You’ve come a long way baby.

Lysterfield Park, Victoria. Australia. 10th June 2006.

It’s been a LONG time since I’ve ridden Lysterfield regularly. I’ve been hitting the trails there for over 10 years and they have constantly changed and evolved to reflect the growing demand from riders. The trails always used to be a bit dodgy with riders pretty much breaking the rules by riding on ‘walking tracks’ but the lure of kilometres of sweet undulating trails kept them building and riding until the Rangers caught up with them and closed them down. This in turn moved the trails to new areas of the park and new experiences. This all changed in about 2004 as the 2006 Commonwealth Games venue was announced as Lysterfield Park and bikes were finally allowed off the management roads and onto the singletrack. Millions of dollars have been spend upgrading the park to host the event and improve the facilities. Roads have been improved, car parking is better, toilets have been installed and best of all for bike riders trails have been officially sanctioned, marked and mapped.

So after getting a bit burned out of riding these trails for so many years I went back with my girlfriend to revisit our old regular trails and see what was new. Wow. Things have changed a LOT in the last 2 years. Many of the old walking trails are now closed to bikes with signage and wooden barriers discouraging entry. On the flip side there are now BIKE SPECIFIC trails that are open to bikes and closed to walkers. I didn’t think I’d ever see the day. Seeing these signs around the park made me feel that there is a real movement at the moment and bikes are finally getting some legitimacy and respect as trail users. Whoever has been working with Parks and the Government on this I really want to buy you a beer (or fifty). Cheers!

The day was cool and foggy and even by 12:00pm the fog was still heavy and visibility was les than a hundred meters or so. This created a cool (and cold too!) atmosphere and the vibe of the place was very different to a hot summers day.

Anyway back to the trails. The main trail network now starts right at the front of the park at the main car park. A new trail ribbons its way along the front fence and out to the main gate, an area that used to require riding along the lake foreshore or the car parks. After leaving the main car park area you can head either around the southern side of the lake or up the eastern side of the park towards Wellington Road. We chose the eastern option that pretty much allows you to ride a short way on the fire access road and then to a full lap of the park (maybe 15km) almost entirely on singletrack. The trails run through a few different types of gum forest plantation with narrow, undulating and flowy tracks the order of the day. These are not difficult trails but are challenging to ride at speed and they throw lots of cool little log hits, roots, dips, switchbacks, tight corners and small sharp rises and fast descents. Almost all the technical sections have B-lines for less experienced riders. This is the kind of fun singletrack that everyone should get a taste of to get them into mountain bike riding. The hard work done on the trails was very evident as from past experience many of these trails used to be very prone to water logging and massive boggy patches. A LOT of work has been put in armouring the trails and increasing drainage so that even on this winters day there were only a few small boggy patches. By the end of the ride my clothes were almost as clean as when we set out, something that never occurred on previous June missions.

The network of new trails link together with the new XC race track taking riders into more groomed trails with man made technical sections put in to test riders. This feels quite different to the rest of the park where trails use more existing natural terrain features. One of the exceptions to this in the new Rock Garden section with some excellent use of natural granite boulders and rock rollovers. This section of trail is very technical and now has a short new Double Black Diamond section of trail marked. I have yet to ride this mini trail but knowing the area it is in should be a lot of fun for more experienced riders.

After a full lap of the XC course the trails lead back along the western shores of the lake through the ‘Blair Witch’ singetrack network that includes some super fast flowing descents and fun singletrack in very leafy and closely spaced plantation. This is one of the older MTB trails in the park and is still one of the most fun sections due to the trails using the undulating slight elevation of the hill let you carry a fair amount of speed and have a ball.

After coming back to the lake a quick ride over the lake retaining wall and you are back at the main car park with a big smile on your face and a rumble in the tummy.

During the days ride we’d seen a heap of kangaroos, kookaburras and other wildlife and we never really left suburbia. This is the stuff that makes mountain biking so much fun.

Lysterfield Park really suits riders of all levels. There are enough fun and interesting tracks to keep experienced riders stoked and is a perfect place for Melbournians new to off road riding to head to for a first ride. Pretty much any off road capable bike will suit the trails but do keep in mind some trails are a bit bumpy and there are some good hills along the way. Leave the DH bike at home! New riders should ensure they have decent quality suspension forks, brakes are tuned and all gears are functioning. I took a 5” freeride dually and had a good ride apart from a few slow climbs and my girlfriend took her 3” XC hardtail and we both had fun. The trail is mostly hardpacked dirt with the occasional leafy cover or muddy bog. Most dirt worthy tyres will do the trick. Access and parking are excellent from the main entrance and a smaller trail head exists at the top of the hill on the western side of the park.

If you havn’t been to Lysterfield before or in a while the new improvements are excellent. Go check it out as soon as you can!