Adelaide Off the Beaten Path Tips by Diceman_

Marino Conservation Park is located south of Glenelg in the suburb of Marino. It is a small rectanglular park with a lighthouse (off-limits), and superb views of Adelaide's coastline accessible by a short walk uphill. A good route is to walk north from the carpark to the lighthouse, then west to the coastal views, north along the coast, then east back to the carpark (or you can take a path that cuts diagonally back to the lighthouse, to savour the views as you walk back to the carpark).

It is located in a fairly convenient location for anyone visiting the Glenelg/Brighton/Marion area. After turning into James Scholfioeld drive via Brighton road, follow the roundabouts and bends along Newland Avenue, then turn into Nimboya Rd which has a brown sign pointing the way to Marino Conservation Park. See photos for a map.

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Website: www.marion.sa.gov.au/Web/webmar.nsf/Lookup/Marino+Conservation+Park

Onkaparinga National Park, about 35km directly south of the city centre is a good park for adventurous exploration, with a number of walking trails of varying quality found at various access points. A map of the park found at the "main" entrances is quite useful. One problem with some trails is overgrowth, due to what must be a lack of park management.
The greenery is at its best in Winter and Spring, before the Kangaroo Grass has turned brown in anticipation of the dry summer.

A large part the central area of the park was subject to a bushfire in late December 2006 (due to arson).

For people visiting the park the first time, my recommendation is:
1. Enter Piggot Range Road, Onkaparinga Hills, from Coxs Hill Road. The first entrance encountered with a dirt carpark and pedestrian gate leads to several trails. A good sense of direction is advised.
2. Alternatively, further down the road there is a larger carpark. Walk down a gravel road and turn left at a dirt path where there are signs pointing to a lookout and Sundews trail. Follow this path until encountering a wooden platform.

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Website: http://www.postcards.sa.com.au/features/onka_host.html

This is pretty small for a conservation park but it also has a lot of stuff in it's relatively small area.
It's another one of those nice, out of the way wilderness areas where you can pretend civilisation is a million miles off and has lots of good walking trails. No need to worry about getting lost here as you'll never get too far away from where you parked. Near the car park there are old mining trenches here and there and a mineshaft going in the side of the hill (bring a torch or you'll probably decide give it a miss upon reading the "do not go in without a torch" signs at the entrance.) It takes you back in time and makes you think about these people who went out to the middle of nowhere (as it was at the time) to manually bore their way through solid rock all day long.

Directions:
It's not too far from the city, the simplest way to get there is to take Main Road through and past Blackwood, turn left onto Cherry Gardens Road, then turn right onto Dorset Vale Road which leads to the car park area.

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Website: http://homepages.picknowl.com.au/peters/introduction.htm

Kuitpo (pronounced kai-po) Forest is situated about 40 km South-East of the city centre. It consists of a number of individual plantation forests near the towns of Meadows and Kangarilla. Densely packed Pine and Eucalyptus trees are to be found, bordered by farmland and Vineyards. There are walking trails and evenly spaced dirt roads to walk on.
Any of the various sections is worth exploring, there is a campground along Razorback Road (not covered by UBD maps) which has a pit toilet and a small cottage for hire.

Directions:
From South Road, turn onto Chandlers Hill Road, and follow the road signs to Clarendon and then Meadows.

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Website: http://www.forestry.sa.gov.au/crawford.stm

Featuring similar views to Mt Lofty, Mt Osmond reserve is located off the Mt Osmond turnoff on Princes Highway, Glen Osmond. This is really an off the beaten path location as the only place to park a car is in a fire truck entrance. Frequented mainly by cyclists and fitness fanatics, Mt Osmond provides more up-close views of Adelaide in a more picnic-like setting than Mt Lofty Summit. Driving to the reserve takes you past the houses of the well-heeled, who enjoy these views out of their windows.

To find the reserve, take the Mt Osmond exit along Princes highway a short distance uphill from the Cross Road Intersection. Stay on Mt Osmond Road, turning right at Mt Osmond Golf Course, and follow the perimieter of the golf course until encountering a vehicle gate. Park here, being careful not to park on the "keep clear" section.

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Website: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mount_Osmond,_South_Australia

Onkaparinga Estuary is located between Port Noarlunga and Old Noarlunga, located within Onkaparinga River Recreation Park. The "Pingle Farm track" gives you an idea of what the area was like before it became urban sprawl. There is an abandoned farm property built in 1862, given that most of it is in ruins I am surprised to learn that it was occupied until the 1970's.
The track forms a loop and you can choose a short or a longer route depending on the time available and physical condition. It is mostly level ground with well defined paths.
The track can be started from Commercial Road or Sauerbiers Road in the suburb of Seaford Meadows.

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Website: www.parks.sa.gov.au

This hill was used as a "trig point" by Colonel William Light when surveying the original Adelaide plan. It is located in the suburb of Brown Hill Creek, and the hill can be ascended from Brownhill Creek Caravan park (not recommended) or from McElligotts Reserve on Carrick Hill Road. The start of the Carrick Hill Rd path looks like a private driveway as someone has built a house adjacent to it and has placed their letterbox (and bin) at the bottom.

I first walked up Brown hill at night and found it fairly mild, not too strenuous as far as hill climbs go. I walked the next day and found it a lot psychologically tougher because the path looked very steep and long in front of me, and there were scores of flies constantly buzzing around my face. Walking during the cooler months is recommended. Also due to its location it might be busier than elsewhere, there were about 30 people coming the other way when I descended on some sort of hiking group. They were dressed in identical garb to me (hat, backpack, stick) and some (who didn't see me descend from the top) were looking at me like I was part of their group but had packed it in halfway up.

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