Bicentennial trail guides, used copies

[Osbos]

Does anybody ever sell, loan or give away used copies of the BNT guides? I don't live in Australia but for the past 25 years or so have done a lot of touring there during the northern hemisphere winter months. Some of the routes have taken me onto parts of the BNT. Since my intention is not to cycle the entire trail but just parts, it does not seem economical to me to buy the brand new guide books and rip out the pages I need. I searched online used book sites and could not find copies. In this forum, I have found a lot of information concerning parts of the trail but it would be nice to see the guide book pages. I have paper and electronic maps of the BNT route, but they don't show the details.
When I contacted the BNT office to ask about the availability of electronic versions, the reply was that they are planning to do this.
Any suggestions of sources for used copies?
Thanks.

[WarrenH]

Osbos, it is the income from the sale of the Guide Books and BNT Association memberships that keeps the trail open. The BNT Association is solely a voluntary organisation and the costs associated with keeping the trail going and the membership insured is great.

It is only here in the ACT that any assistance and support is given to the trail by the ACT Government with their understanding that the trail is significant. The senior coordinators of the trail work tirelessly meeting with the State Governments and the local Shires to improve the trail and not loose out to other interests.

I know that it is good to factor in every possible saving for touring in this country and hopefully without sounding glib ... long gone are the days when a simple bushman's holiday here, was considered a poor man's holiday.

I can relate to what you've requested, absolutely. I spent many years getting lost on the BNT when it was called the National Horse Trail before I knew that guide books even existed. It can be done without the books ... but not well. Once you purchase a guide book/s, it will save you money, heaps. The books give you all the contacts and can allow posting supplies ahead to coordinators who live close to or are on the trail.

The BNT Association now has a series of guide books called Weekends on the Trail for those who don't have the time to commit to the bigger distances. These are slightly more affordable.

As Association members we have an undertaking not to post pages from the guide books to others or loan our books. That's not about penny-pinching, it is about keeping the trail open.

Good luck, hopefully you might find old guide books for sale but they're prized by those who've done the yards. A good place to enquire could be on the Australian Bushwalking Forum. You would then need to add the amendments to the book/s to bring them upto date, consistent with the edition of the book/s that you find. The amendments are found in the Download section on the BNT site. If you do find pre-loved books, consider spending $30 on BNT Membership for the personalized extras.

A fair price for Guide Book #10 Jenolan Caves to Yaouk 3rd Edition now, would be $50 or even higher, which is double it's original price. If anyone has one for sale, please let me know.

Crossing the Lerida grasslands to the North of the Australian Capital Territory.




Warren.

[rifraf]

Being notoriously tight fisted myself, I am always looking for ways to save a dollar both inside and outside the square.

However, reading WarrenH's posts on the splendor of these trails and indeed having seen the proof of the pudding via his
enviable photography skills, I'm convinced that the Trails are a national treasure and deserve appropriate "forking out of dosh" if "we" are going to be lucky enough to continue to have access to them.

Warren the fair mindedness and eloquence of your above post has convinced me to getting a membership to the organisation
as soon as funds allow would be a good idea.

Perhaps a link in the thread for those who wish to pursue the topic further might be an idea?

Thanks to Osbos for reminding me to actually look further into this topic as I've been procrastinating for the many months
I've been observing WarrenH's journeys with green envy

[Osbos]

It is not a matter of being tight fisted. It is a matter of bulk and weight.

We have been taking 4-6 week tours of parts of Australia (all states except NT), about once a year for the past 25 years or so. We don't do this as a means of a cheap holiday, but to be warm during our winter months and to get exercise. We allow ourselves to indulge in the excellent wines only after having ridden for at least 5 hours a day. Cycling or walking is the best way to get a feel for the land. We take back roads, fire roads and bicycle routes. Since we like to camp out in the bush, we have a lot of gear with us. When we are in towns, we stay in accommodations. I end up carrying a heap of maps as I pick them up as I go. For this trip, we will have topo maps on both a tablet and a GPS. If we get lost or in trouble, we carry a PLB, mobile phone, first aid kit and enough containers to hold 12 litres of water. We'd rather carry extra water than weighty items like guide books and paper maps.

Warren, please pass along my suggestion to the Association to continue with its efforts to digitize the guide books. Then, make them available in sections for download at a reasonable cost. This benefits all - the Association gets funds and the people who want BNT information can choose the sections they want. Make the information available to anyone. If you want, charge non members a higher price. In a former life, I was a librarian involved with digitization of collections. It is not expensive.

Having an electronic version of a guide book on my e-reader was very useful last year when we were bushwalking in Oz. I had a copy of one of the Dalys' "Take a walk..." guides on my Kindle.

[rifraf]

It is not a matter of being tight fisted. It is a matter of bulk and weight.

Very clumsily written in hindsight on my part Osbos - apologies extended and no offense intended.
The tight fisted comment was aimed entirely at my own notorious "cut off nose to spite face" attempts to save a buck and in no way directed at your attempt to acquire said copies.
A poorly worded attempt at self depreciating humour.

Best of luck with getting the info you need and as well with your trip/adventures