The “Super-V” is a popular mountain biking loop in D’Aguilar National Park. It gets its name from the “V” shaped elevation profile as you drop steeply down to the England Creek Valley from Mount Glorious, then slowly have to ride up an equally steep road to get out. It’s loops like that which inspired the famous Mountain Biking adage: “What goes down must come up”. I.e. whenever you enjoy a long ride down, you’ll have to pay for it with a long ride back up.
Wayne and I started this mid-week ride from Maiala Park at Mount Glorious. It was cold, humid, foggy and a misty rain was falling, but we were still able to see the sun poking through the clouds as we looked down the mountain towards the coast.
Lawton Road has been closed for over two years. Much of it was washed away in the floods of 2011, and park workers have only just recently repaired all the landslips.
Where once there were huge chasms in the road, now there are large mounds of gravel where the graders and dozers have rebuilt the road. I doesn’t look pretty, but I think it will probably last a bit longer in a storm than the last road. All it needs is a few months of sunny weather to cook the surface, and it’ll be perfect.
At the moment, so soon after re-construction, and after wet weather, the surface is boggy in places, which made the steep climb up to Northbrook Mountain a little more challenging. Needless to say, Wayne beat me to the top.
I didn’t even realize this bush camp at Northbrook Mountain was here. It’s a gorgeous little campsite on the top of the mountain, on a turn-off about 500 metres past the Lawton Road water tank. There’s even a visitors book you can fill out (which we both did).
The long ride down England Creek Road is wonderful – and the views are…. well look for yourself! Amazing!
I know it looks like it, but we weren’t doing a “Bush Camp Crawl”. It’s just that the England Creek Bush Camp was about half-way, and we both felt like a bite to eat 🙂
And from there we slowly made our way up Joyners Ridge Road. I explained the origin of the name to Wayne. You can read about why it’s so named here. Wayne also kindly tolerated my rendition of Banjo’s “Clancy of the Overflow” as we rode up the trail. It’s very hard to recite a poem while you’re out of breath, but it takes your mind off the climbing!
We travelled 23 km in just under 3 hours, during which we climbed 930m and I burned 1,500 kcal. If you don’t have much time (like during the week) this is a great little loop. I’ll give it 7.5 out of 10 on the tough-o-meter. The cool moist weather made it a very comfortable ride.
Thanks for the great company, Wayne!
Total distance: 24.8 km Total climbing: 1134 m Average temperature: 12.2 Total time: 02:54:27
Todays adventure was a point-to-point ride from Goomburra National Park (near Cunninghams Gap) to Mount Sylvia. I wanted to fill in another gap in my Ride Network Map, and Becca, Eric and Darb were kind enough to indulge my whim and ride with me. We’ve ridden in Goomburra before, and were familiar with the steep climb up to the top of the range, peaking at about 1,100 metres above sea level. This was going to be a long day, so we wanted to save some time at the start by driving to the top of the range and starting our ride there…
Unfortunately, the road to the top was closed to vehicles – a locked gate blocked the way. So we had to ride our bikes to the top instead.
I thought this was poetic justice. I had recently written an article for The Mountain Bike Life about Hill Climbing in which I enthusiastically described how wonderful it was to ride a bike up steep hills. It seemed like the universe was forcing me to practice what I preached 🙂
The climb had added an hour’s riding time to our trip, but it was still worth the effort.
No ride “to the top” at Goomburra is complete without a side-trip to the Mount Castle Lookout, so we left Eric to mind our bikes while we hiked a few hundred metres through the rainforest to enjoy the view. Despite dismal rain the previous day, and heavy fog that morning, it had transformed into a glorious day.
From the lookout we turned westward and followed a forestry track along a sharp high ridgeline, jumping a few locked gates as we went. Try doing that in a 4wd 🙂
Riding this ridge line is like cycling on a knife’s edge. On either side the terrain drops off steeply. As we rode, on our left and right, we could see the valley below us through the trees.
