Do we need to pay a fee for our event if our school group is only visiting for the day?
If your event impacts on an accommodation facility, then you will be required to book the facility (min. 2 nights). If your event utilises designated public spaces, including picnic areas, mountain bike networks, fixed orienteering courses or hiking trails, then no fee is charged.
Please note: Public spaces are open to all forest users and Rangers may not approve your activities in a specific public space if your event significantly affects other forest visitors.
Additional portable toilets will be required for large school groups booking sites for day use and will be at the expense of the school. The number of toilets required is 1 toilet for up to 30 people, and 1 toilet for each additional 50 people. If booking an accommodation facility that has an existing single toilet, extra portable toilets will be needed once your group size exceeds 30 people. Please ensure your portable toilets have been arranged for drop off and pick up inside of your bookable period or seek Ranger approval to negotiate a suitable time.
Can we ride mountain bikes on trails throughout the forest?
Kuitpo, Mount Crawford and Second Valley Forests have extensive networks of shared-use trails and fire tracks that can be used for mountain biking.
For the more adventurous riders, ForestrySA has several designated MTB trail networks that are constructed and maintained by trail volunteers and are free to use. These include Fox Creek Bike Park, Bennetts and Kersbrook in Mount Crawford Forest, and Bells Gully (Prospect Hill) in Kuitpo Forest.
Updated trail information is available on the external website Trailforks.
If you are engaging a commercial operator to run bike activities in the forest for your students, please add the name of the business into the description section of your registration or application.
Do we need to register and activity or lodge an event application if visiting TreeClimb Kuitpo Forest?
TreeClimb Kuitpo Forest is an aerial adventure park located adjacent to Chookarloo Campground. The course is managed by TreeClimb and all reservations must be made directly via their website.
An Activity Registration or Event Application is not required when visiting the TreeClimb adventure course site. If you wish to visit the forest for a walk or picnic before or after your visit, you will be required to submit an activity registration or event application.
Please note: Entry and parking for TreeClimb Kuitpo Forest is accessible via Black Nursery Road, Kuitpo.
Can we do night walks in the forest?
For the safety of visitors our forests are closed at night. Our forests contain many hazards, such as fallen timber and uneven surfaces that are difficult to see at night, and our plantations can become very disorienting when dark. Guests staying at campsites and accommodation facilities can move around campgrounds or their facilities, but not in the wider forest plantation.
Can we play music or use a microphone?
Visitors to our forests, including our campgrounds, come to enjoy the peaceful sounds of nature, so we ask all visitors to be mindful of the noise level. You are welcome to play instruments or listen to the radio, but no amplifiers are permitted to be used in the forest without prior Ranger Approval. Noise and lighting must be kept to a minimum after 10pm in all our campgrounds and accommodation facilities.
Can we have campfires in the forest?
Campfires are permitted from 1 May to 30 October in our designated steel fire pits in the picnic areas, campgrounds and accommodation facilities. Fallen timber from the immediate camping area can be used in fire pits. No other vegetation can be removed from the forest or standing timber felled. Rubbish must not be burnt in fire pits, including glass, plastic, cans and timber pallets.
Can we use generators for lighting, heating or fridges?
Generators may only be used with written Ranger approval between 10am-6pm.
Can we tie hammocks, swings or slack line obstacle courses between trees?
The trees in our campgrounds and accommodation facilities provide a sheltered bush camping experience and can take a long time to grow. To keep our trees healthy for everyone to enjoy we do not permit any ropes, tie lines or straps to be attached to the trees. Nails, tacks or screws are also not permitted to attach items to trees.
Can we use material from the forest for bush crafts or bush kindy?
Fallen sticks, nuts, pine cones, leaves and other dry vegetation on the ground around picnic areas and campgrounds can be used for bush activities and taken off site as part of small craft projects. Material should not be collected and taken from the forest for later use, without prior Ranger approval. Please be mindful that these materials can provide homes for a range of insects, lizards and birds living in our forest.
Can we build cubby houses?
Our forest can be a great source of branches for constructing cubby houses. Fallen timber can be used to construct lean-to type shelters in the forest, although make sure these are kept clear of access tracks, walking trails and campsites. Structures must be kept to a minimum and not pose a safety hazard to other forest users. The school is responsible for their own student safety when undertaking this type of activity in the forest. Ropes or strings are not to be tied to the trees in the construction of a cubby house.
Can we use the fixed orienteering courses in the forest?
Orienteering SA have established fixed orienteering courses at Rocky Creek, Kuitpo Headquarters and Christmas Hill at Kuitpo Forest, and Chalks campground at Mount Crawford. The courses vary in difficulty with Easy, Moderate and Scatter levels available.
Updated maps can be downloaded from the OrienteeringSA website by registering your details, or via the links below. Courses are free to use.
A Woodcutters Cottage and Tinjella Hut scatter course is available only to visitors staying at either accommodation facility.
The forest is closed to the public on declared Total Fire Ban days. To report a fire, call 000.
For fire ban information phone 1800 362 361 or visit the CFS website. Being aware of a Total Fire Ban is your responsibility.
Fire is prohibited on ForestrySA land between November 1 and April 30 in any year. (These dates may be extended in areas where high fire danger persists).
