Although it was already May, the autumn rains had not yet come, and it was still really dry on the Rattler Rail Trail.
Riding from Riverton, the Rattler Rail Trail starts with a long, low-gradient climb heading west for five kilometres.
Although I was “leading” the ride, I prefer everybody to go at their own pace on hills. Brian and Roy went ahead and waited at the crest.
From there, we rolled down to the former station of Rhynie, before starting on another climb as the Rattler Trail turned north. Now we were cycling into a headwind, so our progress was slow and steady.
I was looking out for the Rhynie station telephone box, which we had seen on previous occasions, but Blue corrected me – the remaining telephone box was at Undalya, still ahead of us.
There are a couple of long bridges which are exciting, especially as the deck is just a grid that you can see through, and the railings are quite narrow.
We crested another hill
before rolling down to the site of Undalya Siding and the telephone box.
These telephone boxes were located at unmanned stations and sidings so that the train drivers could phone ahead to the next station and ensure the track was clear to proceed.
From Undalya, we had an easy, gentle, six kilometre climb to Auburn.
But first, we had to cross the long bridge over Rice Creek,
before making our way to the Velvet and Willow.
Return to Riverton on the Rattler Trail
On the way back, we stopped to examine these red berries, which were plentiful along the trail.
Rosehips, we think.
When we got to Quandong Road, Blue and Brian branched off on a three kilometre detour to see the heritage bridge at Undalya (see below for more information).
Meanwhile, Roy had gone ahead and was waiting for us in a cutting at the top of a climb.
As we pedalled up the next hill, we noticed what looked like a bushfire on the horizon.
However, as we reached the top of the climb, it became apparent that it was a controlled burn.
Although we weren’t conscious of any breeze, the rest of the way back seemed easier. I’m assuming that we had a tailwind.
Soon we were cycling under the Riverton Golf Course overpass.
Outback Odyssey
We knew that the Outback Odyssey was arriving in Riverton, so we weren’t surprised to see the tent city which had sprung up around the oval since our departure.
However, I was impressed at how big and roomy the tents were.
We kept an eye out for our friends Nigel and Elaine, who were volunteering for Bike SA, and for Cam, who was a participating rider.
It’s such a big undertaking, looking after 150 riders over 15 days on the 900 kilometre Mawson Trail.
We found Nigel on the oval with his dog, but Elaine was a ride marshall today. Cam was still on the trail.
After a quick chat with Nigel, we adjourned to the Emporium Bakehouse for lunch and watched the Odyssey riders pedalling past in ones and twos to their campsite for the night.
Summary of the Rattler Trail
We had cycled 43 kilometres and climbed 250 metres on the Rattler Rail Trail from Riverton to Auburn (return).
If you want to extend your ride, you can connect to the Riesling Trail at Auburn and cycle a further 33 kilometres to Barinia, north of Clare. Alternatively, you can create a loop ride by following the Mawson Trail to Auburn and returning on the Rattler Trail.
Other great rides in the area are the Peters Hill Trail and the Old Road North between Tarlee and Saddleworth.
Here is a 30-second video of some of the highlights of our ride:
Here is the gpx file of the ride
and the elevation chart.
Thank you Murray, Blue, Brian and Roy for being great companions on the Rattler Trail.
Undalya Heritage Bridge