The views up the valley towards the waterfall were stunning. At times like this I’m so glad I’m able to ride a bike in the bush in this part of the world. Doesn’t it look fantastic?
Eventually we reached the end of the ridgeline. It was time to drop down into the valley. Our plan was very optimistic. We had based the route on faint track marks we could make out from aerial photos. We were aware that the descent would be steep (up to 50% gradient in parts), and that we’d have to be very careful.
Yep – it was steep alright. What impressed me was that we were actually able to ride any of it 🙂
The views were amazing. We stopped every few minutes to soak up the panorama.
Recent wet weather had caused land-slips which impeded our progress. Thankfully we were able to walk over the rubble.
One thing that was unavoidable, however, were the cobblers pegs. After bashing through the undergrowth for a few minutes, it looked like our legs had sprouted wierd hairs that had poked through our socks. I think it’s going to take ages for me to pick them out of my clothes.
Eventually we reached East Haldon “Road” which follows the creek along the valley. I use the term “Road” lightly. It was a rough track to follow.
The track took us past a place on the map known as “Top Yards”. I’m guessing this was a place where graziers kept cattle in earlier times.
We had to cross the creek many times. Initally I tried to “rock hop” and keep my feet dry. Eventually I just hardened up, and waded through the water.
Eric surprised us. He had told me that he was carrying climbing rope in his frame bag for our precarious descent. But actually he was carrying a gas stove and picnic blanket. When we caught up to Eric at the “Bottom Yards”, he had the water boiling, picnic blanket spread out, coffee and hot chocolate rady, and even some short-bread.
We were cold and hungry. What a pleasant surprise!
Thanks for being so thoughtful, Eric.
As an added bonus, we were sitting under a mandarin tree laden with fruit. We were able to pick some ripe mandarins to enjoy with our lunch. They were delicious!
As we rode out of the valley, a prominent rocky outcrop came into view. This is “Glenrock” – it’s what the state forest is named after.
After countless creek crossings and what seemed like an eternity of rough tracks, we finally made it out of the state forest.
It had taken us over 4 hours, and we’d only ridden 25km. Hard work. That must have been the slowest 25km I’ve ever ridden. In fact I’ve done faster hikes than that.
The rough tracks became smooth dirt roads. While we still had about 30km to go, the toughest part of the ride was over, and we were able to enjoy a smooth, fast, ride to Mount Sylvia.
It had taken us over 6 hours to ride 50km. We were delighted to reach our destination and relax.
We climbed about 860m during this ride, and descended about 1,400m. I burned about 3,000 kcal. We took a vote at the end of the ride and decided this one rates about 8 out of 10 on the tough-o-meter.
If you’re going to try doing it, be prepared for very rough country. There are no groomed trails out here. In places the track is difficult to see. And (of course) the descent from Goomburra is dangerous, so take care.
Thanks Becca, Eric and Darb for a great day out.
Thanks also to Mike for driving us out there, and to my dad, Bruce, for helping me get the Van out to Mount Sylvia the day before.
Point-to-point rides take a bit of extra planning, but they’re worth the effort!
Total distance: 54.14 km Total climbing: 1543 m Average temperature: 14.3 Total time: 06:07:27
There’s an unusual creek which flows down from the Great Dividing Range below Toowomba.
Aborigines used to hunt for fish in this creek, which could at times run dry, and at other times transform into a raging torent during the wet season. Once a grass fire swept through the area and burned the fishing nets of the local tribe. So from that day they called the place “Tamamareen” which means “Place where the fishing nets got burned by a grass fire”.
In the 1860’s, a shepherd named Murphy built a hut in the rough foothills near this creek.
Several years later in 1867, a water tank and railway station were built at the bottom of the range to service steam engines grinding their way up the range to the Darling Downs. They decided to name the station after the local creek, which by then was known as Murphys Creek after the shepherd.
In a short while, a small town had sprung up around the railway station.
