Alpine Foothills: Bright

Words: Sebastian Jayne                                                                             Photos: Dominic Hook

Our trip around the foothills of the alps in the North East of Victoria has taken in a delightful mix of new favourites and classic riding locations. It’s not just the trails that entice visitors but the towns themselves have much to offer. Our trip ends with the classic of classics. A location that ticks all the boxes from friendly country town to a massive variety of trails. It’s Bright.

Catch up on the other locations below!

Beechworth – A rocky delight

Yackandandah – Something sweet

Mt Beauty – Vanilla essence

For more specifics on places to ride, places to stay and things to do, head online: Ride High Country

Bright

Last but not least is the rich chocolate classic of Bright. The town is layered with trail options for all and enough activities away from the bike to keep the whole family entertained. The rolling hills of pine plantation and natural bushland offer enough altitude for full downhill trails along with more gentle trails. The popularity of Bright as a mountain bike riding destination has risen dramatically in recent years and has encouraged new trail developments with more being added over the coming years.

The Park

The park features a wide range of trails with new ones constantly being built that keep adding to the hype surrounding the area. Recent funding has meant a new trail head is in the works along with many more trails. Shred Kelly’s Last Stand is the newest flow trail to go along with the massively popular Hero trail that sees Blue Dirt shuttles booked out weeks ahead of time.

The downhill trails and enduro trails are also a big drawcard given the altitude available and technicality the pines offer. The mix between black diamond technical trails and easier blue and green trails is a key reason why Bright gets a wide range of riders wanting to come and experience the park. Being able to go from both extremes all contained in a small area is great for a holiday away.

What Bike?
 
The wide range of trails in Mystic Park is perfect for any type of bike. An enduro bike can handle most of the descending trails while a trail bike can still handle the enduro trails and give you an option to tackle the cross country trails if you wish. Intermediate tyres are best to handle the range of dirt types with the hard pack surface turning to powder during peak tourist times.

 
What’s Beyond?
 
The Bright hills and surrounding valleys are filled with riding options. The bike path out to Wandiligong is great for a more relaxed ride while an adventure ride should take in one of the peaks like Clear Spot or Mt Porepunkah. They are both long climbs but offer great views of the surrounding alps and are well worth the challenge.

The Town
 
Bright has a wide range of activities and shops, being primarily a tourist town. There are many cafes to choose from and it also has an ice-cream shop to finally get that fix you’ve built up over the last four rides! But before dessert it’s best to hit up the Bright Brewery for some fuel, either in solid or liquid form.