Main Valley and Rockdale Hill Circuit is a 4.7km, grade 4 circuit hike, located in Horsnell Gully and Giles, South Australia. The hike should take approximately 2hrs to complete.

Hike Summary

This hike is a hidden gem in the Adelaide Hills close to Adelaide. The circuit trail is 4.7km return, and takes about 2 hours. There is some single track walking trail, fire tracks, forested valleys and some steep trail sections.

The section at the end of Main Valley up on to the fire tracks on Rockdale Hill is very steep with some loose rocks, and involves walking up a waterfall. If walking clockwise, when you reach the waterfall you need to walk down it, and pick up the trail again at the bottom.

alk beneath majestic river red gums and blue gums to the waterfall. Keep an eye out for koalas in the tree tops or listen for sounds of southern brown bandicoots foraging in the undergrowth.

The trail on Rockdale Hill, and leading to it from a clockwise direction, is mainly fire track.

Near the carpark there are 10 numbered posts marking sites of interest, view info about each on the Friends of Black Hill and Morialta’s website.

There are two roads to access the park:

The park is located near the end of Horsnells Gully Road. The road seems to end at a quarry entrance (no entry), but near the quarry gate there is a small road to the right, with signs and a gate for Horsnell Gully Conservation Park. The road leads to a carpark. Please note that the gate is closed at sunset.

Getting there

There are two roads to access the park:

1. via Old Norton Summit Road, turn up Horsnells Gully Road, or
2. from the top of the Parade, follow Coach Road, Bishop Street and Haven Road. Haven Road is a steep dirt road.

The park is located near the end of Horsnells Gully Road. The road seems to end at a quarry entrance (no entry), but near the quarry gate there is a small road to the right, with signs and a gate for Horsnell Gully Conservation Park. The road leads to a carpark. Please note that the gate is closed at sunset.

GPX file courtesy of Walking SA. File may not contain elevation data and may only represent half the length on return hikes.

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For more information on this hiking trail, please visit Walking SA