Why this ride
On the way it passes Mount Nothofagus Flora Reserve, Gambubal State Forest, Spicers Gap State Forest and back through Gambubal State Forest.
CURVESCOUT / MOTORCYCLE RIDE
'Palen Creek' State Forest and Spicers Gap State Forest
Plan this ride
- Recorded distance
- 497 km
- Riding-time estimate
- 8 h 35
- 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. '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
'Palen Creek' State Forest is where the day begins. Next is Mount Nothofagus Flora Reserve.
2. 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
Mount Nothofagus Flora Reserve comes up about 79 km into the recorded legs. Next is Gambubal State Forest.
3. 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
about 179 km into the recorded legs you reach Gambubal State Forest. Next is Spicers Gap State Forest.
4. 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, about halfway. Next is back through Gambubal State Forest.
5. back through 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 through Gambubal State Forest sits at 332 km, about halfway. Next is back through Mount Nothofagus Flora Reserve.
6. back through Mount Nothofagus Flora Reserve
Return visit. Read the place description above.
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
back through Mount Nothofagus Flora Reserve comes up about 421 km into the recorded legs. Next is 'Palen Creek' State Forest.
7. '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
'Palen Creek' State Forest closes the day.
Leg by leg
'Palen Creek' State Forest to Mount Nothofagus Flora Reserve
'Palen Creek' State Forest → Mount Nothofagus Flora Reserve is 79 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
Mount Nothofagus Flora Reserve to Gambubal State Forest
Mount Nothofagus Flora Reserve → Gambubal State Forest is 100 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
Gambubal State Forest to Spicers Gap State Forest
Gambubal State Forest → Spicers Gap State Forest is 71 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
Spicers Gap State Forest to back through Gambubal State Forest
Spicers Gap State Forest → back through Gambubal State Forest is 71 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
back through Gambubal State Forest to back through Mount Nothofagus Flora Reserve
back through Gambubal State Forest → back through Mount Nothofagus Flora Reserve is 100 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
back through Mount Nothofagus Flora Reserve to 'Palen Creek' State Forest
back through Mount Nothofagus Flora Reserve → 'Palen Creek' State Forest is 79 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.