Cycling the Esperance Great Ocean Trail WA

It would have been more sensible to wait two more days until the forecast strong easterly winds had subsided before attempting the Esperance Great Ocean Trail. However, I had driven alongside some of the trail the day before and was completely enchanted by its beautiful beaches.

Half way along the southern coast of Western Australia, Esperance has a population of 14,000 and relies on tourism and its port.

My husband Derek kindly dropped me at the western end of the trail at Twilight Beach at 6:30 am the next morning. By starting early I hoped to complete my ride before I was dealing with serious head winds. The plan was to cycle the full 17 kilometres of the Esperance Great Ocean Trail to its end at Castletown Beach. Our caravan park was only 800 metres from the end of the trail.

Twilight Beach to the Esperance Foreshore (10 kms)

I started out and after a few minutes of pedalling, the large rock formations of Twilight Beach were already in the distance. The bitumen path was smooth and in good condition. However, there was a short section where white sand had inundated the path.

Before we came to Esperance I thought that perhaps the brochures were exaggerating the blue of the ocean, but the sea all around Esperance really is an amazing turquoise colour and the sand beautifully white.

As I approached Fourth Beach, this rider overtook me heading east. He was wearing a helmet. Many West Australian riders do not, even though it is officially compulsory.

The Esperance Great Ocean Trail has plenty of strategically placed lookout points. This one is looking back at Fourth Beach.

All along the beaches of the trail, you can see the low-lying islands of the Recherche Archipelago, named by a French explorer in 1792.

The trail climbed over a headland and descended to Salmon Beach. I had noticed that some of the locals were riding their bikes to the beach for a swim. While I was taking a photo of this bike, the owner suddenly popped into view, returning to get his goggles.

I asked him about the water temperature, and he reported that it was pleasant – not too warm and not too chilly. Derek and I confirmed this by having a lovely swim at the same beach the following day.

Next there was a steep climb over another headland, but well worth it for the view of Blue Haven. When cycling the trail again later in the week, I saw a pod of seventeen dolphins swimming along this beach.

Another steep headland climb and another beautiful outlook – this time over West Beach. I started chatting to a local lady as we surveyed the view from the cliff.

“That’s a tough ride you’re doing, isn’t it?” she said. I had to agree.

The climb up over the hill at the end of West Beach was easier than I had expected. At the top was another steep detour to a lookout, but I couldn’t face it at the moment. Something to do later by car.

I enjoyed the roll down to the Esplanade.

The Esplanade to Castletown Beach (7 kms)

After the beauty and challenge of the first half of the Esperance Great Ocean Trail, the foreshore section was very flat and easy.

Although the wind was picking up, it was still quite manageable.

The Norfolk Island pines, the first of which were planted in 1897, are an iconic feature of the Esperance foreshore.

Another striking feature of the Esplanade is the large Whale Tail sculpture.

From there you can see across to the port.  All three berths were busy loading iron ore, nickel and grain. The Esperance Apex Club, with the support of the Port Authority,  conducts an excellent and informative tour of the Port every Saturday.

After a lovely fresh-baked scone and coffee at the Ocean Blues Cafe, I passed the Coffee Cat , a coffee trailer parked near Tanker Jetty. It seemed very popular.

Only a short way further on was the dramatically damaged Tanker Jetty.

Completed in 1935, Tanker Jetty was the main wharf for the town until the new land based port was built in 1970. Since then, it has proven difficult financially to maintain the wooden jetty in a safe state.

Another four kilometres along the foreshore and I had arrived at the end of the Esperance Great Ocean Trail at Castletown Beach.

I had cycled 18 kilometres (including some detours on the foreshore section of the ride). Although I had only climbed 190 metres, I was sore and tired. Some of the gradients on the Esperance Great Ocean Trail, especially around West Beach, are quite steep, ranging up to 12%.

Recommendations

If you need to finish where you start, there are a few options:

1. Ride along the foreshore from Bower Avenue to Castletown Beach (8 kms each way, 16 kms return, flat).
2. Cycle from West Beach to Twilight Beach return (8 kms each way, 16 km return, hilly).
3. Ride the Great Ocean Trail Loop. There is a 5 km dirt track which joins Twilight Beach to Pink Lake. It starts from the first carpark after Twilight Beach, and the entrance looks like this:

When you complete the link trail, turn right onto Eleven Mile Beach Road for three kilometres. After that, another right turn onto Pink Lake Road will bring you back into the town of Esperance. There is a bike path for most of the way along Pink Lake Road, so there is only about 4 kms on the road.

This loop involves 31 kms of cycling and 291 metres of climbing, less than you would do if you returned along the coast.

Other great rides in the southern part of Western Australia are the Mandurah Coastal Ride, the Collie Darkan Rail Trail, the Munda Biddi Trail between Torbay and Albany, and the Old Timberline Trail at Nannup.

A lovely coastal trail north of Perth is the Turquoise Way.

Top photo: View of West Beach looking eastwards