In the latest round of what can only be called borderline militant stupidity, steel spikes have been found after destroying a four-wheel driver’s tyres, in the Toolangi State Forest in Victoria. We’ve been told that unfortunately this is not the first time locals have had the Toolangi fire trails spiked.
It is becoming worryingly common in state forests and some national parks across Australia, with many blaming borderline militant greens groups out to stop four-wheel drives, motorbikes and mountain bikers from using the areas.
Mason Friedl recently uploaded photos onto social media group “4X4ing Australia” after his two driver’s side tyres were punctured by spikes laid in the trail. The spikes were found along 20 metres of track, which Mason states was an hour long drive from the bitumen. The implication being that whoever planted them owned a four-wheel drive themselves; the hypocrisy not lost on Mason.
The greatest concern is for people and children utilising the area, should they trip and fall or tread on the spikes, it could lead to a lie threatening injury, and in this specific area, you may be over an hour away from the nearest bitumen road where an Ambulance can meet you, if you’ve not punctured tires as well.
Aside from the obvious potentially lethal harm that could come from anyone who may happen upon these stakes, is that these trails serve as fire trails for the local Country Fire Authority (CFA) brigades. The recent devastating fires in Bunyip in the states south, could have been immeasurably worse, had a CFA tanker struck laid spikes or a fire fighter tripped and fallen onto them, while attempting to access areas to fight the fires.
Unfortunately common sense isn’t as prevalent as we all would hope with the Toolangi fire trails spiked, but should you happen to come across some, remove whatever you can find, and post up the information and location onto social media for others to be made aware – drop us a line, and we can help get the word out too!
49 comments
Contact police and takes photos
What if there was a bush fire and the regional fire trucks were in the forest battling the flames and got flat tires as a result of this stupidity. Not only a massive problem extracting the trucks from the area, but removes a valuable fire fighting resource from further activity, and puts volunteer fire fighter lives at risk. Whoever put the spikes in place are prime candidates for the Darwin award!
You might want to suggest “Call the police” as the first thing to do, then perhaps social media.
“with many blaming borderline militant greens groups”
….or, krazy kids, some sadistic messed up outcast, some local with a grudge? True greens would be the least likely to do something so reckless, the sicko or grudge barer might claim to be a green, but it’s unlikely to be the true motivation, it’d be closer to self interest, however messed up it might be.
This sort of activity happens on the Kew Boulevard, the spreading of tacks on the road to try to stop cyclists, even in the TDF, or spiked running trails in North Carolina. The perpetrators have one thing in common, a reckless disregard for the safety of others, that’s all they are likely to truly share, the motivation for the acts would vary greatly.
Maybe don’t be so quick to cast or broadcast extreme aspersions without even a hint of offering an alternate explanation, doing so makes you part of the problem. Wes I think you need to step up and be a journalist, else you risk your credibility.
“borderline militant greens groups”. You mean CRIMINAL GREENS groups.
Sam stop making excuses for those criminal greens or you risk becoming the problem, not just part of it.
So what happens when fire trucks go on the tracks GREENS I.ll tell you 4 flat tryers GOOD thinking yobo.s
Impale the greenie morons on their own spikes!
I can’t believe the mentality of people, this is the pinochle of dumb , they will be the first to cry if there is afire and burns there house down cus the fire fighters have flat tyres . Watch out Australia there is a new breed of stupid out there
Well said Sam.
I hope that either these scum bags spiking tracks get caught or get a really massive dose of karma. How dare they, 4wdrivers, drive legally registered vehicles, on a mapped track. We don’t destroy tracks, rain water does most of the damage.
Those spikes look like spikes that a stone mason/fixer uses to fix stone panels as cladding on buildings
Reminds me of the traps the communists set up in Vietnam during the war.
I wonder if there’s a connection?
