Mt. Victoria to Newnes: via the Glowworm Tunnel

The day started with our now traditional coffee at my local coffee shop, Maggios in Cammeray. It’s on the way through for Greg, and it’s a nice way to start the day. Although … sitting in a coffee shop in cycling gear at 6:00am doesn’t really fit the stereotype.We rode to Central station and got the 7:22 train to Mt. Victoria – enough said. I could have done with a snooze, but I was too full of coffee after killing some time at Central station with another.

Our friends Andy and Fiona met us at Mt. Victoria for some sustenance and some more coffee. Luckily, Fiona, an avid cyclist, was driving to Newnes, so she took the gear. I say luckily because there were a few carries along the track from the Glowworm tunnel down to Newnes. So, the three of us set out along the Darling Causeway to Bell. That was the last of the bitumen for the day.

It was an absolutely beautiful day with some nice dirt roads for the first part until we missed a turn off.

A bit of googling found the right track which crossed a disused railway line – insert obvious photo of person lying across the track.

We were soon reunited with the railway line and had to walk along it for a few hundred metres, followed by more googling. The right track was chosen, and we were soon on the Old Bells Line of Road. It’s hard to describe the actual roads and tracks we took up to this point. Better to look at the map below. There was very little traffic as we undulated our way towards the Glowworm Tunnel Rd, past the weekend trailbikers, quadbikers and one guy in a buggy that looked fresh out of Mad Max.

The Glowworm tunnel road got more interesting and more downhill as we got closer to the tunnels. I was amazed at the amount of work that was done to build the old railway line down to Newnes, and the scale of the former industrial complex at Newnes would become apparent the next day. The first tunnel is quite long and dark as, so you need your lights or a car behind you. Then follows some more downhill to the end of the road, where you get off and follow the walking path to the next tunnel with the glowworms.

The tunnel is fascinating, dark and wet, with groups of people wandering through in both directions. You emerge into a green forrest of ferns at the beginning of the track which eventually makes its way down to Newnes camping ground. Mountain bikes would have been suited to this – I was on my Surly Cross Check, Greg had his Specialized Sequoia and Andy his Merida Hybrid with front suspension (the lucky dog). There was a fair bit of walking early on, due to rocks, logs and the near vertical drop just centimetres to our left.

The scenery is stunning and I was continually amazed that someone saw these cliffs and still decided that they’d build a railway. It’s long gone now though – replaced by rockfalls and washouts that make it a strenuous journey down the hill. The second half of the descent is far more rideable but there are stinging nettles and other hazards if you’re not careful. Andy got a 2cm thorn in his leg and I must have clipped the stinging nettles.

As we got close to the bottom, we met up with Fiona who was out walking. She’d spent the day setting up camp. I can’t tell you how grateful I was. So, at the end of a hard day on the bike, my tent had been pitched, fire pit and firewood prepared, and a cold beer was waiting. It doesn’t get better than this. You can wash in the freezing cold creek, sit around the fire, and simply marvel at the cliffs, …