BIKING THE BRISBANE VALLEY RAIL TRAIL....

 For the Queen's Birthday long weekend in Queensland, Sarah decided to do a girls weekend with her sister in law Brenda and  another friend and bike ride the Brisbane Valley Rail Trail.

Currently the longest rail trail in Australia, the 161 km Brisbane Valley Rail Trail follows the disused Brisbane Valley rail line that commenced construction at Wulkuraka near Ipswich in 1884 and was completed at Yarraman in 1913. The rail trail winds its way up the Brisbane valley, traversing farmland, forests, picturesque rural settings and country towns. Being on the old railway line, the Brisbane Valley Rail Trail  provides an off-road climb up the valley for day trippers, overnight camping or longer term adventures, but some sections can be more challenging.

 

The girls decided to start their ride from the northern end of the trail at Yarraman... North to south is considered to be a bit easier as there is more downhill riding this way.  Most of the towns along the trail have a variety of pubs, bakeries, shops and cafes that offer excellent food and drink, so they figured they would be well looked after food wise...  There is also plenty of overnight accommodation available at places like Yarraman, Blackbutt, Linville, Moore, Toogoolawah, Esk, Lowood and Fernvale..

The original rail line was built in the 1880's to transport timber, milk and beef to Brisbane and supply farmers and towns along the railway line..

The girls left Friday afternoon, catching the train with their bikes and heading to Landsborough where they stayed with Sarah's in laws over night..  They then transported them and their bikes to Yarraman so that they could start their ride....

They had a few stops on the way to Yarraman as their bikes continued to fall over in the trailer... In the end it took seven ropes to keep them upright for the rest of the journey..

 

 

 

 On the first day of their ride they rode from Yarraman to Moore.... a total of 48 kilometres.  They didn't get away until 8.30am and as their butts were still a little soft, they didn't want to over do it on the first day's ride.

 

The Yarraman to Moore section of the trail includes Blackbutt, Benarkin, Linville and is located in the upper reaches of the  Brisbane River Valley and crosses the Blackbutt Range.  The Trail head at Moore is located opposite the Moore Memorial Hall in Stanley Gates Park.  Moore is approx. 144 kilometres from Brisbane...

 

The first leg of their ride was from Yarraman to Blackbutt. This was 19kms and the trail surface along this part of the ride was pretty good as it was made of  compact gravel with concrete causeways.   This was one of the harder sections of the ride as it was  a gradual uphill ride.  

 

 They stopped at the Blackbutt bakery to grab a coffee and a a little snack... They chose a sweet snack rather than one of the Bakeries famous pies...

 

From Blackbutt  it was only  further 5 kilometres to Bernarkin.   There were a number of creek crossings during this section of the ride.... Boundary, Greenhide and Blackbutt creeks  but as this was so close to their last stop they rode the extra 17kms to Linville.   This section from Linville to Benarkin  was pretty rough gravel with some rocky sections. but still an enjoyable ride.   Linville became their lunch stop where they stopped for lunch at the local pub..

 

Two large carpet snakes mating on the path...

From Linville they rode the last 7kms to their first sleepover destination at Moore.  This part of the trip they were attached relentlessly by magpies.  

 They had a nice night's stay in Moore (they stayed in Colin Street - which Sarah found funny).  They went to a local cafe/store for dinner but then turned in early as they had to be up and ready to leave by 5.30am the following morning.  The next day was a big day of riding with over 70kms to ride....

Day 2:

They left Moore around 5.30am and again had to pass the terrible magpies only to be attacked again.   This section of the trail was relatively new as construction on this part of the missing ink between the traiheads at Moore and Toogooawah only began constuction in late 2017, and was officially opened in August 2018.  Prior to this, a deviation via local roads was used as a connecting route between the two former traiheads...

Other than being attacked by the magpies it was a beautiful ride with the sun basking the land, as  they rode through people's farms and enjoyed the many changing rural landscapes creek crossings and historic landmarks.  Memorable moments.....

They then had a 13km ride to Harlin but didn't stop there, Around Harlin they got to ride through the Yimbun Tunnel.  This tunnel was constructed in 1910  and was designed by engineer Hugh Fraser and was constructed by day labourers between February 1909 and May 1910.  It is the only tunnel built on this railway line and is noteworthy due to concrete lined construction.  It is one of only three major structures that remain along the Brisbane Valley Rail Trail. 

 

 

They continued on  another  14kms through to Toogoolawah where they stopped for breakfast.  Entering Toogoolawah Brenda again got attacked y magpies and a butcher bird, so after having breakfast the cafe gave them a heap of zip ties to put on our helmets as they were all pretty traumatized by this point.  

zippy ties now attached to helmet to magpie proof us....

From Toogoolawah they headed to Esk.  What would be the odds of seeing snakes mating again today..... Well today along the trail they saw a pair of brown snakes mating....  Yesterday was the first time in real life Sarah had seen this with the carpet snakes and then to witness it again with brown snakes...  a little unreal...  although a little nerve raking.... and the old heart was pumping.....    The brown snakes were much more erratic  and aggressive in their mating, so the girls were not keen to ride past them at all until they had taken off and moved off the path.

mating brown snakes...

The ride from Toogoolawah to Esk was approx 19kms... again as they approached Esk they were attacked by the vicious magpies.  This time though their zippy ties prevented them from attacking their helmets...  They stopped briefly at Esk for cold drinks and  to reapply their sunscreen...

stop over in Esk...

The last leg of their journey for today was another 24 kms to a place called Coominya.  This last leg of the ride was tough...  The ride today was 78kms long so by the time they got there they were all exhausted and looking forward to stopping...  There is not a lot in a place like Coominya but the girls had booked into the beautiful Bellevue Homestead and Vineyards Bed and Breakfast for the night.  Such a gorgeous building and a unique way to show off some of Queensland's history.  It really was a little slice of heaven after a hard days ride.  The folk running it were both friendly and hospitable.  The homestead had beautiful big verandahs outside with lovely seating areas to relax.  

 

The girls made a quick trip to the local pub for a drink and also to grab a nice bottle of wine to take back and enjoy on the verandah.

Bellevue Homestead

 

 

 

Lovely spot on the verandah to enjoy an afternoon drink...

 

 The insides were quite exquisite and full of old world charm....

the Girls's room..

Again they had a relatively early night as they had an 5.30am start again the next morning.  Always better to get an early start so that you are not riding in the heat of the day... Their poor host obviously had a very early start to her morning as she was up and prepared them this amazing breakfast to fill their tummies before they took off on the last leg of their journey...  Their breakfast was served out on the verandah.. It was good and the girls would definitely recommend a stay here.

An amazing breakfast to see them off on the last leg..

Today was the shortest leg of their journey with only 43kms to go before reaching Wulkuraka (near Ipswich)..

There was a short ride of 12 kms to Lowood where they only stopped quickly to take a couple of photos and grab a drink...

Short stop at Lowood

From Lowood it was another 8 kms to Fernvale.  This section of the ride was relatively easy again and also offered some lovely views of the Brisbane River...  This time they stopped at Fernvale where they stopped for morning tea... a coffee and one of their famous pies...

The last leg from Fernvale to Wulkuraka  was the longest leg today with a ride of approx.  23kms...  This ride took them past some of the historic station sites at Muirlea, Pine Mountain, Borallon, Wanora and Fairney View...

 

They arrived at Wulkuraka mid morning....  Their ride complete....

 

 

From Wulkuraka, they caught the train back to Brissie...

Would they do it again.... Sarah's says YES YES YES... She is keen to do it with her bestie in the not too distant future...