According to historical writer, Van Derek, Chinese market gardeners camped by the creek in the 1860’s and 1870-‘s. They grew vegetables which they then sold to the men working on the railway line.
Disaster struck when a torrential downpour caused a flash flood of the creek, drowning the Chinese who were camped on its banks. Local rumour has it that there is a mass grave in the Murphy’s Creek Cemetery containing the bodies of the victims of that flood.
And as most Queenslanders will tell you, this fickle creek had the final word in 2011, when it broke its banks again, and destroyed an entire town.
A dozen of us rode off from Helidon to explore this fascinating part of the world.
Since Helidon was pretty much the lowest part of the ride, we started with some gentle climbs near Lockyer before having to work our legs harder as we neared Murphys Creek.
Heading down cemetery road, past the legendary mass chinese grave, we could see some of the challenging foothills that lay ahead. These hills comprised the “small climb”. We’d grind up to about the 600 metre level, and then enjoy a quick downhill run before taking on the “big climb” up Fifteen Mile Road to Hampton at almost 800 metres altitude.
It might have been the “small climb” but the hills around Murphys Creek are tough to ride. At times we had to push the bikes.
Some of the hills were so tough, we couldn’t even push the bikes up them. We let Steeve get halfway up this hill (so we could photograph him) before we decided to turn around and try an easier route. I don’t think Steeve minded too much 🙂
Thank, Jeff, for showing us an easier way through the bush. I think we’d still be in there fighting our way out if it wasn’t for you.
Eventually the monster hills gave way to undulating terrain, and we enjoyed the relatively flat tracks as we gave our legs time to recover. We had crested the “small climb”.
These trails were wonderful. For about six kilometres we wound our way down steep tracks on narrow trails, tyres sliding on the gravel, jumping over waterbars, and hardly having to pedal at all.
I loved it!
The trail spat us out, as steep trails often do, in the middle of some grassy fields at the bottom of a place descriptively named “Fifteen Mile”. We had a bit of a snack here, which was a good thing, because the “big climb” lay ahead.
Fifteen Mile Road is a nine kilometre ascent which rises about 450 metres. I was the slowest up the hill, so all I managed to photograph was Steeve ahead of me, snaking up the hill, trying to make the climb a bit easier while slowly wending through the blanket of green eucalypts either side of the smooth clay road.
But all hills eventually come to an end, and soon we were coasting over the rolling plateau at the top, near Hampton.
The cafe at Hampton serves delicious mountain bike fuel. The Lamb-burger, short black and Chocolate Milkshake hardly touched the sides.
“Now where’s a hammock so I can have a short nap?” I pondered.
With lunch over, and satiated riders back on bikes, we rocketed down the bitumen along Esk-Hampton Road towards the lookout. This is a busy road, mostly downhill, so we enjoyed the free roll down to Perseverance.
The sign says: “Small Cheer and Great Welcome Makes a Merry Feast” – William Shakespeare.
I couldn’t agree more 🙂
The hills out the back of Perseverance were hard work – especially after such a relaxing lunch. But the surrounding countryside was picturesque.
A couple of us ended up falling in the mud after coming across this muddy bog at the bottom of a hill. I thought I’d try and get a picture of Eric doing the same, but he gave us all a lesson in negotiating slippery terrain, and eased through without faltering. You da man, Eric.
Our tribe of bedraggled muddy riders emerged from the forest to Gus Beutels Lookout. Even though it was cloudy, the view didn’t disappoint. Even the rain clouds rolling in from the south didn’t obscure the panorama.
Rain clouds?
“Do you think we’ll get back before the rain hits us?” somebody asked.
Maybe 🙂
And so began the “big descent” down Seventeen Mile Road – a long (mostly) dirt road, stretching 30 kilometres back to Helidon, with only one or two uphill sections.
There were one or two near misses on the screaming descent. Dom took a corner a bit too widely and ended up colliding with some rocks. “You were a bit lucky there, Dom”, I said. It could have been a lot worse, but he only suffered a few scratches and bruises.
