Adventure Magazine

The Clutha Gold Trail is an awesome Grade 1 trail that
follows the mighty Clutha Mata Au River from the Lake
Roxburgh Dam to Beaumont on a undulating flowing ride. It
then heads to Lawrence via Big Hill tunnel. You pass through
Millers Flat and then the Beaumont Gorge stopping at
Horseshoe Bend bridge and a side trip to the Lonely Graves
beckons. Finishing in Lawrence allows you to bring all that
gold mining history to a closure with a great little museum and
the opportunity to visit Gabriel’s Gully, the home of NZ’s first
major Gold Rush. This trail is also under further development
with it hopefully reaching Milton later this year, allowing more
people to enjoy the accommodation, cafes and shops that
Lawrence has to offer.
The Lake Dunstan Trail has opened this year and has proved
to be a huge drawcard for both local and out of town riders. It
is a wonderful 40km ride from Old Cromwell Town to Historic
Clyde on a trail that varies between Grade 1 and Grade 3. It is
super important to ride within your means. The ride to Coffee
A Float is perfect for families and novices from there you need
to be competent riders to ensure you and other riders on the
trail have a safe and enjoyable trip. The engineering on this
trail is second to none with amazing cantilever sections and
stunning stonework.
The opportunity for combining all or some of these trails or
sections of all of them is huge. If you are looking at staying
in one place then Clyde beckons, then you can do 3 one day
trips on the OCRT, the Roxburgh Gorge and finish with the
Lake Dunstan Trail the perfect progression and three totally
different experiences. If you are wanting a multi-day cycle
experience with different accommodation each evening and
riding for 5 days, in fact up to 10 days you can combine all 4
trails.
Grades
Grade 1 (Easiest)
Suitable for novice riders, families and others seeking an
easy, relaxing cycling experience. Most bikes are suitable,
including touring bikes, hybrid bikes and children’s bikes.
E-bikes are also suitable as long as they are ridden
appropriately and have sufficient battery capacity.
Off-road trails are smooth (firm gravel or sealed), with only
gentle climbs and generally wide enough for side-by-side
riding. Many follow old rail trails. On-road sections of Great
Rides generally follow quiet roads with little traffic.
Grade 2 (Easy)
Suitable for most riders including beginners, occasional
cyclists and families with limited cycling experience. A
multi-geared bike with medium to wide knobbly tyres is
recommended, such as a comfort bike, touring bike or
mountain bike. E-bikes are also suitable as long as they are
ridden appropriately and have sufficient battery capacity.
Off-road trails are usually wide and smooth (firm gravel
or sealed), with some gentle climbs. These trails are
predictable, i.e. have no nasty surprises. On-road sections
of Great Rides generally follow quiet roads with little traffic.
Grade 3 (Intermediate)
Suitable for regular experienced cyclists with a good
level of fitness and over 12 years old; children should be
accompanied by an adult.
A mountain bike is recommended for off-road sections.
E-mountain bikes are suitable provided they are ridden
appropriately, have sufficient battery capacity, and the rider
is capable of completing the trail in the event of a battery/
power failure.
For on-road trails/sections on gravel roads, bikes with
knobbly tyres are recommended. Road racing tyres are
generally not suitable.
Off-road trails can be narrow and may include hills, steep
drop-offs and small river crossings. Trail surfaces are
mainly firm but may include muddy or loose sections, and
obstacles such as rocks or tree roots.
On-road trails/sections may have moderate traffic levels (up
to 1000 vehicles a day), and include hill climbs and gravel
sections. Note: all Heartland Rides are grade 3 or above.
56//WHERE ACTIONS SPEAK LOUDER THAN WORDS/#230