Why this ride
It goes by way of Wilsons Peak Flora Reserve, Mount Nothofagus Flora Reserve and back through Wilsons Peak Flora Reserve.
CURVESCOUT / MOTORCYCLE RIDE
Gambubal State Forest and Mount Nothofagus Flora Reserve
Plan this ride
- Recorded distance
- 68 km
- Riding-time estimate
- 1 h 10
- Journey
- Recorded itinerary
Distance and timing basis
Ordered leg totals agree within rounding. Stop distances are approximate sums of rounded legs. Stops, delays, approach and any separate return travel add time. Basis: planning record, not independently verified geometry.
Reading history stays on this device. My road watch requires a separate selection; opening it does not subscribe this ride.
Distances and riding times are planning figures. Check local closures and conditions before you ride.
Waypoint introductions and full write-ups
1. Gambubal State Forest
Gambubal State Forest clings to the western side of the Great Dividing Range in southern Queensland, close to the New South Wales border, in country that drops from rainforest-clad ridges down to the grazing land around Killarney and Warwick. The forest adjoins Main Range National Park and belongs to the wider belt of subtropical and temperate rainforest protected as part of the Gondwana Rainforests of Australia. Hoop pine, ancient Antarctic beech on the highest ridges, tree ferns and strangler figs give it a feel of deep time, and it is one of the cooler corners of Queensland in summer.
Read the complete Gambubal State Forest write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
Gambubal State Forest is where the day begins. Next is Wilsons Peak Flora Reserve.
2. Wilsons Peak Flora Reserve
The Border Ranges are where Queensland leans against New South Wales, and Wilsons Peak, a rocky summit on the line between the two states, is part of that tumbled wall. The flora reserve around it protects a patch of high, cool forest on the old volcanic ranges, and it is one of those places that the wider world mostly forgets. The land here was shaped by the huge Tweed volcano, which erupted for millions of years, leaving behind a circle of mountains and deep valleys.
Read the complete Wilsons Peak Flora Reserve write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
Wilsons Peak Flora Reserve comes up about 16 km into the recorded legs. Next is Mount Nothofagus Flora Reserve.
3. Mount Nothofagus Flora Reserve
Nothofagus is the botanical name of the southern beech, and the name of this reserve gives away its treasure: stands of Antarctic beech growing high on the McPherson Range along the Queensland–New South Wales border. These gnarled, moss-covered trees, some of them centuries old and sprouting from root systems far older still, are living relics of the forests that covered Gondwana before Australia drifted away from Antarctica.
Read the complete Mount Nothofagus Flora Reserve write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
about 34 km into the recorded legs you reach Mount Nothofagus Flora Reserve. Next is back through Wilsons Peak Flora Reserve.
4. back through Wilsons Peak Flora Reserve
Return visit. Read the place description above.
Read the complete Wilsons Peak Flora Reserve write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
back through Wilsons Peak Flora Reserve, late in the day. Next is Gambubal State Forest.
5. Gambubal State Forest
Return visit. Read the place description above.
Read the complete Gambubal State Forest write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
Back at Gambubal State Forest. That is the ride.
Leg by leg
Gambubal State Forest to Wilsons Peak Flora Reserve
Gambubal State Forest → Wilsons Peak Flora Reserve is 16 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
Wilsons Peak Flora Reserve to Mount Nothofagus Flora Reserve
Wilsons Peak Flora Reserve → Mount Nothofagus Flora Reserve is 18 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
Mount Nothofagus Flora Reserve to back through Wilsons Peak Flora Reserve
Mount Nothofagus Flora Reserve → back through Wilsons Peak Flora Reserve is 18 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
back through Wilsons Peak Flora Reserve to Gambubal State Forest
back through Wilsons Peak Flora Reserve → Gambubal State Forest is 16 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.