out of the 116 new sites had been sold by 12 October 1968 at an average of $3,500, according to the Adelaide daily The Advertiser. Since the land sales of that era, Mount Osmond has developed slowly because of the scarcity of land and the housing and development restrictions of the Hills Face Zone. Now the suburb is home to large, extravagant, tree-filled houses and properties. With the upgrade of Mount Barker Road to become part of the South Eastern Freeway from 1997, Mount Osmond received its own freeway interchange as part of the development. Geography Mount Osmond is composed of the Mount itself and a ridge (Long Ridge) stretching out to the south-east between the valley of the South Eastern Freeway and that of Waterfall Gully. Much of the suburb is more than 300 metres above sea level, with the Mount Osmond peak itself (located in the Golf Course grounds near the club house) at 384 metres. Between the north-east and north-west are slopes leading down to the suburbs of Beaumont, Glen Osmond and Waterfall Gully, most of which is owned as public land by various government departments – either as parks, tracks or vacant land for possible future use. A somewhat "ring" of reserves exist on the slopes anti-clockwise from the Old Bullock Track to Mount Osmond Road near the freeway interchange. The South Australian Department of Environment, Water and Natural Resources is responsible for maintaining the Mount Osmond Reserve, which is accessible via Dashwood Gully Reserve and Waterfall Gully Road. The Old Bullock/Long Ridge track runs along Long Ridge towards Eagle on the Hill. Much of the housing and residential properties are on the North-West side of the Mount, as to enable views over Adelaide. A few small settlements and paddocks with livestock (sheep, goats and deer) are still present on the slopes between the South Eastern Freeway and the Long Ridge Track. While the suburb still contains a notable amount of native vegetation, and has not been exposed to invasive introduced species like other areas have, much of it was originally cleared for grazing and has yet to grow back to the same extent. Before European Settlement Grey Box, SA Blue Gum, Sheoak, Manna Gum and River Red Gum trees were native to and grew in the area, particularly on the slopes leading down to the Adelaide Plains. Transport Due to the suburb's relative isolation and