Hiking Expo 2023

Opening of the Bushwalking Season
Sunday 2nd April 2023
Belair National Park

On this page:

An expo to celebrate the start of the South Australian bushwalking season. With the arrival of cooler autumn weather, hiking is an ideal outdoor activity. South Australia’s bushwalking clubs and Walking SA are coming together to celebrate the occasion with a unique day in Belair National Park.

Expo of walking tours, walking destinations, outdoor retailers, walking clubs, free entry. 9am to 1pm.
Guided hikes ranging from 45mins to 3 hours, including child friendly, dog friendly and Accessible options. Walks depart every 10 minutes from 9:20am to 1pm. Secure a place on a specific guided walk by registering online from March 2023, or just arrive on the day and choose a guided walk to join.
Bushwalking equipment and experience demonstration stage
Promote sustainability by selling or donating outdoor gear to the Recycle Your Quality Outdoor Gear Stall. It could be shoes or a backpack that you bought but didn’t turn out to be for you, but is still quite new, or it could be a used piece of gear that still has some life.

Location

Main Oval, Belair National Park

When

9am to 1:00pm
Sunday 2nd April 2023

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Cost

Free vehicle entry to national park for expo visitors
Free entry to expo
Guided Walks: $7 on the day to participate. Secure a place on your chosen guided walk by purchasing a ticket online

Guided Walks

There are guided hikes ranging from 45mins to 3 hours, including child friendly, dog friendly and Accessible options.

Walks depart the expo site every 10 minutes from 9:20am to 1:00pm.

Walks are $7 per person:

Secure a place on your chosen guided walk book online from mid March 2023
or arrive at the expo and choose from available walks

Exhibit at the expo

We welcome walking clubs, like-minded organisations, outdoor retailers and nature based tourism operators to exhibit at the expo.

Apply to exhibit at Expo

Marketing Toolkit

We welcome walking clubs, participating organisations and event websites to promote the event.

A marketing toolkit is available in Dropbox (no requirement to have a DropBox account to download items.)

Download Marketing Toolkit

Event brought to you by

Presented by
Principal Event Partner
Supporting Partner
Community Partners

Hikes on the Day

There are guided hikes ranging from 45mins to 3 hours, including child friendly, dog friendly and Accessible options.

Details of the dozen walks will be published in March 2023.

Guided Walks

Guided Walks depart the expo site every 10 minutes from 9:20am to 1:00pm.

You can secure a place on a specific guided walk by registering online from March, for $7 per person, or just arrive on the day and choose an available guided walk to join for $7 per person or $14 per family (up to 3 children with 1-2 adults).

Location Map & Getting There

Car parking is limited so we encourage car pooling or public transport use.

The expo is accessible by Adelaide Metro public transport, refer to walking directions below the map.

By Train

Adelaide Metro Belair train, get off at the terminus (Belair Railway Station).

Trains arrive every 30 minutes, at 7:25am, 7:57am, 8:25am, 8:57am, 9:25am, 9:57am, 10:25am, 10:57am, 11:25am and 11:57am.

Trains depart from Belair Railway Station every 30 minutes at 10:13am, 10:44am, 11:13am, 11:44am, 12:13pm, 12:44pm, 1:13pm, 1:44pm, 2:13pm, 2:44pm, and 3:14pm

Walk directions from train station (15mins walk, 1.5km) – follow the Expo trail markers:

1. Begin by following the Yurrebilla Trail signs (yellow)
2. The Microcarpa Hike (green signs) joins shortly afterwards, and is along the same route
3. After passing Playford Lake you pass a tennis court and cross the creek on a bridge – you’re almost there!
4. When you see the Lorikeet Loop Walk (red signs), turn right and follow the trail to Mail Oval and where the Hiking Expo is located

By Bus

Adelaide Metro 195 and 196 bus service from the city via Unley Road to Blackwood Interchange. Bus stops at Stop 29 Hollywood Way, Glenalta (first service arrives 9:36am, then 11:37am).

We suggest you use Google Maps to plan your bus connections by entering the address ‘Main Oval, Belair SA 5052’ or by using this Google Maps link: https://goo.gl/maps/h9EWGk9nYETaLzUB6

Walk directions from the main entrance (8min walk, 500m) – follow the Expo trail markers:

1. Enter the park via the main entrance gate off Upper Sturt Road
2. Begin by following the Lorikeet Loop Walk (red signs) to the RIGHT (follow it anti-clockwise)
3. Watch out for the Main Oval on your right, where the Hiking Expo is located

FAQ

What's at the Expo?

