Nobody seemed sure about the inland end of the Hervey Bay Rail Trail (also known as the Mary to Bay Rail Trail), but the ladies at the Hervey Bay Visitor Information Centre told me that the rail trail crossed Chapel Road and appeared to continue on from that.
As I wasn’t certain whether it would be a further ten kilometres (I am an optimist!) or only one, I asked Derek to take me to Chapel Road to start my ride on the trail.
I crossed the road and cycled in a southerly direction.
Unfortunately after only 700 metres, the Hervey Bay Rail Trail came to an end just short of the Maryborough-Urangan Road.
On the other side of the highway, I could see where the rail corridor continued, but it was extremely overgrown. It seemed unlikely that the trail would be extended anytime soon.
History of the Hervey Bay Rail Trail
The Hervey Bay Rail Trail follows in the tracks of a line that ran between Maryborough and Pialba (completed 1896) and then Pialba and Urangan Pier (completed 1913). The line transported sugar cane and pineapples from local farms as well as holiday passengers to the beaches of Hervey Bay.
The Fraser Coast Regional Council and local cycling groups are working towards extending the rail trail to Maryborough (hence the name Mary to Bay Rail Trail).
End of the Rail Trail to Urraween Road (3 Kms)
I turned around, crossed Chapel Road again and began a gradual ascent,
followed by a lovely roll down to Urraween Road. A marker indicated where Urraween Station had been.
From here, the character of the trail changed. It was no longer referred to as the Hervey Bay Rail Trail (as it had been for the first four kilometres) and was now more often referred to as the Hervey Bay Mobility Corridor.
Urraween Road to the Cultural Centre (4 Kms)
The Hervey Bay Rail Trail diverges from Urraween Road just before Main Road and heads in a northerly direction towards the coast.
There were plenty of shelters, sometimes with water fountains provided.
About seven kilometres from the inland end of the trail, I arrived at the Hervey Bay Cultural Centre. There was a huge sculpture of a humpback whale.
Cultural Centre to Urangan Pier (7 Kms)
After the Cultural Centre, there is a bit of a gap in the Hervey Bay Rail Trail, and you need to go around Pialba Place Shopping Centre.
I picked up the trail again at Hunter Street. Just over a kilometre later, I came to the Scarness Station Marker. This was the first drop off point for holidaymakers when the railway was popular.
From here on, the Mobility Corridor was busy with walkers, people on mobility scooters and cyclists. The trail was mostly flat, with a few gentle inclines.
Before long I arrived at the marker for Urangan Station and cycled past Migaloo’s Cafe.
I continued on to Urangan Pier. The pier stretched out for 800 metres towards the deeper water.
When I returned to the start of the pier, I found to my disgust that I had had a failure with my Strava app. (Strava records your ride on a map.)
No matter, with a quick coffee and date scone under my belt, I turned around and did the rail trail again – out and back.
Hervey Bay Rail Trail Summary
Here is my Strava map and elevation chart for the ride from Urangan Pier to the end of the trail and back again.
The Hervey Bay Rail Trail is currently 14 kilometres each way, and involves some gentle climbing totalling 217 metres.
My favorite part of the trail was the three kilometres from the end of the trail to Urraween Road. Here is a 30 second video of this section:
Before I go, I just wanted to mention The Depot Espresso Bar on Chapel Road at the inland end of the trail.
It has great coffee and is very popular with locals. Sadly it is only open on weekdays.
Another great ride in Queensland is between Lake Placid and the Esplanade in Cairns.
