Collie Junction to Nglang Boodja
Munda Biddi Trail
Start
Collie Junction
Time
3-5 Hours
Finish
Nglang Boodja Hut
Date Ridden
26th August 2021
Length
38.6km
Elevation
780m
Traditional Custodians
Kaniyang People
The Ride - With the decision to not ride into Collie and stay the night due to needing to catch up on our schedule, Aron and I had a bit of a break at the trail junction to enjoy a snack and to rehydrate. While I had heard good things about the ride into Collie and a pizza would have been great tonight, we had accommodation booked in Donnybrook and Nannup so it's a side-trip I'll save for a later date. The goal for the day was to ride through Wellington National Park and on to Nglang Boodja Campsite, our last camping spot until after Northcliffe thanks to a golden run of town to town sections coming up.
With a bit of rain falling in the morning, I knew that more was forecast for the afternoon, I just wasn't sure when. The clouds to the south west looked ominous but not too threatening so after our little break we loaded up the bikes and departed. The excellent forest that we experienced leading towards the junction continued with a creek system providing a lush landscape to ride through including one of many small bridges for the day. I was happy to see some fungi surviving here on a bit of rotting wood, a nice break from the unrelenting procession of wildflowers that lined the trail. After crossing another powerline (unavoidable around the Collie region), I was happy to spot my first and only Native Rose, a wildflower that was abundant on my Cape to Cape adventure last year and one I have come to really enjoy. Up ahead is a landmark that all Munda Biddi riders will naturally stop at, whether they know about the popularity of the spot or not.
A large fallen tree that has had the middle chopped out provides a nice spot to rest your bike and take a photo, one I've seen a lot on the Munda Biddi FaceSpace group. One does not simply ride past this point without a photo so in the bright sunshine I lined up the shot and hoped the harsh lighting didn't ruin my shot (I think I recovered it enough). Happy with getting a photo, I moved on towards the last railway crossing we would have today and as luck would have it, we would get a train passing through that was full of material from the nearby Worsley Refinery. I snapped a couple of photos as we battled through some fallen branches that were partially blocking the trail but by the time we reached the crossing, the train had passed. The railway crossing sees you come off the nice single track and onto the wide Worsley Back Road as it heads through Harris State Forest. This coincides with a smol puppa hill so it was nice to trundle along under the canopy of the trees and focus on maintaining a rhythm.
Passing the Crystal Valley Outpost, this is another accommodation option for riders coming through if they didn't want to stay at Collie or any of the nearby campsites. They cater for riders quite well and it's a good option for e-bikes to stop and recharge if you don't want to do the side trip into Collie. For us it was full steam ahead towards Wellington National Park and as we reached the top of the hill, the winds blowing in ahead of the rains made for a tougher ride. While we were still in the forest it was quite enjoyable but then we reached the farmland and the exposed nature of the landscape didn't favour us at all. This stretch leading towards Coalfields Road was not super enjoyable with the winds and the grey conditions so I was happy to speed up and just get through it. The farmland looked a bit scrappy at the edges of the road had a lot of invasive weeds that gave it an unnatural look. Doing a little chicane as we reached Gastaldo Road, at this point Aron saw an emu in an open paddock but for the life of me I couldn't see where it was.
Continuing on, I had phone reception so was busy checking the weather radar and the progression of the band of rain that was coming in from the south west. Nearer to Coalfields Road I started to look around for a farm shed or bus stop, anything we could use to shelter under as it would only be a brief downpour and I would prefer to stay dry if I could. There were a few options as we pedalled along but most involved standing under people's house and I didn't want to be rude by inviting myself onto their property. We still had some time so pressed on and reached the Old Coalfields Highway where instead of ripping up the tarmac when they put in a realignment, they have simply left it to be reclaimed by nature. Nature is doing an alright job with a mound of dirt over the road now sporting some wildflowers although I suspect they were planted rather than naturally occurring. Reaching Coalfields Road, the large dual road leading towards Collie from the coast and this is also the intersection of the road leading into Wellington National Park. I knew there was an information shelter in a nearby car park so suggested we camp out there to avoid the rain that was starting to fall.
This turned out to be a great decision as it bucketed down for about 15 minutes and we stayed dry under the small shelter. It went on for so long that I grabbed out my ultralight hiking chair to sit on while we wait and also put on my jacket and beanie as it was quite cold. It eventually stopped and we set off into sunnier skies, eager to get away from the Worsley area and into the beauty of Wellington National Park. I've always enjoyed my time here as it contains some of the best Jarrah forest in the state and when the local DBCA office aren't making a mess of the prescribed burns, it provides some excellent trail opportunities. The first section wasn't a nice introduction after the rains as the tunnel of thick undergrowth meant every time you brushed a branch, you got wet and it all added up to being a soggy experience. The tunnel section ended as you are deposited onto a vehicle track for some more enjoyable riding through the forest. Heading deeper into the park, I was conscious of slowing up to appreciate one of the better sections of the whole track and really taking my time to photograph it well now the threat of rain was no longer.
The forest delivered with the soft greys of the Jarrah trees combining with some mature undergrowth, plenty of wildflowers, Balgas and granite outcrops. Compared to the scrappy nature of the first part of the day, this was riding heaven and really highlights the difference between national parks and state forests. The single track was some of the best riding we'd had so far on the Munda Biddi and the cloudy conditions provided great lighting for photography. After a bit of a small hill we came across the first of a couple of steep descents that require switchbacks to get down the hill and we were wondering if this was the infamous black rated section. That was still to come so it was a case of enjoying the thrill ride down to the River Road crossing. I stopped at the bridge and creek here to wait for Aron because I had a side trip planned not too far up the track and decided this is where I would leave him. With the track not officially heading to Wellington Dam, you miss out on that experience and also a stop in at the Kiosk (the main reason for the detour) but it was a bit too much for Aron so I went solo.