A most stupid act placing traps like this and it makes you wonder about the mindset of the offender/s. It would be rather pointless calling police as there would be very little chance of them being able to charge anyone so it is doubtful they would attend. By all means take photos of the spikes or whatever in situ, note the location and remove the spikes. On reaching the nearest police station THEN make a report. It all goes toward creating an intel file re what is happening in that area. If Forestry or National Parks have anycameras in the area they may be able to provide some assistance, if they don’t it may encourage them to install cameras.
the people doing this ARE potential killers and are nothing but murdering psychopaths, a motorbikes tyre suddenly going flat would cause the bike to lose control if the rider did not end up wrapped around a tree he would be lucky.
people are dom they can not help it
I have a 4×4 so that I can access deep into the ‘Green’. I respect the bush and its rugged beauty. I look after the tracks wherever I can by not being a hoon. Does this make me a Greenie?
This act of intended – willful destruction is obviously done by Narcistic personalities that have no ability to grasp their idiocy and criminal actions. They might be Green, they might be Farmers, they might be locals, they might be other 4×4 owners wanting to minimize the traffic so that they can enjoy the tracks for themselves. You cannot simply just point a finger. This is supposed to be a developed, mature and smart society that ‘considers’ before it ‘jumps’.
I believe that a 4×4 user can be Green if they use the vehicle with a similar philosophy to me. I also believe that some people do presidpose the tracks to increased levels of erosion through their actions. This in itself is vandalism. There are the bad amongst us all that make it difficult for everyone else. If we want to continue enjoying this natural bounty we need to “tread lightly” (as Simon would say) and appreciate that there are many users of these tracks for different reasons.
Yes, lets catch the bastards, along with the Firebugs and inflict a punishment but this is much easier said than done. We all need to be diligent and mindful of suspicious behavior and actively seek to ‘report’ as appropriate.
Disgraceful, irresponsible, stupid, and criminal. Let’s hope the perpetrator(s) are caught and face the full force of the law.
Don’t jump to conclusions about the source. The article shouldn’t have published the unsubstantiated knee jerk opinions of a few red necks. Quite often actions like these are home grown – ie a local annoyed at something, like shooters coming on to their properties. A local set rabbit traps along a National park track restricted to walkers years ago. Hundreds of spikes found on a NZ racetrack was not the work of animal activists but a disgruntled local. Whoever is responsible has a warped sense of right and wrong and clearly has no concept of the dangers.
Those tyres look too big to be legal on a Hill anyway. Shouldn’t have been driving the thing.
Agree Sam. It isn’t “militant greens” who put wire across bike and horse tracks, sometimes even roads.
Again, well said.
Similar thing was happening on Yorke Peninsula until local police advised that if perpetrator was caught they could be charged with attempted manslaughter, particular emphasis for motor cycle riders crashing. Hope they get caught.
Wrong. The greenies hammered spikes into trees in South West Tasmania in the 70’s and some chainsaw operators were injured by kickbacks and disintegrating chains. Some environmental radicals are very stupid indeed.
Shooters coming on to properties in the Toolangi State Forest? Bullshit. Its Greens.
Unfortunately our laws suck and they will probably only get a slap on the wrist, we need some judges with a few more balls
Simple solution – motion activated cameras as used by wildlife researchers – photograph every vehicle that goes down the road – check say onec a week for spikes and then follow up. The innocent have nothing to fear!
Just read the Age report on the same topic and it made no mention of rabid Greenies, nor did the various authorities contacted. The Age did however mention a previous act where someone had put sharpened star pickets into a mud hole in the Toolangi state forest. These acts are probably related and are the actions of a sociopath whether they’re red/green, left/right, fat/thin, christian/agnostic or town/country.
Seriously??? So what exactly is the maximum legal tyre size for driving on a hill? And why is it any different from driving on flat ground? Are there differences in maximum legal tyre sizes for different road sufaces as well as angle of inclination? I’m really concerned I may have been breaking several laws over the last 30 years of driving, as not once have I ever carried 3 sets of different sized tyres so I can legally get to my destination with all the hills around, and switching from bitumen to concrete highways and then on to dirt and gravel roads. Oh, and of course there’s dry weather and wet weather…. do we need to carry a dozen sets of tyres everywhere we go? Shit, we’re all gonna need bigger trucks just to carry our assortment of wheels & tyres to stay legal over different terrain.
