Three MTB Rides and Trail Runs in South East Qld

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Are you looking for that quiet get away from the hustle and bustle of everyday life but want to stay fit and healthy while spending time with the whole family? Or do you like a daring adventure tackling nature at its best on your bike? I've found three beautiful bushlands right here in South East Qld's back yard. Even the keen photographer walking for fitness and serenity will enjoy these trails.



Each of these parks or conservation areas provide a selection of trails ranging from novice to extremely hard. Whether you are walking, riding or running each trail is guaranteed to improve your fitness and test your skill level. The main tracks are wide and easy to manoeuvre on, some having contour mounds to either jump or gently ride over, but the side and connecting trails can be thin with logs and jumps designed along them or rocks to climb over. Daisy Hill has the best overall range of trails from novice to extremely experienced but Bayview and Scribbly Gum Conservation Areas have some pretty awesome trails and noticeably changing Terrain or Fauna throughout.

[SECTION]Bayview Conservation Park[/SECTION]



Bayview Conservation Park or better known by the locals as 'Days Road Bushlands', has some of the most beautiful local terrains and faunas I have found in South East Queensland. You can enter this conservation park from several points but if entering off Days Road there is a one kilometre drive along the dirt before coming to an opening with parking spaces available. There are no amenities but dogs on leashes are permitted. Push bikes, walkers, runners, photographers and horse riders are all welcome to experience the beauty of this place.



As you enter the trails there are many choices of paths to take. If you turn right immediately you will head out and follow the path around to climb a rather steep incline within the first two kilometres. Following the trail slightly to the left, I have two preferred tracks a 9k return and 16k return for my mountain biking and running. Both of these trails have a range of riding or running levels from novice to medium experience preferred although I consider myself a novice and have successfully completed both paths at a slower pace but I have not attempted Main Hill, considered a skilled riders hill, as of yet.



This bushland is a wonder of beauty guaranteed to take your breath away even without exercising. Whether you come as the sun rises or falls you are guaranteed to catch the Kangaroos and Wallabies grazing along the fence line of the Chicken Farms with the cattle. Running through scattered sunlight with shading most of the way there is a freshness in the air that encourages your legs to run or pedal faster. The Fauna, as is the types of trail, are changing constantly never allowing you to become bored with the same scenery. Each path has a name but not all the names are at the entrance of the path so unfortunately for your first few adventures carrying a map is highly recommended. 'Just kidding' will take you through the winding paths of She Oak trees, tightening up where gears are low to manoeuvre over logs and turn around trees, ride log bridges and run through sandy paths with Black Boys flowering all around you. As you leave 'Just Kidding straight across the main track is the entrance to 'Sock Puppet' which takes you on another adventure weaving back and forth as you climb the hill with rocks to ride over on the corners and a more Aussie gum tree bushland feel.



Turning Right out of 'Sock Puppet' onto the main trail your up hill workout begins with a gradual incline, only occasionally allowing you a quick down hill before an even steeper incline. At the first Y intersection head to the right and follow the track along rocky paths and through the ferns before branching left at the next Y intersection to enter the Two Hills of Hurt. The first hill is steep and winds gradually up the side of the hill, giving you a false sense of security when you reach the top that you have successfully climbed the steepest hill at Days Road, but don't be fooled as Mission Hill is next. Guaranteed to make you walk, whether you are on your bike or running, this next hill will give you are true feeling of satisfaction once you reach the top. Only one person I know from Bayside Runners and Walkers has managed to conquer this hill running at a strong, steady pace.



Once at the top of Mission Hill your 9k journey is nearly finished. After catching your breath, follow the trail over the hill and enter the skinny winding track down the other side through paths with scattered rocks over them. You are now entering 'Vegemite'. The last 2k is mostly down hill winding back on itself to take you down the hill with tight turns and berms on the corners for that extra bit of fun or to stay safe if speed is not an issue. This trail runs you through a more open bushland only thickening slightly as you cross over another path. Still continuing straight onto 'The Chicken Run', the last Kilometre includes a small wooden bridge and some man made dirt mounds to jump over as you finish your ride or run.



Before starting your ride please be mindful there are many small unnoticeable stumps to trip on or hit with your front wheel of your bike if you don't see them. There are two events held here for running and mountain bike riding. Bayview Conservation Area would be my favourite place to visit. It truly is a wondrous place full of adventure and mystery where you don't realise you are exercising as you explore each trail.

[SECTION]Daisy Hill Regional Park[/SECTION]



Hill Conservation Park/@-27.623924,153.174477,14z/data=!4m2!3m1!1s0x6b914254c365afe5:0x1d02a35bea33ea60?hl=en Daisy Hill Regional Park is located on Hill Road, Daisy Hill, QLD but can also be accessed from the car park on ford road sheldon/@-27.5854764,153.203542,12z/data=!3m1!4b1 Ford/Avalon Road , Sheldon or through Bushland National Park/@-27.6296527,153.2023719,17z/data=!4m2!3m1!1s0x6b9142808cc14d8d:0xf02a35bd72164f0 Venmans Reserve entered off West Mt cotton Road, West Mt Cotton. Venman's and Daisy Hill have amenties but if you enter from Ford Road you will need to run approximately 6k to the Daisy Hill toilets and water taps. Dogs on leads and horses are both welcome in Daisy Hill. This park has mountain bike trails which can also be walked or ran with different levels of skill ranging from Easy, Intermediate or Difficult. The main website gives you two well marked maps to follow for your first few rides or runs through this beautiful Aussie bushlands.



