Julimar State Forest (AKA Julimar Conservation Park) is a 4WD adventure playground within an hour and a half of Perth. And the best part about it is that it is quiet and secluded; perfect for those looking to escape city life for the weekend and relax in Perth’s beautiful woodlands.
After living in Perth for over 2 years we were surprised that we had never been here before, or even heard of the place! So a few weeks ago we got to explore the area and camp out for the night in perfect seclusion. We only saw 2 other people on motorbikes over the two days! This is what we found …
The location
Located approximately 90kms from Perth near Chittering and Toodyay, just north east of the Swan Valley, Julimar is an easy drive from Perth. This means that it is perfect for a day out exploring or a weekend camping. You don’t have to travel too far for a bit of off road adventure.
There are various points where you can enter the park. We traveled along Julimar Road and entered at Western Boundary Road. We let our tyres down here as you immediately enter the forest tracks.
4WD Tracks
The whole forest is an off road adventure park. The main tracks are well defined and sign posted. As the forest is up in the Perth hills the tracks are gravel, clay and red mud. Some of the tracks are a tight squeeze, we even struggled in our skinny Mitsubishi Delica. We had heard of soft bog holes but we didn’t encounter any sticking along the western border. I believe these, as well as the steep hills, are located more toward the east side.
Creek Crossing in Julimar State Forest
Testing out the water depth at the creek
We visited in the middle of winter after a particularly rainy couple of weeks which meant there were lots of muddy puddles to play in as well as creek crossings. The main creek was flowing a little too high but we managed to pass through plenty of massive puddles and high flowing streams along the tracks. Our wellies were put to good use (we should probably call them gumboots since we are in ‘straya).
Camping
There are no official camping spots nor any official advice on overnight camping. This means that there are no facilities at all so you need to be completely self sufficient. If you do stay for the night ensure you leave no trace by taking everything home with you.
Have you visited Julimar State Forest? How did you find the 4WD tracks?