Jack Scotts Campground; great free camping near Woods Point
The Victorian High Country has some of the bets camping in Australia, and we thoroughly enjoyed our stay at Jack Scotts Campground.
After a fairly long drive from Big River State Forest, we rolled into Woods Point and were blown away by how small, unique and beautiful it is. We had two campgrounds in mind, and ended up spending three nights at Jack Scotts Campground.
Where is Jack Scotts Campground?
You’ll find this great campground just a few kilometres north of Woods Point, at a big blue sign that shows you there’s a campground there. It’s on the corner and you see a huge amount of the campground as you drive past.
The campground is bordered by a beautiful creek that you drive over on the way in (bridge if you are under 15 tonnes), or you can take the creek crossing if you want a bit of 4WD fun.
What does it cost to stay?
Once again, the camping is 100% free, which is unreal, and totally foreign to us as WA locals, as we have very, very limited free camping.
What’s the campground like?
We loved Jack Scotts Campground. Its huge, has a couple of decent toilets (BYO toilet paper), fire pits, a couple of picnic areas and a stunning little creek that meanders around the outside of the campground.
The entire area is well shaded by big, beautiful mountain ashes and has sections where sun is more prevalent for those looking for solar power.
The campground butts up against the main road going into Woods Point though, so you will get some traffic going past. That said, I reckon we would have counted under 20 vehicles going past on the average day, so its not really something to complain about.
Does it get busy?
We thought we’d have to find somewhere early on Friday to secure a spot, and laughed when just two others pulled in and camped the Saturday night. Other than that, we had the entire place to ourselves. Now, I’m sure this gets busy, as the other campgrounds were when we drove past, but there’s plenty of room and as long as everyone is respectful there shouldn’t be an issue.
Are there other campgrounds nearby?
I still find it hard to comprehend how many campgrounds there are in the Victorian High Country. After our visit to Mt Terrible, we drove along the Mansfield-Woods Point Road, and went past about 6 beautiful campgrounds right on the river, with good amenities.
Granted, they are all right near the main road, but its not that busy and the area is absolutely stunning. You really wouldn’t go too wrong camping at any of these, and there’s so much choice!
If you have a 4WD, we thought Comet Flat was marginally better, but towing something in here would be pushing the friendship without major clearance, and its got zero phone reception.
See the vlog
Want to see more? Here’s our vlog:
4WD tracks around Jack Scotts Campground and Woods Point
When we arrived at Jack Scotts, I opened up Exploroz Traveller, Google Maps and Newtracs to look around, and was shocked at the number of 4WD tracks. From where we were camped, I reckon there would have been at least 30 to do, within a 50km radius, which is absolutely insane.
Some run right behind the Jack Scotts Campground (Knickers track, Brewery track etc) and others are further away, but you have absolutely no shortage of High Country 4WD Tracks to do.
We headed out one day and drove to Mt Terrible via Moonlight Spur, Mt Terrible Track and down Poletti Track, which was a fairly solid day out for the family.
Is Jack Scotts Campground worth staying at?
Yep, and I don’t think you’d go too wrong with any of the campgrounds in this area. Support the town if you can (its slowed a lot!), and soak up the history, stunning views and beautiful region. There’s nothing else in Australia that compares, and we’ll be back for sure!
