The Hawkesbury, its river and its roads
Old towns and a lot of country
Windsor and Richmond began as two of the five Macquarie Towns, set up by 1811 on the river's rich floodplain. The south of the council area is commuter suburbs now, but the north still holds farmland and national park, a long way from either town.
Ways in and out
Windsor Road runs 29.6 km to North Parramatta and Richmond Road heads for Blacktown and the M7. Bells Line of Road leaves Richmond for Kurrajong, Bilpin and Lithgow, a long climb that finds out a tired radiator on the way up and worn pads on the way down.
When the river comes up
Windsor's closeness to the river has brought numerous disastrous floods, and a horseshoe on the Macquarie Arms wall still marks the 1867 peak. In March 2021 the Hawkesbury rose again and Windsor Bridge closed. Never drive into water over a road: RACQ says water above the bottom of the door is enough to float a car away.
Cable ferries
Cars still cross the river on vehicular cable ferries at Sackville, Lower Portland, Webbs Creek and Wisemans Ferry. Past Sackville the country gets more rural, and down the lower river road access is limited to a few points, so a car that won't start out there is a job for a mechanic who comes to it.
NSW licenses mobile mechanics too
In NSW a repair business needs a motor vehicle repairer licence whether it works from a shed in Windsor or a van on your driveway. Ask for the number either way.
Utes, river cars and the one trip to town
RACV says towing, carrying heavy loads and driving dusty or unsealed roads can call for a service around every six months instead of once a year. On a Hawkesbury property, that's a fair description of a working ute.
If a car has been sitting in floodwater, have a mechanic look at it before anyone turns the key. RACQ warns that water drawn into the air intake can ruin the motor, and Transport for NSW says many flood-damaged cars end up written-off. Buying one that's lived on the river flats? Get a pre-purchase inspection first.
A mobile mechanic can do the items in a logbook service at the house, but RAC WA points out that rotating and balancing wheels needs a hoist at a fixed workshop. That's the one trip to town worth planning.
Our take
For a car on a property past Wilberforce or up the ridges, we'd have a mobile mechanic do the routine service at the shed and save the drive into Windsor or Richmond for tyres and anything that needs a hoist. And if the river is up, we'd leave the car where it is until the water's gone.