We had a later start after a much needed sleep in (8.30!). Our camp site is well shaded so it was very dark until late which was great. The plan for the day was to do part of the Murray to Mountains rail trail. It runs from Bright to Wangaratta, about 83km of sealed, and separated from the road, bike path – a great facility. Our plan was to do the 30km segment to Myrtleford and back.
We started the ride with a bit of exploring around Bright to get the lay of the land, and also grab some breakfast. The town has a bit of a country/hippy feel, with lots of “organic” places around. We found a lovely little cafe near the town centre clock tower and had a nice breakfast – although the menu was a bit too “organic” and didn’t serve the traditional bacon and eggs Bel was hoping for. A bit expensive too (jam on toast was $8) Coffee was good though!
After breakfast we headed off on the trail.
The track is very flat so pretty easy riding although there was a bit of a headwind. I believe it follows the line of the old railway as suggested, but not completely sure. Very similar to the Otago rail trail ride we did in NZ a couple of years ago. As you ride along it makes you wonder why these railway lines were discontinued. We saw the same thing in Bombala. I guess cars/buses/trucks replaced them, but surely rail was more efficient?
The scenery is beautiful and gives you a great view of the local farming activity as well as remnants of the rail line.
Half way along we came to the old Eurobin railway station – no trains were running today!
We also passed a farm that has paddock after paddock of what looked like climber poles and ropes for what I am guessing were beans? – but really have no idea. Either way it was a pretty impressive operation that would have taken a lot to set up.
Beef (looked like Angus) looks to be one of the main products of the region. We saw a lot of cows along the way, and then found these two big boys penned up on their own. I’m sure they have a lot of fun when they are allowed out.
We finally arrived in Myrtleford after about an hour and a half. The trail being sealed meant that we made pretty good time, averaging a comfortable 20km/hour on the MTBs. It’s another pretty little town, that has very big tree in the middle.
It’s called the “big tree”, and is estimated to be over 200 years old. It’s an old Red Gum, and as you can see with Bel standing beside it, its pretty impressive. Apparently it was a common meeting point when the railway used to run.
After looking around Myrtleford we stopped for lunch at Lupo’s Kiln – a great little Italian restaurant recommended by one of Belinda’s friends (thanks Leanne). It’s on the rail trail just out of Myrtleford, and very nice. It’s a modern day corrugated iron shed with misters running on the outside that look like smoke from the trail – pretty cool. We both had pasta, I had a beer and bel had a shake; all very nice.
From there it was another 30km of the same. The only difference was the magpies. We had been warned that they were swooping, but I only got chased once on the way out. On the return leg I was chased four times. Out of all of those time Bel was only chased once – I asked to swap helmets but she wasn’t interested.
We finally arrived back at Bright after close to 65km and a bit over 3hours of riding time. Bel’s biggest ride normally is about 30km so this was a big effort and she was smashed – not long after we got back to camp she was out cold.
A big day planned for tomorrow. Bel has a horse ride booked, I’ll either go for another ride or read a book 🙂
The rail trail looks fantastic!