Bronwyn at the Rosewood Railway Station entrance.

After arriving at Rosewood Railway station we got a few photos before starting on the journey to Boonah via Harrisville. This was to be a relatively easy ride of 69km with 911m of climbing. As we left the station there wasn’t a cloud in the sky and it was a nice 20 degrees which was 10 degrees lower than was predicted in the days before. The first part of the ride was to be along flatish roads before making our eastbound turn at the 22km mark towards Harrisville and onto the first of the little climbs. 

The middle of Harrisvile looking west.

After a long lunch at Harrisville we made our way south towards Boonah. Along the way we saw parts of the former Boonah Railway Line in the distance thru what is now private property. Despite there being no real climbs this was hill effort territory because as soon as you crested a hill it was a slight down hill run before tackling the next hill acuminating a quick 400m of elevation gain over 14km before Roadvale (reviewing the data there were approx 16 hill efforts). With one final hill effort 

Approaching the small town of Boonah with one final hill inbetween with the mountains that we would be tackling tomorrow behind.

Considering our gravel riding so far for the day had consisted of a small section of dirt road outside of Rosewood we decided to take the small detour onto the Fassifern Rail Trail. While it was only 2km long it did avoid Hoya Road which was starting to get busy as we got closer to town in the afternoon. This was supposed to be part of a planned 76km rail trail however work was suspended in 2012 and has not since restarted. This is in stark contrast to other nearby rail trails where towns along the route have once again seen a massive spike in tourism.  While not much of the rail corridor really exists anymore after it was closed in 1964 the cutting formations and milage distance markers are all that really still remain.  After arriving in Boonah we rode up to the lookout and had a little break there before riding into town and looking for a place to have a little afternoon tea.

Bronwyn making friends with the local dog. A couple days later another local dog didn’t want to be friends.

Bronwyn exhausted on one of the switchbacks on the way up to the head. Temps were now peaking at around 28-30 degrees from the earlier 12 degrees when we started the days ride.

A quick lunch break in a cleared section up the climb to The Head.

The top of the climb. Temps are still around 27 degrees but once onto the valley above with the wind temps quickly dropped to around 20-22 degrees.

Bronwyn riding into the Cambanoora Gorge that has the Condamine River flowing through it. 14 river crossings await ahead.

With the 14 river crossings of the Condamine River there are many different lines to take depending on the depths. The difficult thing about the crossings are the rocky bed surface which make it slightly difficult for bicycle tires. In the water its not as bad but the loose and large stones make it difficult of gravel bikes as they either sink in or bounce around. Definitely fat bike, mountain bike or gravel+ bike territory through this section however overall its a definite gravel and gravel+ bike adventure.

Bronwyn crossing one of the 14 river crossings. In flood season this would be a good 1-1.5m deep or totally unpassable after rains.

Luke found a horse.

After we came out of the Cambanoora Gorge it’s just a short quick run into Killarney. At this point the sun was starting to set and the temps were starting to drop. Once we made it to the motel Luke found out one of the disadvantage of being tall with the parking shelter being a little on the short side. However it was still christmas in July for the local pub who had decorated the tree outside and upon adventuring inside Luke decided to have 2 chicken parmi dinners for himself.

The final day was from Killarney to Lake Maroon. While this day had the most elevation gain of 65km/1600m this was spread out over a longer distance. The temps for the day were once again vastly different depending where we were riding. The start and then the climb up to the top of The Falls/top of the Cambanoora Gorge was expected to be around 12-14 degrees with it warming up to 20 degrees as we ventured into New South Wales and back into Queensland before warming up to 30 degrees once we got to the bottom of the range with the final run into Lake Maroon.

A donkey enjoying the grass overlooking the Cambanoora Gorge.

After morning tea we made the trip up the steep driveway back to the road before making our way into and out of New South Wales. Luke managed to find a few off road jumps and a 5 meter drop in that motorbikes had made and thought “why not do it on a gravel bike”. 

Crossing over into New South Wales for the short run around.

Bronwyn making the descent towards Lake Maroon on a nice sunny winters day. Still only 20 degrees.

With the long descents off the mountain range it was deceptive how far away from the bottom we actually were as new valleys would constantly appear with the landscape changes as it got drier and drier.

Only a few more ridge lines before we get to the bottom.

Once we were at the bottom it was flat with a few small hills here and there. Shortly after getting to the very bottom a random dog appeared and chased Bronwyn. Throughout the descent the landcape was constantly changing as it got drier and drier and it got hotter and hotter. It was 12 degrees when we started our ride and it was getting towards 30 degrees by the end of our ride.

By now the temperature has increased to 29 degrees as  Bronwyn is about to crest the last of the hills into Lake Maroon.