If you are a 4wdriver in South-East Queensland, you likely know of Janowen Hills 4WD Park. It has been around for over 20 years and is one of the best 4wd parks with a variety of tracks from easy to extreme. In fact, there are over 100 4wd tracks to explore in the nearly one-thousand-acre property.
I’m almost ashamed that it has taken me so long to get here. Every time an opportunity arose, there was a family event or other reason why I couldn’t go. This time, I set the date for a trip with the Moreton Districts Off Road Club. Then chose a new date when it clashed with another club event. As my first trip to lead in a number of years, we had seven vehicles attend, with 16 members.
Finally, we made it to Janown Hills at the end of August, during a noticeably colder than usual winter’s year. My son Daniel and I arrived late on Friday, with barely enough light to set up our camper. Our meal plan was basic for the weekend and Daniel prepared our hotdog dinner (heated frankfurts in rolls with sauce). The camp fire was already going to sit around and catch up with the others who arrived earlier in the day. The minimum temperatures were expected to reach -2º, but luckily only reached 4º with a feels like temperature of -2º.
Arriving Friday let us wake up ready to start exploring the tracks, after a warm cuppa and a cold cereal breakfast (I forgot to bring the eggs). It also gave me time to remove the doors off my Jeep Rubicon, and with the help of club members, removed the hardtop roof as well. I have always wanted to try it on the tracks without doors and planned on doing this for weeks before coming to Janowen Hills. Many were questioning my sanity with the 35-kilometre winds with an expected maximum of 15 degrees.
One of the members was familiar with the tracks and guided us through the park, starting with a shallow creek crossing and an optional longer and deeper water track – for me it was no doors, no water track. The height of the river water proved to be shallow enough, so we later drove along the deeper track as well.
We pulled up at the rock and the first vehicle lined up to attempt the short climb. Wheel holes perfectly spaced at the base and top of the rock made it a difficult challenge. Choosing a line and taking advantage of a smaller rock placed at the base, the Nissan Patrol climbed the rock. The next vehicle, another Nissan Patrol, had the same issue. Lining up differently, strategically ensuring the front tyres were on a higher part of the rock next to the wheel hole, it too made it to the top.
I was concerned that my Jeep wouldn’t clear the rock, with a lower ramp-over angle than the two Patrols. Part of my concern was confidence as it had been a while since driving this sort of terrain. I lined up for a similar approach and climbed up without any issue, an no belly scrape on the way either. Getting excited and some confidence, I looked at several options only a few metres on and chose a long wombat hole track that had several axle-crossing humps and holes to negotiate.
One of the great features of Janowen Hills 4WD Park is that the hard tracks are interspersed with the easy tracks. For the most part, the Moreton Districts Off Road Club members drove together and those who wanted to try the more challenging tracks did so while the other watched or drove on easier challenges at the same spot.
The next challenge was a rocky hill climb with a couple of small but slippery rock ledges to get over. The first to attempt it slipped off the rock ledge and what looked like all four wheels bounced off the track at the same time. A comp truck then came down the other way, down a hidden steep rock step that made it look like it was going to nose dive as it came off of it. An easier but still steep option was to the left which we took two vehicles up, with diff locks helping to maintain steady momentum.
We went back to camp for lunch, then headed to two lookouts in the park. The track was rated as medium but was easy, other than being a little steep in sections. It is only permitted in dry weather and requires calling on UHF radio to ensure the track is clear because there isn’t a lot of room for passing.
The first view looks back down to campground 1 near the office, and campground 4 in the background where there are cabins to stay in. The track continues on to the second lookout, a little higher than the first looking over the eastern part of the property.
After the lookouts, we headed over towards the eastern side of the property. This side is generally tamer but there are still some challenges along the way. We drove along some rocky trails with large holes, rocks, and tight corners to negotiate. An easy track ran beside all of these tracks, so all vehicles and drivers were able to travel together.
The convoy split up for a while in the afternoon with a couple of vehicles spotting some hills to play on, a couple headed back to camp to settle in for the evening, and the rest of us headed to another play area with wombat holes and large tyres.
At camp, we had a great campfire to keep warm next to. The fire didn’t keep the camper warm though, and with several layers of clothing and blankets the crisp below 0º temperatures gave a final punch for the of winter. We woke up with the winds gone but still very cool morning. The campfire was welcomely reignited to warm up next to while working out how to pour frozen water and get canister gas stoves to work in the cold. Cups of hot drinks were achieved before some started packing to go home and others prepared to hit the trails for a few hours.
Sunday started at the Quarry, only a few minutes from the campground with an optional short but fun hill to climb up. We had played a little in the quarry the day before but we played more today. The quarry has several hill climbs of varying length, some with crossed up wheel holes, others with steep rock bump-ups. Daniel had a play up some more difficult hills than he had a go of the day before.
We parked to take some photos of one of the vehicles attempting one of the more challenging hills when we heard the tyres rubbing against the wheel arch. At first, we thought it was against the plastic trim that had dislodged but on closer inspection, the trailing arm had a serious bend pulling the axle closer to the body. For safety, the vehicle was taken back to camp and organised for towing home.
The difficulty of the tracks range from easy, medium, difficult, and extreme. The difficulty rating seems to vary a little, with some medium tracks quite easy and some extreme to be closer to difficult, although one difficult track attempted by a couple of vehicles on the first day ended up being extreme. It was here that we suspect the trailing arm had been damaged, in addition to another vehicle that broke a CV. For the most part the ratings are decent and checking the track to assess the obstacles and challenges it presented, including the exit options at the end of the track, addressed any possible issues beforehand.
Leaving the quarry, still close to camp, we found another hill with large and alternating holes and mounds that twisted up the hill. We walked the track to assess it and found the lines we wanted to drive up. The Jeep crawled up steadily and surely with the axles flexing back and forth on the way. A drone was used to capture the drive but unfortunately it crashed into a tree when it tried to return itself back to the bottom of the hill.
The Nissan Patrol did the same track as well, heading up to the top and then turning around to come back down it. These tracks are a great challenge to learn and test your skills. It isn’t particularly steep and there is little risk of damaging your vehicle. Yet, it is difficult enough to be a challenge for the more capable vehicles and requires picking your lines.
Looking for more challenges, we headed back to the first play area from the day before, as it had several short and long tracks to try out. The first track we tried was simple and easy. We looped back to the bottom and checked out a track similar to the earlier one, but with a more solid rock base instead of dirt and deeper holes at the centre.
The first part was straight forward but the later parts needed a good drive line, with the tyres gripping the rock with only the edge of tread. Driving with the wheels in the holes would have created some rather uncomfortable angles.
Afterwards, we drove back to camp to finish packing up to head home. With everything packed up, and roof back on while we had others to help us lift it on, Daniel and I headed back out for some more play with him behind the wheel for some extra hours on his learners. Places like Janowen Hills 4WD Park is great for a learner, as it focuses on clutch control, vehicle positioning, and steering control, in a way that isn’t possible on normal roads.
This may have been my first visit to Janowen Hills but it certainly won’t be my last. We had a great time exploring and driving the various challenges with a great group of people at Moreton Districts Off Road Club to help support and spot us during the drives.
