Register Login Search New Posts

	Trailflix > Forums > Greater NSW and Interstate Trails > Illawarra Escarpment	Username:   Password:        Remember Me?

Thread Tools Search This Thread

Reply

Author Comment

View Member ProfileSend Private MessageSend EmailFind Member's Threads Find Member's Posts crank1979 Moderator Registered: 27/11/08 Posts: 212

18/10/09 at 07:03 AM   Reply with quote #1 Illawarra Escarpment I've been wanting to ride this track for a long time. I have a few mates down Wollongong way and luckily at least one of them is into mtbing and knows this track, so i went out for a ride with him and another rider. We started at a different point from either of the starting locations listed on the site. The main firetrail/mining road (Lower Illawarra Escarpment Firetrail i think) starts at the end of Hawthorn Rd. The road goes uphill and once you get around the gate it continues uphill for about 5km. The climbing was damn hard in some places with few areas of respite. Some of the little side trails lead to different downhill runs, but you'd have to get back up if you wanted to ride the whole firetrail. Once we hit the turn off for the Rixon's Pass Firetrail it flattened out a little and had some ups and downs. Apparently the view from the top of Rixon's pass is pretty nice but we didn't have time to go up there on this day. Next time, a little more climbing has got to be good for you, doesn't it! The track was firetrail all the way to the end, just near the hairpin bend on Bulli Pass. So from sea level it's a good climb to that point. The surface was basically small loose stuff over hardpack the whole way with a few corners being a bit sketchy and some areas of clay. From the end you have a few options. You could... • ride down the remainder of Bulli Pass. I've done that before and it's pretty cool on a road bike. • ride back a bit and go down the Bulli DH track.  • head back along the firetrail and up the Rixon's Pass Firetrail to check out the view and ride more tracks described on the Illawarra Escarpment page. • continue back past the RPF turn of and try one of the other DH runs to get to the bottom. We took the last option down a track called Possums. It was pretty good and a nice change from the firetrail. A bit short though. All in all, it was a great training ride. The greenery is very different from where i usually ride. The occasional view was nice, but it's not a very technical ride at all. Loading...

Previous Thread | Next Thread

Reply

Bookmarks

Digg  del.icio.us  StumbleUpon  Google