I was surprised to discover what a cycling paradise Mildura is. For the road riders there are seemingly endless kilometres of quiet, bitumen roads weaving their way between irrigated orchards and over canals. And for the off-road lovers, there is cycling at Kings Billabong.
At the end of February this year Derek and I were camping in the caravan on the Murray River at Psyche Bend only ten kilometres from the centre of Mildura.
Our friends Kathie and Rhonda were staying at a caravan park nearby and they joined me for the ride shown in the map above while Derek allegedly did some fishing at camp with Kenji the dog.
Kings Billabong
We headed out to the bird hide – there were a few sandy sections on the way.
As it was still early in the morning we were rewarded with seeing many black swans, pelicans, herons and several species of ducks.
As the path followed the water’s edge we caught this view of Kings Billabong pumping station, built in the 1890s.
We came to the levee bank which keeps the water level in the billabong higher than the Murray River.
Ducks Foot Lagoon
After a quick break at the facilities in the car park on the other side of the levee we headed out on the Ducks Foot Lagoon loop. (This loop is 9.5 kilometres if done separately.) The stretches along the Murray River were pretty.
After completing the Ducks Foot Lagoon loop, we retraced our ride back to the bird hide for a well-earned food break while watching the swans and herons.
When we got back to Derek at camp we had ridden 25 kilometres without climbing a single metre! Clearly this is the place for people who don’t like to climb hills.
Road Bike Ride in Mildura
Here is an example of a road bike ride suggested by the Mildura Visitor Information Centre. I am not generally a road rider but I felt really safe and loved the scenery. Coffee Town Cafe is a convenient stop for cyclists and the coffee and food are good.
Other great Murray River rides are between Mannum and Younghusband and between Cohuna and Koondrook. An enjoyable country town ride is between Bordertown and Mundulla.