I took a slight detour so that this route would connect with the rest of my map. Half the group kept rolling down the hill while I did this, and few waited. Unfortunately this meant we copped the rain during the final part of the ride, while the others arrived back nice and dry.
But a little bit of rain at the end of a tough ride is almost pleasant.
This ride was 83km and took 7 hours including breaks. We climbed a total of 1,833m. I burned about 3,500 kcal.
I’d rate this one 9 out of 10 on the tough-o-meter. This was in cool rider-friendly weather. I wouldn’t attempt it in summer.
Thanks everyone for a fantastic ride. Geeze I have some great friends.
Total distance: 84.87 km Total climbing: 2597 m Average temperature: 14.8 Total time: 07:05:13
What could be more challenging, or more fun than leading a several dozen riders with a wide range of skill levels on a 65km cross-country trek through some tough but beautiful country?
After last years amazing ride from Beerburrum to Woodford and back, some friends asked if I would organize a similar ride this year. The only problem was that last year we did it in the dry season, and this year it was at the end of the wet season with flooded creeks, muddy tracks, and downhill sections that were mountains of wet clay.
A few days earlier I checked out the route with some friends – some of the old dry trails had turned into long mosquito-ridden swamps, and I was keen to ensure that I didn’t spoil people’s fun by forcing them to trudge through vast tracks of unpleasantness like this.
As I arrived at the Matthew Flinders Rest Area before the ride, I was overwhelmed to find 41 eager mountain bikers raring to set out on this adventure. Forty one! This was going to be a mammoth task – ensuring no one got lost, everyone kept together, and everyone had a good time, even though the group ranged in skill and fitness levels from beginner to advanced. Thankfully, my friends Eric and Darb agreed to “ride shotgun” at the rear, and Eric supplied a couple of walkie-talkies so that we could keep in touch and know what was going on. (What a fantastic idea – we must use these again on bigger rides!)
And so we set off. Snaking through the pine forests of Beerburrum. As we reached an intersection that might confuse people I asked one of the people at the front to stop there and act as “traffic cop” to point following riders in the right direction. This is a great strategy I learned from some of the guys at Bushrangers Mountainbike Club on an earlier ride.
At our first major climb, I rushed ahead to get a few photos of everyone trying to make it up the hill. Keen photograoher, Tim, decided he wanted to lie in the middle of the track and capture riders on the way past. It was a miracle no one hit him, or tried to use him as a log rollover.
Most people made it part way up, but Rick (who had never ridden this hill before) showed the rest of us how it was done. Well done, Rick!
After just over an hour of riding, we made it to our first rest-stop at the lookout where people soaked in the view of the stunning volcanic outcrops while others took the time to recover.
The next stop was the Hennessey Hill downhill track. This is a steep man-made track with jumps, berms, drop-offs and rock-gardens. It’s challenging, but fun to ride. Darb thought he’d “push the envelope” a bit and descend with a bit of speed. Here’s what happened. (I’m the silly looking guy in green at the end of the video that almost got run over).
Thankfully, no one was hurt badly, and everyone had a lot of fun.
We continued our adventure westward, along some red dirt tracks and up yet more hills. A few of the riders were starting to tire, but no one complained – which is amazing for such a large group.
The final obstacle before our rest at Woodford was the creek. Some people, keen to reach the destination, rode through it. Other people (like me) who had an aversion to wet feet removed their footwear and walked through. Either way, it was impressive watching so many mountain bikers cross a creek, like a herd of stampeding cattle.
A few people took the opportunity in Woodford to have a quick rest, while others raided the local cafes for all manner of cycling fuel. We split up, and went to different shops so as not to overwhelm the place.
From Woodford we headed north-west out of town, avoiding some the boggy spots I’d discovered earlier during the week.
It was fascinating to watch how a group of people with a common goal were so effective as team – especially at obstacles like barbed-wire fences, where a wrong move could puncture a tire, scratch a frame, or rip lycra.
