I’ve been thinking about options for when you want to go for a decent 40km+ ride. Preferably step out the door inner Melbourne and go. I hate the idea of driving somewhere and then riding.
I guess I’m after good quiet routes on roads for time poor people. The type of ride that might last a couple of hours perhaps. In other words, not epic at all and very much in Fred territory… the kind of ride you might go on without much/any organisation. The emphasis would be very much on avoiding cars.
Ideas:
-Beach Rd, I think we’re all sick of this and the roads are actually quite busy to be honest. Overwhelming no.
-Yarra Boulevard- good for training. Tick
-KingLake- fantastic ride once you hit Hurstbridge, but getting there sucks balls- especially the bit around Bundoora. Is there a secret quiet road way to get there?
-West- out to Weribee and beyond but on quiet roads?
-Just keep riding on the bike paths until you reach Chadstone, and then head home?
Apologies if this thread appears rather basic but I’m running low on inspiration here. And yes I will be in attendance at the next Gravel Grinders!
Yes there is. Go out heidelberg rd until you get to the intersection with burgundy st. turn right, then immediately left. this route will take you out through banyule, mt pleasant, kangaroo ground then to kinglake. almost all of the route is quiet, scenic backroads. little traffic, and quite a few hills to get you warmed up for kinglake. something like this: Mt Pleasant/Kinglake Return - A bike ride in Brunswick, Victoria 3056, AU
(that map starts/finishes from my house and includes the brutally steep pigeon bank lane on the return, but you get the idea)
Try out to Williamstown, follow it around the beach and then on towards Altona North or Laverton North (along Kororoit Crk Rd) depending on fitness. I hit this regularly, for a good flat ride, on Sunday mornings and there’s not much bike/car traffic.
East along Johnston st through Kew junction/High st/Doncaster rd/High st (Doncaster) to Westerfolds park in Templestowe and then back into the city along the bike trail, and then onto Yarra Boulevard in Ivanhoe, and back into the inner city along Heidelberg rd. That’s about 45km and great on a CX bike because of the mix of road, hills, trails and dirt. And there’s plenty of options to vary the route depending on your mood. Or you can do the whole thing on a roadie - there’s no real off road stuff.
Let me know when you’re going - I’ll come along with you.
I often do this one, and like snowflake said you can always tweek it dependant on time/mood.
Pick any road really in Doncaster, Templestowe, warrandyte, Eltham or Eltham and you get plenty of nice hills, and you’ll be back in 1.5-2.5 hours depending on which you choose, exploring myself has been the best for creating a mental map rather than doing prescribed routes where you need to know where to turn and when. Let me know when you go too! I need some roadie training
Thanks for all the friendly suggestions. Sounds like I’ll have to set up an anti-epic Fred Ride tweet! These 1-2 hour routes will be great for after work. Tuesday’s and Thursday’s perhaps.
eltham and back? go with the commuter cycles boys every monday morning, early morning that is, also if you like the steep ness of pigeon bank, then find nathans rd
I have been doing some of these trips lately, can easily combine bits of Boulevard at Richmond (v. flat) trail to kew boulevard including a couple of laps of hawthorn crit loop, then onto MYT either down the steps or via Kilby rd, then some ivanhoe boulevard or main yarra trail (past westerfolds it would be sketchy on a roadie but up tp there it is hard packed or paved). or outbound along the eastern freeway trail which flows nicely when past bulleen rd.
Being a road bike n00b and keen to build up fitness, I’m pretty damn glad I’ve found this thread. I will definitely puff my way through some of these ~40km pearlers.
Getting out to Keilor village through Avondale heights, Essendon etc is good. Has some nice hills, and not super busy after 7pm weeknights. I can give you a map of a route if you like. Can get 40+kms easily
I saw the title “Good routes around Melbourne on quiet roads”
I cant help you in Melb, but if you were in Brisbane and had a chick on the go (whether she is good or not is up to her)
I could suggest some quiet streets… ;-p
I like to go along Heidelberg Rd, left onto Upper Heidelberg Rd (it steps uphill through Ivanhoe), then right at Burgundy St down past the Austin, then onto that Beverley / Banyule / Bonds / Old Eltham Rd stretch out to Eltham, then Mt Pleasant Rd, left to Research and back to Eltham. That’s about 37km, lots of short but hard ‘Ardennes’ hills and doable in a couple hours; traffic is OK despite the Ivanhoe bit. Get the train back to the city if you’re rooted or time is tight, otherwise back the way you came, or Main Yarra trail back through Westerfolds > Kew Boulie > MYT again. I start and finish that in Parkville and it’s about 85km. MYT is good because the sightlines are really clear on the Banyule and Warringal flats section so you can go hard without fear of coming round a corner and cleaning up someone out for a walk. (Best on a CX bike but it’s OK on a roadie as long as you mind the odd rut on the unsealed parts.)
And dare I say it don’t disregard the bayside trail, I use the length of it a few times a week - it’s roadie compatible and most days it’s like my own private bikeway.
Outside of peak hours Nepean Hwy / via Station St south of mordy down to Frankston ain’t that bad either, most Beach Rd denizens don’t go down there (prob takes you outside your 40k limit but)