With a big puppa hill to get up, the excellent forest here distracts you from the tough climbing that doesn't seem to end. Some stretches have a double digit gradient and it makes for a good challenge but I was happy to reach the top and enjoy some flatter riding. Reaching the turnoff where the Munda Biddi heads right and off towards the black rated downhill, my journey today would see me continue along the Sika Trail to Wellington Dam Road and I would then follow it to the Kiosk. It would end up adding in extra 8km to my day but the goal was a spinach and ricotta sausage roll and to pickup something substantial for dinner. The road riding made this an easy detour and my reward at the end was a bit of a rest at the Kiosk where I had a chat to the couple that run it about my ride so far and the lovely forests of Wellington National Park. Although the kitchen had closed, they were happy to prepare a couple of sandwiches for us and that was a great relief as I wasn't really in the mood for getting into camp and preparing dinner given the long ride and likely late afternoon arrival.
With construction still going on around the Kiosk for the new Wellington MTB Network, the Sika Trail leading back to the Munda Biddi was currently closed but I asked the Kiosk owner about it and he gave me directions to find my way through the mess and back onto the Sika. It was a bit of a challenge but I found my way in the end (the area should be open now) and was soon riding on the dual use Sika Trail, an experience I enjoyed on foot back just before Christmas in 2017. The section leading from the Kiosk to the Munda Biddi turnoff is fantastic with some nice forest and some excellent views overlooking the valley that are sadly missing from the official Munda Biddi route. I would love to see the official route take you along the Sika Trail past Potters Gorge and to Wellington Dam Kiosk/Lookout before finishing the loop towards the black rated downhill. There is one spot along the edge of the valley where you get a large granite boulder just off the trail and some amazing views overlooking the river and hills beyond. The afternoon lighting was just right as I was here and it was nice moment staring out towards my final destination for the day.
I reached the black rated downhill section, the only one on the whole track, and was keen to see how well a fully loaded bike would handle it. It was dicey in sections with a lot more weight making turning and stopping a bit harder but some of the turns I think you'd still struggle on an unloaded bike. It certainly shook and rattled everything I had attached and I was happy to see that the bike and bags copped all the punishment without breaking or coming loose. I was stopping a bit to take photos as it's really pretty through here and this would continue as I reached the edge of the river where you follow the Jabitj Trail towards Honeymoon Pool. There are several spots along the river to stop and take photos but it was a little dark in the valley now the sun was lower in the sky. I made the most of it as I continued along, eventually reaching the bridge over the Collie River. With Honeymoon Pool being a short side trip, I was not going to miss out so rode the 600m detour where I found a relatively empty campsite. Unfortunately the lighting wasn't that great and there were metal fences and tape all over the wooden deck as it was being repaired at the time. I shot around it before figuring I should probably get cracking and get to camp before Aron sent out a search party. I wasn't looking forward to the climb out of the river valley up to camp as it looked quite steep on the map and it turned out to be a bit of a slog with gradient ranging from 10-20%.
I ended up walking half of it as the body/mind wasn't up to it but the end of the day was near. Seeing a Munda Biddi marker pointing me down a series of switchbacks, I stopped to check the map as I knew there a route for each direction and didn't want to go back down to the river. Turns out this was the right way and the switchbacks take you to the road leading up the final big puppa hill. Here I found Aron wandering about without a bike and it turns out he had tried to call me a few times to get a progress report and I had not answered. His bike was a couple of kilometres ahead where a large tree had fallen over the track and he decided to walk back and see if he could find me. With Aron on foot, I was happy to tootle along next to him and talk about my detour and how his afternoon had been. Reaching the big tree, it was an effort to get the bikes up and over the large trunks but we did it and soon made it into camp. Nglang Boodja is in a lovely spot overlooking the valley, similar to Yarri Campsite but with a more overgrown feeling. Getting everything setup took us to near dark and that night we tucked into sandwiches (never appreciated raw tomato as much as I did in that moment) before playing a couple of games of Yahtzee that was stopped short when Aron rolled a dice that fell through a crack in the table and then the floor. I was pretty shattered so was happy to head into the comfy confines of my sleeping bag for a well earned rest.
Final Thoughts - What a day and what a ride through some of the best forests of the entire track. The section leading towards Wellington National Park isn't anything to write home about (even though I have here) but after that you are rewarded with some truly memorable riding.
The Collie River Valley is a cool place and with the addition of the new mountain bike trail, it is poised to be a riding destination for many years to come. Having the Munda Biddi come through here is a treat and I can highly recommend doing the Sika Trail as an optional extra to visit the Kiosk and Dam.
The campsite is another cool place to spend the afternoon with the surrounding forest making you feel enclosed and the wooden deck of the shelter meaning you can walk around in socks and not worry too much about dragging dirt everywhere.
This day for me was one of those rollercoaster experiences where I both enjoyed it and found it quite tough. My ongoing issue of saddle sores was at it's worst point when I got to the campsite and there were plenty of thoughts that night of just making it to Nannup and calling it quits on the trip.
I had a lot of internal dialogue with myself but in the end decided to see how it went over the next couple of days, knowing the kilometres would ease off in the next week and I would have a rest day in Nannup to assess things.
On towards Donnybrook tomorrow and the start of a town to town section I was really looking forward to riding.
Get out there and experience it!!!
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