Same sort of imbeciles who put spikes in trees endangering those going about their lawful business. I say if they are caught that possessions of theirs to the potential value of damage possible be confiscated and sold with funds going to SES or the like.
To be honest I say it’s more likely that there is a dope crop growing near the area.
If you look around or up there may be a marker to warn “those who know”.
I think all this is barbarrick and there’s only 1 solution….. hang the bastard and then use the spikes on him as target practice
Sure it is. Got the Lotto numbers as well?
Complete myth. Tree spiking was apparently aimed at making a tree less valuable. Any which MAY have been spiked would have been clearly marked and obvious. No workers were injured as a result of activists in Tasmania. You last sentence is however true. Same can be said of a small percentage of 4WDers
You are not thinking clearly Dane. Regardless of your opinion on the legality of the vehicle, the stakes are outrageous. As is your comment.
Begging your pardon Barry, as a bush walker and 4 W.D. owner myself, I can attest to many 4 W.D. owners destroying tracks willingly and deliberately. In fact they don’t even stick to tracks either, they go bush and destroy the forest and creeks as well. See the results of it all the time.
3 balls?
There were many cases of spikes being placed in trees in Eastern Victoria & Southern NSW. The outcome was damage to the saw mills When this started happening, the mills installed metal detectors to shut down the saws. This worked for a short time until the anti logging protesters started using non metal (ceramic & stone) spikes. How do I know? I was there working & saw a circular saw blade destroyed & pieces fly around the shed. We found the remnants of the spike. This happened before there was even internet so many commenting on here were not even born.
There are fire tracks in Southern NSW that the fire service will not use because of spikes.
who ever has put these spikes there have gone to a lot of trouble to satisfie their intent to cause harm and even death to others not to mention wilful damage to other peoples property, word will get out these people will have to tell someone what they have done and then down at local drinking hole people will know who these so called peices of scum are and good old justice will prevale so keep an eye out on the tracks and stay safe everyone
Bloody idiots ! ! ! ! . .
Irresponsible, Criminal act. . . as mentioned. .
these people Must have had a 4×4 0r Motor bike to get to these places to Spike the trails. .
and as also mentioned What about Forestry Rangers, CFA – Fire Fighters, Water Tankers and support vehicles or Ambulance that may use these tracks in Emergency situations. .
these people who have spiked the trails are malicious and just . .Stupid . .
Not Considering the consequences of their actions ! !
They should be held accountable ! !
Until we have some laws and punishments with ‘teeth’, nothing is going to happen to the terrosist coward that would even contemplate putting a hazard out in the public space.
After reading the parthetic outcome for the specimens that stole goats from the Gippy Goat Farm, there seems to be a poor response from the legal system to these types of occurences.
Probably better to run over a bastard hammering in spikes if ever seen doing it ( couldn’t avoid colliding due to deflated tyres )!
Same goes for the arsonist cowards.
If I catch anyone placing spikes, or anything else I will be applying *rule* 303!
Which sawmill was that Andrew?
It is concerning when so many contributors to this topic (and so many others), wish destruction and even death on others. Our outrage seems to be way beyond reasonable for so may things in our world. Don’t like 4WD in state forests or Parks – put dangerous stakes on the paths. Don’t like people putting stakes on the paths – lets shoot them if we catch them. Don’t like radicals – let’s come up with some extreme extermination plan.
Where did informed and evenhanded debate go? Where did the concept of things being complex and “grey” go, now its black or white and it’s our team or you’re the enemy.
Looks more and more like we are all going nuts.
Nothing like introducing further violence – Who mentioned shooting people! – you moron
Unbelievable!! What sort of brainless idiot would do this type of thing? Surely this is totally illegal & if caught they should be gaoled.
As a firefighter this is a severe criminal act… and serious jail time await the perpetrators.
P.S.
God help you if there is a fie emergency in your area; as it would be putting firefighters at to high a risk.
Re: OH and S
I had the same thing happen on Moore Park Beach…lost 2 near new bfg’s…we know who set it but no proof….happens every year during the turtle nesting season