with DPaW and we were coming back thorough on the Sunday to collect & remove any rubbish. It was quite a surprise when we got back there on the Sunday to find that they (I presume) had gathered all the litter from around Moitch and pilled it under the discarded swag. Awesome effort and I wish I could personally thank them. This of course made the planned clean up time shorter which meant we could chill out a bit between rain showers.

Upon leaving Moitch it was evident by the water sitting in the tracks that a lot of rain had fallen already.

As we exited, we turned East and Matt lead us around the Shooting Complex and up the sand tracks behind it,

the sand was not as loose as it was the day before and by being in 4L which turns off the Mitsi Traction control and running 16psi in the tyres certainly made it easier towing the trailer through it. After the run around the perimeter Matt then cut across Perry Rd to a hardstand to regroup before heading up to Ridges.

As we did not require all hands-on deck at Ridges due to the minimal litter there Dave and Shane decided to head off as they both had other things to do that arvo. The drive through the pines is quite pretty

and shows the contrast between native bush, pine plantation and clear-felled ex pines. I just hope the powers that be do actually have a plan for these ex- plantations and do not just succumb to developers $. After making our way to Ridges I leap-frogged Matt so I had room to turn around with the trailer and also fit the five other cars into the area.

This was agood test as room around the hut is tight and we have had concerns over how many members cars can fit there safely. Litter around the hut was quite minimal apart from the poo tickets, which by being wet entered a whole new level of difficult to pick up! For the life of me I can not grasp how lazy and thoughtless some people must be, why defecate on the ground when there is a perfectly good, well maintained long drop right next to the shelter!

After a bit of a chat we headed back out following Matt to the north to avoid the overgrown direct track to Old Yanchep Rd, unfortunately we did not get any photos airing up on the side of Indian Ocean Dve as basically it was raining too much by then, although damp everyone was still jovial and pleased with what we achieved. As we bid farewell to everyone Naomi and I headed into YNP as I had organized to empty the trailer at DPaW’s works depot .

After doing this we popped into the parks Visitors Centre to say G’Day and let them what we had dropped off. It was interesting talking to Peta & Naomi (another one) about feedback from hikers and their interaction with trailbikes & 4wders that were not doing the right thing in the area. This reiterates why undertaking volunteer works like we have is so important to build trust and that the majority of us are doing the right thing whilst possibly showing people the benefits of belonging to a awesome club like All Tracks.

All the best Richard Cooper