If you enter from Avalon/Ford Road car park only 500m along the path at the junction is a map of the main tracks. Here I turn left and head along the trail marked in blue until I reach the Buhot Circuit which is marked in green. This is one of the wide, main Trails and if you continue to follow it around to the left of the Quarry it will eventually lead you to the main Daisy Hill Picnic area and amenities. As you follow the Buhot Trail around you will see many trails leading off to the left and the right. Each one is named and some are numbered. Stringybark will lead you to the topside of my two favourite trails to run although I haven't ridden in Daisy Hill many friends from Bayside Runners and Walkers ride there while we run and comment on the great trails to ride.



Imagine starting your run or ride on a crisp spring morning with dew glistening on the cobwebs delicately spun over the tips of the grass plants, the sun peaking through the leaves of the huge elderly gum trees scattering shaded images where you are heading towards. This is the feeling you get entering Daisy Hill Conservation Area of a morning. Wild life is everywhere but rather quiet due to the mountain bikes flying by and runners happily chatting, although snakes have been know to sun themselves on the paths. The main trails are wide and easier to ride but as you venture down Ripley or similar trails such as Koala, the trail becomes slightly thinner, weaving down with berms on the tight corners as you turn back on yourself climbing down the hill. Watch out for sneaky rocks or the occasional deliberate obstacle placed on the path. Wash outs and tree roots also create more skilled risk taking as you ride or run the trails.



The terrain is mostly red dirt, large rocks changing slightly as you head further to the other side of the Quarry and the fauna is typically Aussie bushland with reed grasses, tall gums, black wattles and other types of Wattle trees as well. The large rocks protruding from the dirt adds danger and technique to your run or ride but if you are looking for the more extreme tracks then head down to Nirvana. Here is a trail with slight but constant inclines and declines adding complete sections of large rock paths and steps. Nirvana will take you to a different world for 1.5k of hard running or riding through what feels like semi rainforest but with the sense of not being lost in the middle of no where, with houses built only 100m away.



Daisy Hill is an awesome weekend adventure for the whole family. The Brisbane Trail running series is holding one of its 5 races at Daisy Hill in 2014. There is 435 hectares of trails and tracks to explore so make sure you pack the family water and snacks while you experience this spectacular Aussie bushlands.

[SECTION]Scribbly Gum Conservation Area[/SECTION]



Scribbly Gum Conservation Area can also be entered from many different points, one of the main entrance points for BTR and [LINK=http://baysiderunners.com/]BRW
[/LINK]is on the corner of Hills QLD 4161/@-27.5293764,153.2349631,17z/data=!3m1!4b1!4m2!3m1!1s0x6b9167162f6f9bf5:0x2d2c2b99d0b205 McDonald Road and Flinders Street, Alexandra Hills, QLD. There are no amenities at this park but dogs on leashes and horses are welcome. At the end of Flinders Road there is a concrete pathway that leads through to West Coburg Street, Cleveland which is another entrance point. Scribbly Gum backs onto the Redlands Hospital.



Scribbly Gum has a bush feel all of its own. There is different terrains throughout this bushland ranging from sandy trails, red dirt tracks to creek crossings and ferns. The minute you step through the main gate you are entering a feeling of new growth. The trees have black markings from past fires and the grass is scattered between the dirt surrounds. The main tracks are very wide and easy to run or follow with many shorter, tight tracks that weave in between each main track with man made log obstacles throughout, some are high enough to test the more skilled riders as well. All these tracks have names like Creek Trail, Hammer, Magic and Orchid Trail to name a few.



Scribbly Gum is constantly being improved with more new trails being formed regularly including some very steep hills and fast, tight tracks which are also named to capture their design quite well such as Pipeline, Firing Line, Luge and Candy. These paths are all connected but it can be rather confusing to the new comer so a map is highly recommended to find your way around the trails. Each trail has it own unique look with the bush land changing from one path to the next. As you weave around the tight corners on one path with the bush close either side struggling to fit between trees and ruts on the track you can enter another path with creek crossings, ferns and steeps hills. The trails have rocky sections and slippery black dirt which when running can cause a fall but on a mountain bike it creates an adventure of technique and skill.



Scribbly Gum Conservation Area is a fantastic bushland full of trails for the whole family to ride, run or walk ranging from easy to harder rides for the more experienced. The creeks flowing through parts of the area only add an extra activity to your outing, whether it's swimming or having morning tea on the banks of the creek before heading to the hills and longer trails. So next time you are looking for a great day out in South East Queensland try one of these bushlands. Jump on your bike, put on your running shoes, grab the dog and Que sera.

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