WE’VE RIDDEN THE MURRAY TO CLARE CYCLING TRAIL AND IT GETS A MASSIVE, GRAVELICIOUS TICK OF APPROVAL

Words and Images - James Raison

South Australia has a new gravel/adventure asset and it’s a real gem. The Murray to Clare Cycling Trail uses some of SA’s best gravel stretches in the north-eastern regions and stitches them together into 300 km-ish of superb riding. There’s little else in South Australia that can match the consistent quality of riding served by the Murray to Clare Trail.

I grabbed a couple of mates and we rode the Trail over two days as a fun way to arrive at the Rockleigh 105 gravel fondo. It was a fantastic long weekend and one we heartily encourage in 2021. We then rode home after the Rockleigh 105 which was perhaps less of a good idea...

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Onwards with the trail guide!

ABOUT THE MURRAY TO CLARE CYCLING TRAIL

The Murray to Clare Cycling Trail is an adaptation of the Lavender Federation walking trail. Bike-hostile sections of the walking trail have been conveniently re-directed onto some of the stunning gravel roads that skirt around.

The trail markers are for the Lavender Federation walking trail so don’t rely on them for cycling!

Credit for this fantastic ribbon of gravel riding belongs to the work done by Uncool Cycling Club who interpreted the Lavender Federation Trail for cycling. They did the scouting, route design, and also put together the map below and marked all of the relevant things to have a great time. We followed the route below on our GPS and it was excellent, taking you past plenty of water stops and bathrooms, plus marking out the touristy things to take a gander at.

I recommend using a GPS with the route below on it. The signage is focused on the walking trail so you can’t rely on trail markers for navigating the bike course. There’s also plenty of notes, markers, and other helpful information for riders.

SUPPLIES

Re-fueling is mostly straightforward on the Murray to Clare Cycling Trail. Those unfamiliar with the area will need to be aware of what towns do and don’t have. There’s a couple of stretches of 70km without food to be mindful of. One thing you won’t lack for is the choice of wine. Anyone wanting to do a tasting on their way through is likely to be found passed out in the Mintaro Maze given the dozen or so wineries you pass on your way there. Here’s a rough breakdown of gaps and services in the direction we rode in:

Clare: everything.

37 km to Mintaro: bathrooms, cellar door/restaurant.
19 km to Manoora: bathroom.
63 km to Eudunda: bakery, pub, stocked supermarket, chemist, bathrooms.
36 km to Truro: bakery, pub, bathrooms.
42 km to Eden Valley: pub, caravan park.
25 km to Mount Pleasant: bakeries, pub, bathroom - plan for this to be the last food stop before Murray Bridge.
7 km to Tungkillo: bathroom but not drinkable water so plan to go through to Murray Bridge
25 km to Monarto Sports Complex: some taps with running water.
18 km Trail finish: Murray Bridge

ACCOMODATION

Check out the Lavender Federation Trail Accomodation Page for plenty of options on sleeping.

There are plentiful dirt nap opportunities along the way but be mindful of private property.

BIKE CHOICE

The Lavender Federation Trail is your classic “CX bike or greater” type terrain. You’ll face everything from occasional smooth tarmac, lovely cured and super-compacted gravel roads, loose and slushy ball-bearing gravel, some rocky and stony pseudo-roads, and all the way to deep singletrack sandpits which will be a walk for the vast majority of people. Most of the trail is low-key gravel familiar to South Australian graveleurs.

You’ll find some areas of SA’s famous red dirt which turns to bike destroying paste so be careful if you’re trying to ride in heavy rain, or soon after heavy rain.

For the curious, my setup was the Titanium Bossi Grit frame, 650b Bossi wheels, Shimano GRX Di2 drivetrain, and 650x45mm Pirelli Cinturato H gravel tyres. It was an excellent setup but I’d choose the 50mm version of the Cinturato H tyres for a little extra cushion next time.

My trusty Bossi Grit adventure steed is the most abused review bike I’ve ever had!

OUR ITINERARY

We chose to tackle the Trail in two days beginning in Clare.

Our split had a much larger first day because conditions were ideal and we wanted to beat a substantial rainstorm due to hit the Murray Bridge area on the second day afternoon. It’s a fairly easy trail to split in half with the well-stocked Truro being almost perfectly in the middle.

DAY 1 - CLARE TO EDEN VALLEY - 190 km, 2240 ASCENDING

Check out my ride on Strava

The early kilometres of the Trail is a reminder of how many rolling hills there are surrounding Clare, and how nice the white gravel roads are in that region. Early roads are super-hardpacked and fast-rolling as you zing, and climb, South West out of town. There’s a couple of pitchy climbs in the leadup to crossing Main North Road and hitting the Riesling Trail for a flying downhill stretch away from Clare.

