I’ve been wanting to ride the Central West Cycling Trail for a while; my various cycling related social feeds have been full of praise, and it seemed to me to be an ideal “first” for a bike-packing adventure and a gravel one at that. So it was that myself and a couple of mates drove into Gulgong on a Monday morning in mid September to start a 5 day mostly off road adventure.
Planning
When I’d proposed the idea a few months earlier we’d all agreed on a date range which I then planned into 5 days of cycling which required accommodation to be booked. The CWCT website (https://centralwestcycletrail.com.au/) lists options for each township which does include camping if that’s your thing so I started the phone around of mostly pubs for the required overnight stays. It took a few weeks; there are limited options but eventually I got it nailed down. On average we paid $55 per person per night and that included the pre and post ride stays, 6 nights in all. Bargain! A spreadsheet was produced!
Day 0 - Mudgee
The three of us met in Mudgee on the Sunday afternoon in preparation for our adventure. Discussions were had, tyre choices debated, beers were drunk, more debate on tyre choices, food was consumed. Normal fair for the night before a ride of this magnitude.
Day 1 - Gulgong to Dunedoo (52km, 394m climbing, 45% unsealed)
We breakfasted and coffeed up in Mudgee before driving to Gulgong, parking outside the local police station (considered secure parking in this neck of the woods). After the obligatory (minimal) faffing around, getting bikes out of cars, attaching bags to bikes, taking photos etc and then another coffee and cake at the Butchers Café around mid-morning off we pedalled towards Dunedoo for our first night, initially on quiet tarmac roads. This time of year is Magpie season so we copped a couple of hits early on. After 15km the route splits, to the right is the “official” route but to the left is the “Slap Dash Creek” alternative. The CWCT has a number of these which you can do or not do as you see fit depending on the weather conditions and your own “adventurous” ability. The Slap Dash Creek route cuts off a few kms but is more a mix of pristine gravel, farm tracks, a bit of MTB rocky downhill and grassland trails. A little bit more challenging but fun all the same and lots of wildlife. There was even a bit of portage required over a wet muddy section. After that it was back onto normal gravel roads towards our destination with the last 10km being rolling quiet tarmac. We even met other riders going in the other direction; a theme for the rest of the week as riders pass each other.
Dunedoo is the town with the painted grain silos. Very impressive and some great artwork. We refuelled at the local café before getting ourselves setup in the old Royal Hotel which provides basic accommodation and cereal and toast breakfast. Dinner (and beer) was had at the only pub in town.
Day 2 - Dunedoo to Mendooran (65km, 415m climbing, 71% unsealed)
Much like the day before, we rode out of Dunedoo after accommodation breakfast and obligatory photos and almost immediately onto quiet gravel roads. Like some days, the CWCT offered up two route options today. I had planned the longer variant with a pre-authorised private farm road section to miss a longer section of highway later in the day.
We rode along through open farmland roads before crossing the highway at Cobbora and climbed up to the high point for the day at 40km on a quite tarred road. A quick rest and snack, then we dropped down and turned off the tar onto a private road through a farm before picking up another gravel road into Mendooran. We had to back track just before the town as the river crossing looked a bit deep for our liking.
Accommodation was at another Royal Hotel. We met some fellow CWCT riders again and swapped routes and stories.
Day 3 - Mendooran to Ballimore (62km, 348m climbing, 87% unsealed)
What a great day! Continental pub breakfast followed by a coffee at the local “shop” had us on the road with the prospect of not much more civilisation until later in the day. Definitely a day to self-carry extra water and food with the temperatures expected to be in the high 20’s.
Like other days we took the longer option today which had us zig zagging the main road on various fire breaks and state forest trails rather than brave the traffic. Was lots of fun and quite technical in places and definitely isolated. We stopped at about 40km for a snack and met some other riders doing the trail coming the other way on ebikes. Good to see others enjoying themselves.
Leaving the forest had us riding more gravel roads where care was required due to it being a bit soft in places. Eventually we rolled into Ballimore which consisted of a big grain terminal and the pub, The Hair of the Dog and really not much more. Luckily for us it was a Wednesday so it opened at 11am, earlier in the week it doesn’t open until 4pm which catches speedsters out. All good for us, hot chips and some alcoholic Bundy Ginger Beer helped us through until dinner later that evening.
Day 4 - Ballimore to Wellington (71km, 654m climbing, 43% unsealed)
It had rained overnight but was overcast but clear when we left The Hair of the Dog. Like most days, a “continental” breakfast was provided by the pub which was sufficient to get us on our way. We rolled on quiet tared roads for the first 15km before turning off on to the normal quite gravel roads through to Wongarbon and then more gravel parallel to the Mitchell Highway to Geurie at 40km. Finally somewhere to buy a proper lunch and very nice it was too at the café. We also crossed paths here with a family of four riding the CWCT in a clockwise direction, towing a bob-trailer, camping and self catering. Very impressive. They were all smiles.
As we left Geurie it started raining and didn’t really stop for the next 30km to Wellington which turned into a very muddy affair along the 10km River Road section. We rolled into Wellington very wet and extremely muddy. The downside of gravel riding in the wet I guess. Being a “larger” town we ate out that night with local Thai.
Day 5 - Wellington to Gulgong (80km,870m climbing, 65% unsealed including the road works)
Tough day to finish but worth it. After a very disturbed sleep (note to self, read accommodation reviews and don’t take rooms above the bar) we rolled out of Wellington relatively early after a good breakfast at the Four Cats Café. I’d read the first tarred section had long sections of road works. Little did we know it lasted about 15km, mostly all uphill and was constantly stop start at traffic lights and controlled sections. The road was being widened to support a massive wind farm and was a muddy sticky surface in places which slowed us somewhat. Reaching the top of the climb at 24km after two hours we finally rid ourselves of the roadworks, tar and mud and started on a very nice section of gravel roads through rolling farmland. We stopped for a self carried lunch at a small river crossing and the proceeded onwards through the small hamlet of Goolma before heading cross country again indirectly to our destination and ride finish back in Gulgong. Must be something about Gulgong, the magpies re-appeared in force as we approached the finish.
And so it was we rolled into Gulgong about 2:30pm, back into the Butchers Café again to complete our ride before returning the cars. We overnighted in Kandos on the way home to complete the week.
In summary, we rode 330km over the 5 days at 66km per day averaging 15kph. Between the three of us, no punctures, no mechanical other than my drooping saddle bag. I kept the distances to a manageable number. Maybe they could have been longer but when you look into it and maybe double up some days they become upwards of 110km which for my current level of fitness and being a first timer was impractical this time out.
It's also important to note for the entire trail that whilst the distances between stops is relatively short there is typically nothing in between for food or water so you need to be self-sufficient and carry enough food and water for the day. Also, depending on your provider, limited mobile phone coverage so you should consider carrying spares for any bike issues. There are certainly no Ubers out here. All in all, a great week away. Highly recommended.
What‘s next I hear you ask? Maybe the Orange360 or a variant of the Lachlan Valley Cycle Trail which encompasses a leg through Cowra. There’s talk of the Munda Biddi in WA; now that’s an epic ride. ( see the News article on the Munda Biddi ride here