Why this ride
A 764 km round trip from Canungra - roughly 14 h 19 in the saddle. On the way it passes Amaroo Flora Reserve, 'Palen Creek' State Forest, Mount Clunie Flora Reserve and Spicers Gap State Forest. Long stretches are under trees.
CURVESCOUT / MOTORCYCLE RIDE
Lamington National Park and Spicers Gap State Forest
Plan this ride
- Recorded distance
- 764 km
- Riding-time estimate
- 14 h 19
- 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: producer-declared routed record.
Reading history stays on this device. My road watch requires a separate selection; opening it does not subscribe this ride.
Distance and riding time are measured on the routed road. Check local closures and conditions before you ride.
Waypoint introductions and full write-ups
1. Lamington National Park
Ask anyone in Brisbane about Lamington and they will probably mention one of two roads, and both of them will make you work. The national park covers the high plateau of the McPherson Range on the Queensland side of the border, a huge expanse of rainforest, waterfalls and cliff-edged lookouts at the heart of the Gondwana Rainforests of Australia World Heritage area. It was named after Lord Lamington, a governor of Queensland at the end of the nineteenth century, who is said to have been less than thrilled to have a park, and later a cake, named after him.
Read the complete Lamington National Park write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
Lamington National Park is where the day begins. Next is Amaroo Flora Reserve.
2. Amaroo Flora Reserve
Behind the coast of northern New South Wales, the Tweed valley sits inside the remains of an enormous shield volcano that erupted some twenty-odd million years ago. Erosion has carved away the centre, leaving a huge caldera, one of the largest in the world, with the steep, forested walls of the Border Ranges and the McPherson Range curving around it and the volcanic plug of Wollumbin, also known as Mount Warning, rising in the middle. The Amaroo Flora Reserve lies on the slopes of this landscape, part of the Gondwana Rainforests of Australia, a UNESCO site of scattered reserves along the Great Dividing Range.
Read the complete Amaroo Flora Reserve write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
Amaroo Flora Reserve comes up about 101 km into the recorded legs. Next is 'Palen Creek' State Forest.
3. 'Palen Creek' State Forest
State forests in Queensland do not always sound romantic, but Palen Creek earns a second look. It sits in the hills south of Rathdowney in the Scenic Rim, between the Logan River country and the border ranges, a mix of eucalypt forest, old timber land and gullies of rainforest that run up toward the New South Wales border. The Gondwana Rainforests of Australia, which are listed by UNESCO, begin a few ridges away, and the wildlife does not care much about the boundary.
Read the complete 'Palen Creek' State Forest write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
about 254 km into the recorded legs you reach 'Palen Creek' State Forest. Next is Mount Clunie Flora Reserve.
4. Mount Clunie Flora Reserve
On the border between New South Wales and Queensland, the McPherson Range rises steeply from the farmland, its forested slopes and cliffs marking the rim of an ancient volcanic landscape. Mount Clunie Flora Reserve protects a patch of rainforest on these slopes near Woodenbong, part of the Gondwana Rainforests of Australia, a UNESCO site that preserves some of the oldest rainforests on earth. Here, in the cool upland forest, hoop pines and towering eucalypts mix with rainforest trees, and the forest floor is dense with ferns and mosses.
Read the complete Mount Clunie Flora Reserve write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
Mount Clunie Flora Reserve, about halfway. Next is Spicers Gap State Forest.
5. Spicers Gap State Forest
Allan Cunningham, the botanist and explorer, found a way through the Main Range in 1827, and the gap that bears his name now carries the busy highway from Brisbane to the Darling Downs. A few kilometres to the south, Spicers Gap was the route that early drays and coaches used instead, because it offered an easier climb up the escarpment. The old road, built in the mid nineteenth century with stone retaining walls and drains that can still be seen, is now part of the Main Range National Park and the neighbouring state forest, and it is a fascinating relic of the pioneer days, with a historic cemetery and the remains of an old camping ground for teamsters.
Read the complete Spicers Gap State Forest write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
Spicers Gap State Forest sits at 172 km, about halfway. Next is back through Mount Clunie Flora Reserve.
6. back through Mount Clunie Flora Reserve
Return visit. Read the place description above.
Read the complete Mount Clunie 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 Mount Clunie Flora Reserve comes up about 440 km into the recorded legs. Next is back through 'Palen Creek' State Forest.
7. back through 'Palen Creek' State Forest
Return visit. Read the place description above.
Read the complete 'Palen Creek' State Forest write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
about 510 km into the recorded legs you reach back through 'Palen Creek' State Forest. Next is back through Amaroo Flora Reserve.
8. back through Amaroo Flora Reserve
Return visit. Read the place description above.
Read the complete Amaroo 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 Amaroo Flora Reserve, late in the day. Next is Lamington National Park.
9. Lamington National Park
Return visit. Read the place description above.
Read the complete Lamington National Park write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
The route ends here after 764 km.
Leg by leg
Lamington National Park to Amaroo Flora Reserve
Lamington National Park → Amaroo Flora Reserve is 101 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
Amaroo Flora Reserve to 'Palen Creek' State Forest
Amaroo Flora Reserve → 'Palen Creek' State Forest is 153 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
'Palen Creek' State Forest to Mount Clunie Flora Reserve
'Palen Creek' State Forest → Mount Clunie Flora Reserve is 70 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
Mount Clunie Flora Reserve to Spicers Gap State Forest
Mount Clunie Flora Reserve → Spicers Gap State Forest is 57 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
Spicers Gap State Forest to back through Mount Clunie Flora Reserve
Spicers Gap State Forest → back through Mount Clunie Flora Reserve is 59 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
back through Mount Clunie Flora Reserve to back through 'Palen Creek' State Forest
back through Mount Clunie Flora Reserve → back through 'Palen Creek' State Forest is 70 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
back through 'Palen Creek' State Forest to back through Amaroo Flora Reserve
back through 'Palen Creek' State Forest → back through Amaroo Flora Reserve is 152 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
back through Amaroo Flora Reserve to Lamington National Park
back through Amaroo Flora Reserve → Lamington National Park is 102 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.