Mount Bold

To prepare for your visit, please check the conditions of access.

Lookout

Mount Bold’s Razorback Rd viewing platform and lookout showcases panoramic views across the dam wall and over the Mount Lofty Ranges. It’s the prime stop for a glorious snap and to take in the ambience of this wonderful space.

The lookout area near the dam wall (open only between 9am – 4pm) gets you closer to the water; on most days you can walk to the other side of the dam wall and back.

Walking/running/hiking

More than 13km of trails let you explore the southern section of the reserve on foot.

The Grade 2 Lookout Trail is unsealed, 1.4km return and takes you up gentle hills to a viewing platform.

The two Grade 5 hiking trails weave through a pine plantation and native vegetation, with sweeping views over the water, and with very steep and difficult hills they are suitable for experienced bushwalkers. The 5km Forest Loop takes you back to the car park, whereas the 9km Wedgetail Trail connects with the Kidman and Heysen walking trails, and the Onkaparinga National Park and Willunga Basin Trail for a more rigorous hiking experience.

Picnicking

Pack a picnic basket complete with a blanket or chairs so you can sit back, relax and enjoy the lookout’s spectacular view.

Wildlife and birdwatching

Take some time and see if you can spot some of the 160 native animals calling Mount Bold home, including the Southern Brown Bandicoot.

With the exception of assistance animals, dogs are not welcome at reservoir reserves as they can carry harmful organisms that can easily contaminate the water and present a risk to the safety of the drinking water. Dogs also pose a threat to local native birds and wildlife.

Click map below for a print-friendly version.

You can check current reservoir levels at SA Water's website.

Maps on your mobile

If you have a smart­phone or tablet you can down­load the free Aven­za Map app and have inter­ac­tive reservoir reserve maps on hand when you need them.

The app uses your device’s built-in GPS to plot your real-time loca­tion with­in the reserve onto a map. The app can be used with­out a net­work con­nec­tion and with­out roam­ing charges. You can also mea­sure area and dis­tance, plot pho­tos and drop place­mark pins.

How to get it work­ing on your device:

1. Down­load the Aven­za Maps app from the app store (iOS/Android) whilst you are still in range (its free!).
2. Open up the app and click the shop­ping cart icon.
3. Click ​‘Find’ and type the name of the reservoir reserve you are look­ing for.
4. Click on the map you are after and install it (all our maps are free).
5. You will now find a list of your installed maps on the home page of the Aven­za Maps app.
6. Use our maps through the Aven­za Mapa app while in the reserve and nev­er take a wrong turn again.

Capacity: 46.4 gigalitres (one gigalitre is one billion litres), that’s enough to fill the Adelaide Oval with water more than 93 times

Constructed: 1932-1938

The dam at Mount Bold was built to increase the water supply for the Adelaide metropolitan area as it grew in the years following the end of World War One. Millbrook Reservoir had been completed in 1918 and just 13 years later its supplies were no longer sufficient to support Adelaide’s growing population.

When it was finished in 1937, Mount Bold was South Australia’s first major reservoir built on-stream rather than diverting water into it from other sources.

Little known fact about Mount Bold Reservoir

Between 1938 and 1961, Mount Bold also supplied its own electricity through a small hydro-electric plant.

Mount Bold Reservoir is one of 16 across the state that help supply water to more than 1.7 million South Australians.

Water in the reservoir is released as required to maintain an adequate level at the Clarendon Weir and, from there, water is diverted to Happy Valley where it is treated and supplied to homes and businesses across metropolitan Adelaide.

Treating drinking water before it’s supplied to homes, businesses, schools, hospitals and more, is important to make sure it is clean and safe to drink straight from the tap. You can learn how SA Water treats water and maintains the quality its customers value and rely upon.