Mawson Trail

The Mawson Trail is a long-distance cycling and walking trail^[1] in South Australia starting just east of Adelaide in the Adelaide Hills and extending almost 900 kilometres (560 mi) to Blinman in the Flinders Ranges.^[2] It is suitable for mountain bikes.^[3]

The Mawson Trail traverses remote areas of the Mount Lofty and Flinders Ranges, mostly away from bitumen roads, and often off-road on tracks and unmade road or forest reserves. It also passes through a number of country towns. It starts at the upstream end of the Torrens Linear Park on Gorge Road, leading into the Adelaide Hills, so that it is directly connected by dedicated pedestrian/cycleway to the coast at West Beach.

BikeSA hosts a guided two-week tour of the entire length every second year.^[4]

The trail is named after explorer Douglas Mawson.

Route

The route is generally described south-to-north, although it can be ridden in either direction. Signage along the route is provided for both directions.

The towns passed through are:

Adelaide (outskirts)
Lobethal, a historic town with German settler history
Birdwood, home of the National Motor Museum
Rowland Flat, a town in the Barossa Valley
Tanunda, a large town with bakeries, pubs and cafes in the Barossa Valley
Nuriootpa, main commercial centre of the Barossa valley
Kapunda, with cafes, supermarkets and pubs
Riverton, with pubs and cafes
Auburn, with a pub and cafes
Clare, a large town with a large supermarket, bike shop and cafes
Burra, a large historical town with several pubs, supermarkets and cafes
Hallett, with a service station/general store and a pub
Spalding, with a general store and pub with barbed wire museum
(Near Jamestown)
Laura, with a supermarket and cafes
Melrose, with a bike shop cafe, two pubs, and several cafes
Wilmington, with a pub, general store and cafe
Quorn, a large historical town with four pubs and several cafes
Cradock, a tiny hamlet with a pub
Hawker, a small town with a roadhouse/general store and a cafe
Rawnsley Park Station, a caravan park with pub and general store
Wilpena, a very large caravan and campsite with pub, general store and information office
Blinman, a small tourist village with pub and mine tours

References

^ "Mawson Trail - Full Trail". Trails SA.
^ "Mawson Trail". Trails SA. Office for Recreation & Sport. 15 April 2014. Archived from the original on 10 September 2014. Retrieved 16 September 2014.
^ "Mawson Trail, SA". Cycle Trails Australia. 4 August 2013. Retrieved 16 September 2014.
^ "The Outback Odyssey". Bicycle SA. Retrieved 16 September 2014.