The expo consists of over 30 exhibitors, providing information about walking opportunities and trails, walking groups, walking tours & travel, walking destinations, outdoor gear, and walking maps.

There are guided hikes ranging from 45mins to 3 hours, including child friendly, dog friendly and Accessible options. Guided Walks depart the expo site every 10 minutes from 9:20am to 1:00pm. View the guided walks.

We'll be promoting a list of all the exhibitors in the week leading up to the event, so keep a watch out.

Who is organising this event?

Presented by
Principal Event Partner
Supporting Partner
Community Partners

Walking SA is the Presenter of this annual Hiking Expo, having done so for many years, hinged on the opening of the bushwalking season each year in April.

Walking SA is the not-for-profit peak body that leads, promotes and supports all forms of walking in South Australia. Our vision is to see more people walking more often. You can support Walking SA's efforts by becoming a Supporter from as little as $22.

The event is presented in conjunction with:

Principal Event Partner National Parks and Wildlife Service South Australia
Supporting Partner Forestry SA
Community Partner Friends of the Heysen Trail
Community Partner Retire Active SA Bushwalkers

How do I get to the Expo?

The hiking expo is accessible by Adelaide Metro public transport.

For travel by car, there is limited car parking available in multiple car parks around the expo site, so we encourage car pooling or public transport use. Marshals will be directing drivers to parking locations throughout the park, and you can follow walking paths and roadside paths to the expo site at Main Oval.

Details instructions about getting to the event, parking and public transport times are in the section above labelled Location Map & Getting There.

What food is at the Expo?

Details about food will be added closer to the event.

How do I participate in a walk?

Guided Walks will depart every 10 minutes from 9:20am to 1:00pm.

You can secure a place on a specific guided walk by registering online for $7 per person from March 2023, or just arrive on the day and choose an available guided walk to join for $7 per person or $14 per family (up to 3 children with 1-2 adults).

What do I need to wear and bring on the day?

Read the full guidelines.

To ensure the safety and enjoyment of your experience on one of the guided hikes, we recommend you consider and bring:

observe social distancing practices
maintain personal hygiene (apply hand sanitiser and protect others if I cough/sneeze)
not share drink bottles, eating utensils, other personal items and equipment.
wear some runners or hiking boots
wear a hat and sunblock
if there is a chance of rain, bring a rain jacket or umbrella
bring 1-2L of water (water bottles can be refilled at the Expo site)
bringing and using your own supply of hand sanitiser

Read the full guidelines.

Can I bring my dog to the Expo?

Dogs are welcome at the Expo provided they remain under control and on a lead no more than two metres in length, that you bring disposable bags to clean up your dog’s faeces and be mindful of other people.

Can I bring my dog along on a walk?

Dogs are welcome on walks marked "Dog Friendly", provided they remain under control and on a lead no more than two metres in length, that you bring disposable bags to clean up your dog’s faeces and be mindful of other event participants and trail users.

Is the expo site Accessible for wheelchairs users?

The expo site is on a gravel and dry grasssed area, with some overflow onto the green grassed area of Main Oval.

There are several walks available which are Wheelchair Friendly.

Walk registrations and water will be inside of the Pavilion shed, there is no step to enter.

There are modern toilets on-site, which include a Disabled Toilet.

There are priority disabled car parking areas and drop-off areas in the two car parks closest to the expo site:

Main Oval, enter via the main park entrance off Upper Sturt Road (Google Maps link: https://goo.gl/maps/1a3E8BPs4Fk9dEAS6), and follow signs to Main Oval. These carparking spaces are temporary and are on a bitumen surface, and are 30 metres from the expo northern entrance, along bitumen and gravel paths.
The large carpark at the former Country Club, outside of the caravan park, enter off Upper Sturt Road at the "Belair National Park Holiday Park" marked entrance (Google Maps link: https://goo.gl/maps/Gb43Wn8zv5ptCYQi8). These carparking spaces are temporary and are on a rough gravel surface, and are 50 metres from the expo southern entrance, through a personal-access gate and along gravel paths.