And then it was time for the last major climb of the day – a 2km tough little ascent called “Radar Hill”. Some people walked, some people powered up, others spun in granny gear, but everyone made it to the top.
The descent from Radar Hill is amazing. Once you start, there’s no turning back. Your brakes won’t stop you. It’s a controlled slide to the bottom. Most people walked it, but a few daredevils rode it. Everyone got to the bottom in one piece.
At the Mount Beerwah picnic ground, some people took the time to enjoy the amazing view…
…while others took the time to recover.
“Not long to go now” I assured people – many of whom were starting to feel like they were at the limit of their endurance.
We had one last big descent to tackle – Porfiri Road. This nasty rocky “road” has gobbled me up twice in the past. It’s a very challenging descent. Several people were able to ride it. Most rode it part-way, and walked some of the trickier bits. Amazingly, no one was hurt.
Stokes Road at Beerwah was our last stop before disappearing into the forest again, and completing the final leg of the trip.
From there it was a reasonably easy roll along the bike path back into Beerburrum.
All up we rode over 65km in about 7.5 hours including breaks. We climbed about 1,000m in 30 degree heat. I burned about 3,000kcal.
I can’t really give this one score on the tough-o-meter. For some of the newer, less experience riders, this one was off the scale – pushing the boundaries of their ability. For them it rates at least 10 out of 10.
For some of the more experience riders (and comparing it with the brutal ride that we Eric, Darb, Jason and I did last week) it rates about 7.5 to 8 out of 10.
But, more importantly, as a social event for like-minded people who love exploring the outdoors, this ride couldn’t have been any better. I thouroughly enjoyed it.
Thanks everyone for coming. Thanks especially to Eric and Darb for helping to manage the group.
Total distance: 69.04 km Total climbing: 1820 m Average temperature: 29.4 Total time: 07:36:27
I felt like doing a big ride today, so my friend Dean agreed to accompany me on a long cross-town ride from my place to Daisy Hill. The plan was to try to stick to Bikeways as we rode the 75km across town, then do a few off-road tracks at Daisy Hill Conservation Park, then I’d finish the ride by heading west across town to visit my parents at Forest Lake.
It was also a chance to fill in some of the “missing links” on my global ride map.
Dean surprised me when he turned up on a fully laden Salsa Fargo touring bike, complete with panniers and bottle holders on the forks. It weighed a ton – which is saying something because a lot of my mates tell my I should send my bike to weight watchers.
As if on cue, as we started the ride, the rain started falling, so our first few kilometres along the bike paths were in cool humid dampness – which was actually more comfortable than riding in the blazing sun.
Before long we were winding through the swampy She-oak and Paperbark forests of the Boondall Wetlands. I love this part of the Moreton Bay Cycleway. Being so peaceful makes it hard to imagine that this track is so close to the busy Gateway Arterial Road.
And since I was in a lazy mood, I just stuck behind Dean all of the way, in his slipstream. He’s a strong rider and we were able to maintain some really fast speeds as we powered along the cycleway in our mini peloton of two mountain bikers.
A combination of high tides and recent rain meant that the track was slightly flooded in one or two places.
Eventually we reached the Gateway Bridge and made our way over the slow hump of the bridge and down the other side.
From there we rode through the Minnippi Parklands towards the Critereon track at Murrarie. Since I was still tailgating Dean and riding in his slipstream, he passed the Finish Line on the track just a split second before I did 🙂
We continued to head south, towards Daisy Hill along the Bulimba Creek bikeway.
When we eventually reached Daisy Hill, Dean led me up “Second Coming” track near the Buddhist Temple on Underwood Road. It was amazing to watch him push this heavy bike with no suspension along some winding steep single track. The bike rattled a bit on the bumps, by Dean handled it really well.