The stretch from Watervale to Mintaro is where you hit some beautiful patchwork farmland with yellow canola breaking up the ocean of green fields. Spring is a wonderful time to ride the course. It’s still lush, colourful, and not toasted to the golden brown that can look a bit samey in the warmer months. Mintaro’s the next gorgeous town and we quickly snuck off course to have a look at Martindale Hall. Fill your bottles up in Manoora because the next stretch is a leg burner.

It’s more farmland and lovely double track farm roads for the following kilometres as you head through Waterloo and start to ascend for a double range crossing to Webb Gap through wind farm territory. Spoiler alert: there’s a reason they put a wind farm here. It’s a bit blowy. From the east, you’ll face two steep pitches. The first hits 15% and the second a spicy 20%. You can see the two distinct spikes on the profile. Be wary descending off the second climb. The Western road is smooth to give vehicles easy access to the turbines. The Western side is a steep and loose descent with rocks-a-plenty and ruts to navigate.

You earn this view with some hard pinchy climbs

The next 10 km is a slow climb until you turn onto the aptly named Scenic Hill Road. What an amazing stretch of unsealed road this is! There’s a constant internal struggle between stopping for photos every 500 meters of the dramatic, uninterrupted view off the range, and continuing to thunder along the 12 km stretch of gradual downhill. You’ll hit tarmac eventually for some more fast-rolling before dropping off the range into Eudunda for a cracker of a bakery stop.

Getting to Truro is a gradual downhill but I was struck through this section by how fast the gravel roads in this region are. They tend to be smooth and compacted, making for some rapid rolling speed. There are some gorgeous paddock tracks through the Moculta and Keyneton areas with some surprise sand and occasional rock sections to keep you on your toes.

We rolled into the main street of Eden Valley and made camp at the Caravan Park before eating a ton of pub food.

DAY 2 - EDEN VALLEY TO MURRAY BRIDGE - 95 km, 1194 ASCENDING

Check out my ride on Strava

Leaving Eden Valley spoils you with beautiful and wide gravel roads between paddocks. I’d not done this section before so it was a welcome surprise and distracted from deadened legs trying to warm up. It’s undulating, and a gentle climb upwards for the first 20 km towards Mt Pleasant where you’ll drop into a town with two quality bakeries! It’s the little things…

Stock up with food because this is your last food stop until Murray Bridge and you’re heading into a tough region for gravel. The Murray to Clare jumps onto the Kidman Trail through this area and you’ll immediately notice the more pronounced undulations and the roads feel harder. The surface gets more pot-holed, corrugated in places, and has a much slushier top layer of gravel than the Trail before Eden Valley. I’ve ridden these stretches a few times now and I always grimace a little in remembering how they wear you out. It is, nonetheless, still a gorgeous place to ride through.

It’s also MANDATORY to stop in Tungkillo and give this cow a scratch behind the ears. He loves it. There’s a flippin’ petting zoo in someone’s backyard and all the animals love a pat.

The terrain starts to feel more arid East of Harrogate. It can be very hot through this region in summer, and even our mild Spring conditions felt toasty. You also get a sense of wide spaces as the rolling hills average out to a flat expanse with long views and dramatic rock formations surrounding you. I adore this area for its gravel riding despite its challenges. It’s pure magic. The speed picks up too as you begin to drop off the range towards your Murray Bridge destination.

The Rockleigh/Harrogate area brings the drama and some tough riding in equal measure

We passed through the Monarto Sports Complex that was hosting the Rockleigh 105 to offload our unnecessary bags for the final roll into Murray Bridge. Leaving the complex is where you hit proper sandpits. We pushed through the first section but abandoned the following sector on the Southern side of the Monarto Zoo because it’s deep sand and narrow track. A brief roll on the highway clears that section and you can jump back onto the trail which is between the Monarto Zoo maintenance road and the highway. You jump back onto the roads next to the Kinchina MTB trail network for a quick descent onto the tarmac. The last kilometres of the trail use bike paths to skirt the outer suburbs of the town before bringing you onto the riverfront for a finish and feed in the large town of Muzza Bizza!

WRAPPING UP

South Australia is both spoilt with brilliant riding and brilliant people who put these trails together. My job is easy; ride what’s already done, take pretty pictures, and put a guide together. It’s all made possible by the people who volunteer their time to make sure the Trail is well-designed and gives a good rider experience. So to Kay Haarsma and the Uncool Cycling Club; THANKYOU! This trail was fantastic. My group had an awesome time riding the trail and I’d do it again for sure.

The Murray to Clare slots in nicely with the Kidman Trail as a mini-adventure for those not wanting something like the full Mawson Trail. We’ve heard rumours that more trails in rural South Australia are getting dreamed up so you better believe I’ll be heading out to give them a crack when they’re done! Until then, put this trail on your list. It’s excellent.