Swanfels MTB Trail

29 kilometres return

This trail begins at Swanfels Pioneers Memorial Park on Swanfels Road in Swanfels. Head to the right after you ride out of the park and then turn left when you reach the T-intersection at Top Swanfels Road. The road is sealed until you reach the intersection with Anstey Road. Make a note of this intersection, because you will be turning into Anstey Road on the return journey. For now, go straight ahead to keep following Top Swanfels Road which is gravel from this point on. There is a lovely grassy spot on the left around 10 kilometres from the start where you can pause for a while before either continuing on or turning around and heading for home. If you continue on, the next obvious turn-around point is where the road is blocked by a Biosecurity sign. You may be able to continue past this if you seek the blessings of the neighbouring property owner. Otherwise, this is the furthest point of a 29 kilometre journey. On the way back, turn right into Anstey Road and follow it all the way to the T-intersection with Swanfels Road where you turn left for a short roll back to Swanfels Pioneers Memorial Park.

Swanfels Pioneers Memorial Park
Mountain bike in Swanfels
Picturesque rural countryside in Swanfels
Old Austin truck in Swanfels

Top Tips

  • This trail is on public roads that are used by motor vehicles, so it is important to take care, stay safe, and be aware of your surroundings.
  • Book accommodation in Killarney so you can stay for a few days and explore more mountain biking trails while you are here.
  • There is a toilet at Swanfels Pioneers Memorial Park.
  • There’s a good chance you will get wet feet at the creek crossings. Make sure to bring a dry pair of socks to change into after your ride.

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Route Highlights

  • SWANFELS PIONEERS MEMORIAL PARK | The park commemorates the pioneers of Swanfels. There are a number of plaques that commemorate people from various families in the district. The park also has picnic facilities, a shelter shed, and a toilet.
  • SWANFELS HISTORY STONE & PLAQUE  | Curiously positioned in the middle of the intersection between Swanfels Road and Top Swanfels and protected by a guardrail, this marker commemorates the early settlers of Swanfels, the 75th anniversary of the Swanfels State School, and the arrival of explorer Allan Cunningham. The inscription on the plaque reads “This stone, erected by the people of the Valley of Swanfels and unveiled by His Excellency the Honourable Sir Alan James Mansfield, K.C.M,.G., the eighteenth Governor of Queensland, on Saturday, 1st April, 1967, has a threefold purpose. It marks the one hundredth year since the Valley was first settled and is a tribute to the courage and fortitude of the early settlers. It commemorates the 75th anniversary of the Swanfels State School, which has served the Valley well. It is a lasting tribute to the great explorer and naturalist, Allan Cunningham, whose party, on the 11th June, 1827, camped nearby on the occasion of his discovery of the Darling Downs. This plaque, the gift of the Queensland Women’s Historical Association, was affixed by that Association in conjunction with the Swanfels Parents’ and Citizens’ Association and the Warwick and District Historical Society.”
  • FLORA & FAUNA | Much of this trail is flanked by picturesque rural countryside dotted with cows, while the lush forest of Main Range National Park blankets the distant slopes. The Queensland Department of Environment, Science and Innovation says, “A mosaic of vegetation types occurs in the park. Rainforests grow in moist or sheltered locations, with open eucalypt forest occurring on the drier ridges and valleys. Montane heath vegetation grows on the cliffs and rocky outcrops.” The stunning scenery is brought to life by the fluttering wings of birds like black-shouldered kites and eastern rosellas, as well as a myriad of butterflies.
  • LANDSCAPE | The escarpments that soar high on on the hills of the Main Range are always spectacular and this is also a great place to see the distinctive shape of Mount Double Top from a distance. If you’re an experienced off-track walker with specialist equipment and well-developed navigational skills, you will no doubt be interested to learn that there is an amazing campsite way up there. It is said that when Alan Cunningham was camped at Swanfels, he temporarily mistook Mount Double Top for Cunninghams Gap. However, a scouting trip soon corrected that miscalculation. Cunningham climbed a ridge that rose to about 1,200 metres on the northern side of the upper Swanfels Valley. From there, he saw Spicer’s Gap, