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- Links the town of Carnarvon with the heritage precinct around One Mile Jetty. Also known as the Heritage Tramway Walk Trail.
- The Western end of the Tramway Bridge is currently closed due to the removal of Whitlock Island Shelter. Unfortunately this prevents access to the trail beyond the tramway bridge.
Nearby Attractions
- One Mile Jetty Interpretive Centre. Note: the jetty is currently unsafe and closed to visitors
- Railway and lighthouse museums including ‘Kimberley’, the tramway’s last working locomotive
- Unique regional flora and fauna; Dawson burrowing bees can be seen between July and September
Last updated: 31 July 2024
- The railway line has been rebuilt and the trail runs beside the rails
- Interpretive signboards along the trail
The One Mile Jetty at Carnarvon
The tramway bridge at the start of the trail
One Mile Jetty at the end of the trail
The trail runs beside the tramway between the town and the jetty
The trail features excellent signage, such as the those in the shelter pictured
The jetty at sunset
Kimberley, the last locomotive to work on the jetty is preserved at the museum at Carnarvon
Leaders in Rail Trail Bicycle and E-Bike Hire in the Yarra Valley and Yarra Ranges. Customise your own riding adventure and help us support local businesses along the way. Family run and owned with extensive local knowledge, bike hire has never been so easy.Do you know of a bike hire or transportation service on this rail trail that should appear here? If so, let us know at admin@railtrails.org.au.
Information and Links
For more information:
The trail is managed by the Shire of Carnarvon.
To report any issues or problems contact Shire of Carnarvon, 12 Robinson Street Carnarvon WA 6701: 9941 1146 or email
in**@ca*******.au
Contact Rail Trails Australia
To contact us about this rail trail, email wa@railtrails.org.au
Background Information
Before the construction of the North West Coastal Highway, shipping provided the only link between Carnarvon and the outside world. The tramway was built in 1900 to link the town and One Mile Jetty, crossing the mangrove swamps around Babbage and Whitlock Islands. One Mile Jetty continued to be used as a deep-sea port until the 1980s.
Traditional owners
We acknowledge the Inggarda, Baiyunga, Thalanji, Malgana and Thudgarri people, the traditional custodians of the land and waterways on which the rail trail is built.
Rail line history
The tramway was made of two-foot gauge railway line and ran for more than two miles. As part of the tramway, a 323 m long timber bridge was built across the southern arm of the Gascoyne River, connecting Whitlock Island to the mainland.
Floods in 1902 and 1904 caused considerable damage to the tramway and the tramway was raised and converted to three foot six inch gauge.
The first locomotive used on the tramway was the ‘Kia Ora,’ now part of the Rail Transport Museum in Bassendean.
One review of “Carnarvon Tramway”
Lovely trail with variable surface. The timber link to the mainland was uneven, but the unsealed trail on the island was fine.
The jetty is still closed but the museum and Cafe were open (Aug 2024).