Brisbane Valley Rail Trail - Trail Description

Features

• Queensland's longest rail trail, which is still under development. It will be 160km long when complete.
• gently undulating through mostly farming land in the southern section, steeper sections and bushland in the northern section.
• the standard of the trail surface varies between sections; refer to the description for more detail
• at this stage crossings at nearly all former bridge sites are low level crossings.  Care should be taken after heavy rains

Description

General

• The access points at each town are the former station sites, which have ample car parking space.
• Horses must be shod.
• Water and toilets are only available at the towns listed in the descriptions.
• The rail trail suffered extensive damage during the January 2011 floods.  Damage is yet to be repaired, and local Councils report many sections are closed indefinitely.

Wulkuraka (Ipswich) to Fernvale (22km)

Wulkuraka to Wanora is not yet open, Somerset Regional Council state that this section is closed indefinitely.

Wanora to Fernvale is closed due to flood damage

Fernvale to Lowood (9km)

• easily graded with a fine compacted gravel trail surface.
• this section is also suitable for hybrid bikes, personal mobility vehicles or horse drawn vehicles

Fernvale has quite a few facilities, including the Fernvale Futures Visitor Information Centre at the station site, bakery, café, ATM and accommodation.  Lowood is not as big but has the basic facilities and still has its station, off  Railway St and visible from Main St. The Lowood showgrounds has horse accomodation facilities.

The was the first section of the rail trail developed, by the then Shire of Esk in 2002.  A fun run is held on the trail every July. Somerset Regional Council contact is Sport, Recreation & Planning Officer Scott Aurisch. (refer below)

Lowood to Esk (35km)

Somerset Regional Council state that this section is closed indefinitely.

The northern Coominya to Esk part (23km) os this section is closed due to flood damage

• easily graded with a coarse gravel/dirt trail surface.
• native bushland and farmland

The intermediate town of Coominya is small with limited facilities.  The station building, in Railway St naturally, still stands and is well looked after.  Between Lowood and Coominya is the large Lockyer Ck Bridge but at this stage a low level crossing is still used.

Esk is the major regional centre and the station is on the west side of the highway, also in Railway St off Highland St. The station has been restored by the local Lions Club and the area is now quite a feature.

A significant feature of the area is Lake Wivenhoe which holds twice the capacity of Sydney Harbour and the major water source for South East Queensland.

Esk to Toogoolawah (19km)

Somerset Regional Council and South Burnett Council state that this section is closed indefinitely.

• undulating with a coarse gravel/dirt trail surface.
• farmland

Tooglawah has quite a few facilities and a station building in good conditon.  For a change it is not in a Railway St but behind the shops in Cressbrook St.

Toogoolawah to Moore (27km)

This section is not yet open. Somerset Regional Council and South Burnett Council state that this section is closed indefinitely.

• undulating terrain
• features the only tunnel on the trail and major bridge at Harlin

Moore to Blackbutt (30km)

• There are some steep descents/ascents where railway bridges have been removed and the trail dips in and out of creek beds.
• Moore to Linville (6km) From Stanley Gates Park in Moore, take Eskdale Street and then cross the footbridge that you will see on the right. The trail then heads north beside Linville Road on a slight upgrade through the Brisbane Valley. The Linville Pioneer, Charity and Sporting Club have restored the Linville station and obtained some old carriages so worth a visit by itself. They plan to restore the carriages for the use of future rail trail users.
• Linville to Benarkin (18km)From Linville the trail climbs the rugged and picturesque Blackbutt Range.

  For bike riders front suspension and gloves are recommended due to the rough surface. 

• From Linville the trail climbs around 300 metres in elevation to Benarkin however the grades on the railway alignment are relatively easy. From the station, the trail heads out through grazing land. The surface is gravely and rocky for most of the journey with predominantly grass trees and many cuttings through the rock.  There are several gates along the way that need to be left as you find them for stock control. In a few places there may be cattle grazing on the trail.

  Closer to the small village of Benarkin the flora changes into eucalypt and scrub. Benarkin sits at the highest point of the rail trail.

  Distances are marked along the trail every 2km.

• Benarkin to Blackbutt (5km)From Benarkin the trail has a smoother surface and can be ridden comfortably by hybrid bikes (subject to flood damage repairs).

  At Backbutt the trail passes the showgrounds.

A downhill ride from Blackbutt is obviously easier going. A family should allow 2 hours in this direction and double heading up. If doing a return trip, starting at Linville or Moore is recommended.

Moore, Linville and Benarkin are small villages with basically just a general store. The pub in Linville also has accommodation with a B&B at Moore.

Blackbutt is a regional centre town and offers bakeries, cafes, post office, accommodation and a visitor information centre. For accommodation try the old country style pub or the B&B’s close to the Trail.

Blackbutt to Yarraman (18km)

• steady climb up to the top of the range and back down to Yarraman.
• coarse gravel/dirt trail surface.

The old Pidna rail station site is at Harland Park at Cooyar Creek, beside the highway.

This section incorporates the Yarraman Weir Rail Trail  developed by the local progress association.

Yarraman has quite a few facilities.  The station building is in good conditon but in the nearby museum..

Background Information

The Brisbane Valley Rail Trail was being developed by the Brisbane Valley Rail Trail Steering Committee and then Department of Infrastructure and Planning, building on two sections previously developed by the then Esk and Nanago shire councils. It would, when complete, be the longest rail trail in Australia to date.

The Brisbane Valley Rail Trail Stering Committe  incorporates the communities in the Brisbane Valley, Ipswich City Council, South Burnett Regional Council, Somerset Regional Council and Toowoomba Regional Council, and was supported by the SEQ Regional Recreation Trails Program. The program has been wound up.

The trail follows the former Brisbane Valley railway line, which ran north from Wulkuraka (Ipswich) 157km to Yarraman. The railway was built in stages reaching Esk in 1886 and Yarraman in 1913. At one time, Linville station was the largest loading point for cattle in south east Queensland. Passenger services operated until 1967 and freight services were reduced from 1988, with closure of the last section occurring in 1993.

Links

Brisbane Valley Rail Trail website

The trail is managed by the Department of State Development, Infrastructure and Planning (DSDIP), last known phone contact is ph: (07) 3405 8566.  Major staffing changes and re-prioritising of funding commitments have seen sections of the trail left incomplete, damaged or closed for management purposes.  The future development is uncertain, beyond the sections Fernvale to Lowood, Moore to Blackbutt.

Please report any issues to the department (DSDIP) Email: info@dsdip.qld.gov.au
Postal address: PO Box 15009, City East, Queensland 4002 and copy us.

July 2012