We rode down “Stringybark” trail and did a loop of the Quarry Lake in Neville Lawrie Reserve. By this time the sun was high in the sky, the day was starting to get hot, and I was sorely tempted to ditch my gear and jump in the water. I think Dean was relieved when I decided not to 🙂
Next time I’m there, I’ll definitely jump in. The water looked great on a hot day.
From there we headed up to the “Top Carpark” to top up on water, before riding down “Possum Box”.
And I got a lesson from Dean in how to ride a heavy no-suspension touring bike on some twisty single tracks.
Including the last leg of my ride to Forest Lake, I rode a total of 117km in just over 6 hours (excluding breaks). I burned 5,100 kcal and climbed a total of 1,150 metres. Riding this with Dean made it much easier – especially being able to slipstream him, and to benefit from his knowledge of where to go in a part of town that I don’t normally ride. I’ll rate this 8.5 out of 10 on the tough-o-meter. But if I did it solo, I’d probably rate it 9.5 out of 10.
Total distance: 116.91 km Total climbing: 1279 m Average temperature: NAN Total time: 08:51:20
Rather than drive the car to our usual summer holiday spot at Coolum, I thought I’d ride the bike up from Lawnton. The route was just under 120km in length and included a fair bit of riding off-road through state forests and national parks. My friends Tony and Wayne rode with me for most of the way.
The first leg of the trip took us up to Caboolture on quiet roads, and then to Beerburrum East State Forest at the end of Pumicestone Road. It took us just over an hour, which was a lot quicker than I anticipated…
…which was just as well because Wayne got a flat tyre after running over a thumb-tack. Unfortunately it was in his non-tubeless tyre, so it went flat and stayed flat. But two spare tubes and 3 CO2 canisters later, we were on our way again – still ahead of schedule. We made good time even when equipment failure struck again and cleat fell off Darb’s shoe. Luckily, he didn’t lose any screws and was able to screw it back in quite easily.
I like this forest because of the variety of different tracks. Plus it’s relatively flat which means you can easily cover long distances without much effort. We picked a few narrow tracks and rode off between the pine trees.
We met up with a friendly forest ranger along the way who just happened to be a mountain biker. He told us how much he liked 29er mountain bikes and tubeless tyres…. but he was preaching to the converted 🙂
Our first major stop was at the Wildhorse Mountain service station where we topped up on “bike fuel” and water.
To maximize the amount of off road riding, we kept riding northwards through the forest until were able to pass under the freeway at Mellum Creek. From there we entered the Beerwah section of the forest and headed North-west towards Landsborough.
Dullarcha National Park lies just north of Landsborough. The main trail follows the railway line north through the rainforest.
Part of the trail is actually on an old disused railway track, which passes through a tunnel. The fun thing about the tunnel is that it bends enough so you can’t see one end from the other. This means when you’re riding through it, it’s pitch black. If you don’t have lights you need to be careful 🙂
After a tough climb between Mooloolah and Eudlo, Darb and Wayne left me to continue the final part of the trip at Palmwoods, near Nambour. They’d ridden to my place before the start, and had already covered about 100km. They caught the train back and I continued eastwards over Kiels Mountain. I’ve often seen the overpass while driving up the freeway to Coolum, but this was the first time I’d ridden over it.
At this stage of the ride, it was hard work grinding up the steep road over Kiels Mountain. Halfway through the roll down the other side, I caught sight of Mount Coolum in the distance which marked the end-point of the ride.
In keeping with the “off-road” nature of the ride, I chose a dirt track which skirted around the western side of Mount Coolum via another national park. Unfortunately rain had made the large rocks on the track slippery, and the gradient was a bit much at this stage of the ride, so I took the “safe” option and pushed the bike up the last hill.
All up, this ride was 115km. It took just under 8 hours including stops. Moving time was just under 6 hours. I burned about 5,200 kcal.
It was easier than I anticipated – mostly flat except for the Eudlo and Kiels Mountain sections. I’d definitely do this ride again, especially with great riding buddies like Darb and Wayne. Thanks guys 🙂
I’ll give this one 8 out of 10 on the tough-o-meter.
