Wellington to Wyong Cycle Tour

Yellow Rock seen from Broke

(Click on each photo to see a larger image)

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Brief Description: The least hilly route from the central west of NSW to the east coast, this tour passes through wheat and grazing area, over the Great Dividing Range (493m) into coal mining country. From Merriwa the tour enters the attractive Hunter Valley, with vineyards in the foreground and rugged escarpment in the background. The final leg of the journey passes through the quiet roads along the old Convict Trail, winding through the tranquil rural Wollombi Valley.

Route: Wellington, Gulgong, Ulan, Cassilis, Merriwa, Denman, Broke, Wollombi, Kulnura, Wyong.

Distance: 383km

Altitude variation (rough guide only): Wellington (300m), Ulan (480m), Broke (100m), Bucketty (near Kulnura; 300m), Wyong (20m).

Time: 4-6 days. I completed the trip in four days.

Shorter route: Start at Muswellbrook and cycle to Denman. From here follow the longer route to Wyong. This variation is about 200km long and takes in the best scenery on the trip.

Traffic conditions: Light traffic throughout the most of the journey. Traffic is heavier between Denman and Singleton but not too bad. The narrow road between Kulnura and Wyong takes more traffic but does not last long.

Road surface: Sealed and in reasonable condition, except for 2km of unsealed road between Payne’s Crossing and Wollombi. The route from Broke to Kulnura is beautiful and highly recommended even with this unsealed section!

Access: Wellington is serviced twice a day from Sydney by the Central West XPT. Passengers must book in advance (two bicycles per service only; book early!). Wyong is serviced hourly to and from Sydney by CityRail. No bookings required, and bicycles are free in off-peak services. Muswellbrook and Singleton are both within 25km of the route and have daily (or more) CityRail services to and from Sydney.

Bicycle Shops: To my knowledge, there are no bicycle shops on this route. There are several shops in towns which are within 25km of the route. Some are listed below.

· Innovative Cycles, Mudgee, (02) 6372 9135

· Mudgee Cycles, Mudgee, (02) 6372 4000

· King Cycle Works, Muswellbrook, (02) 6543 2073

· Cycle Sports Singleton, Singleton, (02) 6572 2213

· Cycology, Tuggerah, (02) 4353 4000

· Bike Rack World, Rocky Point, (02) 4353 4167 

Date travelled: I cycled the route from 11 to 14 February 2002.

Maps

The NRMA NSW Touring Maps give excellent coverage of the tour. Touring Map 4 (Blue Mountains, Central Coast, Hunter, Illawarra, Southern Highlands) covers the route from Gulgong to Wyong, while Touring Map 5 (Central West, New England, North West) covers the 71km between Wellington and Gulgong. If one keeps to the main road between Wellington and Gulgong, purchasing Touring Map 5 is not essential. A less detailed map (with some very minor inaccuracies) may be obtained below.

Click here to download map. (Expand image for a clarity.)

Detailed Description

The following is an account of the route as I cycled it. I have tried to include as much useful information as possible. Variations and alternate routes are discussed along the way if I have information.

Day 1: Wellington to wild campsite north of Ulan (102km)

The road from Wellington to Gulgong is mostly flat with little shade. There is a small kiosk at Goolma. Wellington has a good shopping centre and Gulgong has a number of shops including a supermarket. Food is more expensive at Gulgong than Wellington.

Ploughed farmland near Lincoln

Past Gulgong the other side Great Dividing Range is reached; this is the highest point in the journey and by far the easiest climb of the range anywhere close to Sydney. There is little at Ulan besides a colliery. I found a campsite 8km north of Ulan by the Goulburn River. Because of the coal mine nearby I did not try using the river water. It is best to bring plenty of drinking water from Gulgong.

The highest point on the trip

Alternate route: From Ulan, those with mountain bikes can cycle to Sandy Hollow via Bylong and Goulburn River National Park. I imagine the scenery is far superior to that along the Golden Highway. Locals at Gulgong warned that the road is quite corrugated and I decided not to venture on to it with my loaded hybrid.

Day 2: Ulan to The Battery (84km)

Campsite at Goulburn River

There is a small service station at Turill where I obtained tank water (with Mosquito wrigglers!). This is the last ‘shop’ until Merriwa (unless you make the 1km detour into Cassilis where there may be a shop, though I am not sure).The Golden Highway takes a few more trucks but traffic at this point is very light. I did not stop at Cassilis, though seeing the journey from Cassilis to Merriwa is long with little shade, it may be a good place to stop to break the journey. The Coolah Tops may be seen in the distance.

Cassilis seen from Golden Hwy

The Krui River (25km west of Merriwa) is also nice for an informal picnic, though shade is still hard to come by. Merriwa is a small district centre and has a supermarket and other basic services. East of Merriwa the scenery becomes more interesting. There is a good picnic ground at The Battery, 15km east of Merriwa, where there are some interesting rock formations. From memory there was water supply here. There is plenty of grass to pitch a tent.

The Battery Picnic Area

Day 3: The Battery to Payne’s Crossing (114km)

Day 3 is a beautiful day cycling through the Hunter Valley and could be broken up into two days. The Goulburn River is met again at Sandy Hollow, where there are a few small shops and a caravan park. Around here the rugged escarpment begins.

Denman is an important centre in the region with a decent shopping centre. (From Denman it is 24km to Muswellbrook where there are daily CityRail services to Newcastle and Sydney.) The Golden Highway increases in traffic from here and it may be worth taking the longer but (I presume) quieter road to Jerry’s Plains. It is here that we enter vineyard country and the Goulburn River broadens out. There is a small café at Jerry’s Plains where one may purchase refreshments, as well as a park with toilets.

10km west of Jerry's Plains

After Jerry’s Plains there are some major mining operations along the highway. Take the minor road in the right towards Broke. (Alternately, cycle 20km to Singleton for CityRail services to Sydney.) The scenery and atmosphere from the Broke district to Wyong is, in my view, the best part of the trip. Broke is a small town with many B&Bs as well as a service station (with meals) and small general store. There is a very large grassed area near the service station where one could stay overnight, some 40m off the road under some pain trees. I cycled on towards Wollombi until I reached Payne’s Crossing, 17km south of Broke.

Payne's Crossing

Immediately after the bridge at Payne’s Crossing, there is a small dirt road on the right. About 500m down this unsealed road there was a small secluded clearing where I pitched my tent. There is a creak nearby if one needs water.

Day 4: Payne’s Crossing to Wyong (83km)

This last part of the trip passes through the historic township of Wollombi and follows the old Convict Trail and Great North Road. The rural scenery is beautiful in the small, protected valleys and the traffic is very light. There is 2km of unsealed road just before Wollombi. Wollombi itself has a small general store and a pub as well as many historic buildings. Kulnura is 55km away and has a general store and café. There are no services in between and quite a few hills! The decent from Kulnura into the lush Yarramalong Valley is quite steep. The scenery here is also picturesque, though the traffic is heavier on this narrow road. There are many shops at Wyong and for those interested in cycling to the coast, The Entrance is only 15km away. (About 4km before The Entrance is reached, one can access a cycleway which skirts around Tuggerah Lake and avoids the very busy main road.) From Wyong catch a CityRail train to Newcastle, Gosford or Sydney.

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