Colac to Beechy Forest Rail Trail
50km (ish) rail trail.
I rode this with Melanie in three days / sections:
1) Afternoon ride Colac to Gellibrand
2) Gellibrand to Beechy Forest, then continued on to Beauchamp Falls before returning to Gellibrand
3) Gellibrand back to Colac
I rode this with Melanie in three days / sections:
1) Afternoon ride Colac to Gellibrand
2) Gellibrand to Beechy Forest, then continued on to Beauchamp Falls before returning to Gellibrand
3) Gellibrand back to Colac
The good: its best bits follow the original rail line through dense, wet, amazing looking forest. I often dismounted to walk these parts because I wanted them to go forever. These good to excellent sections make up about 25km of the trail.
The info boards posted along the track are sweet, even if they are by and for rail nerds rather than hikers / cyclists.
There are a few additional places to walk / camp / sleep near the trail, so it is possible to stretch a fairly short trail out to several days of exploration.
The bad: about 10km of the trail at the north end, near Colac, is only nominally a rail trail. I assume the land that the rail line once occupied is now in private hands and unavailable, therefore the "trail" is actually on-road and features some steep, corrugated sections of dirt road that would be quite exhausting to traverse on a hot day. There is only one nice stretch here - for roughly a kilometre, the trail follows the original rail line through eucalyptus and bracken forest. This is somewhat let down by being gated too tightly to allow easy access if you're on a touring bike with bulky panniers.
A lesser problem is that there are a few rough and steep inclines in other parts of the trail, again, where it is unable to follow the original line, but instead weaves around farms and timber plantations.
Tips: if you drive to the trail, consider skipping the boring part near Colac, and begin at Barongarook.
Consider doing it as a 2-day ride:
1) from Barongarook down to Gellibrand, then uphill to Beechy Forest, to stay there or at a campsite near the south end of the trail, such as the one at Beauchamp Falls.
2) look at some local scenery (the falls, the Sequoia grove) and then return. Day 2 would be the easier ride.
Don't forget to buy stuff so the locals are inclined to support the trail. The Gellibrand pub has beer, which is good. We stayed there, and it was pretty nice accommodation of its type. Of note was that all the standard meals involve some sort of meat (beef / chicken / fish), not very vegetarian friendly.
A lesser problem is that there are a few rough and steep inclines in other parts of the trail, again, where it is unable to follow the original line, but instead weaves around farms and timber plantations.
Tips: if you drive to the trail, consider skipping the boring part near Colac, and begin at Barongarook.
Consider doing it as a 2-day ride:
1) from Barongarook down to Gellibrand, then uphill to Beechy Forest, to stay there or at a campsite near the south end of the trail, such as the one at Beauchamp Falls.
2) look at some local scenery (the falls, the Sequoia grove) and then return. Day 2 would be the easier ride.
Don't forget to buy stuff so the locals are inclined to support the trail. The Gellibrand pub has beer, which is good. We stayed there, and it was pretty nice accommodation of its type. Of note was that all the standard meals involve some sort of meat (beef / chicken / fish), not very vegetarian friendly.