Total distance: 116.27 km Total climbing: 1207 m Average temperature: NAN Total time: 07:50:06
My friend, Neil B, regularly organizes group social rides on Saturday afternoons. This week, he wanted to visit House Mountain, near Samford. I hadn’t ever ridden there before, so I jumped at the chance to explore some new trails with a large friendly group of people.
For this ride, about 14 of us met at the “Jurassic” car park at Bunyaville, and started out towards Samford State Forest, a couple of kilometres to the South West…
Samford State Forest (Most of us call it “Ironbark” for short) has a lot more hills than Bunyaville. Today we slowly made our way to the high point up the “Three Sisters” track. I think it’s called this because of the three “humps” you have to grind up on your way to the top. They’re not difficult, but as with most climbs, they slow you down a bit, and tend to spread out a group of riders.
We then enjoyed a quick (80 km/h) roll down Burns Road on our way to the rail trail north of Samford. This part of railway line is popular because of the old tunnel at the end, affectionately known as “The Bat Cave“. The trail is used by horse riders, joggers, walkers and mountain bikers, and is a pleasant way to head north from Samford without having to go on busy Mount Samson road.
It’s always fascinating to peer into the “cave” through the fence, provided you don’t mind bats, or snakes 🙂
But the real challenge of the ride is House Mountain, just behind the Bat Cave. It has some very steep climbs – some of which we had to push the bikes up….
…but it also has some very steep descents, which are a lot of fun to ride down, before shooting out into a green paddock at the bottom.
We then followed some pony trails along (and across) the South Pine River back to Samford, before retracing our tracks back to Bunyaville. At some times of the year, this river crossing is impassable. Thankfully we haven’t had much rain recently, so it was easy to cross.
Because I wanted a longer ride, I started from my place, which stretched it out to about 70km over 5 and a half hours (including breaks), with about 1,300m of ascent and just over 4,000 kcal. The more sensible route (from Bunyaville) is about 30km in length with about 750m of ascent, and takes about 3 hours including breaks. It rates about 8 out of 10 on the tough-o-meter.
Total distance: 70.38 km Total climbing: 1432 m Average temperature: NAN Total time: 05:39:03
Over the last week I’ve had an overseas visitor. I took the week off work so I could take my friend Miles on a few rides around our local area.
As always, I felt like there was so much to see and so little time, so I think I overdid it a bit.
Here’s a summary of what we did:
Day 1
He’d only been off the plane 90 minutes, and I dragged Miles and his bike up to Clear Mountain. This place is fun to ride, but it has some really steep sections. Miles handled it admirably. 30km in 2 hours with 644 metres of ascent.
More info: http://connect.garmin.com/activity/226710953
Day 2
A huge loop through D’Aguilar National Park. 45km in about 6 hours with 2,000m of ascent.
More info: The D’Aguilar “Big W”
Day 3
A tour of the Glasshouse Mountains. 64km in just over 6 hours with 1,050m of ascent.
More info: Beerburrum – Woodford Loop ?
Day 4
Adare Homestead. On our way to Yarraman, we decided to stop at John Pinnell’s place to ride a few laps around his mountain biking race track on the eve of the Queensland State Championships. 16km in 1.5 hours with about 360m of ascent.
More info: http://connect.garmin.com/activity/228289945
Day 5
A loop through the forest from Yarraman to Maidenwell and back. 66km in about 7.5 hours with 1,200m of vertical ascent.
More info: Yarraman – Maidenwell
Day 6
A large loop along some old coach routes from Yarraman to Nanango, and back through the Seven Mile Diggings gold fields to Blackbutt and back to Yarraman via the rail trail. 82km in 7.5 hours, 1,300m of ascent. Miles decided he’d sit this one out and rode some single trails at Bunyaville and Gap Creek instead.
More info: Seven Mile Diggings
Summary
For the week I did 303km in 21 hours with 6,600m of ascent.
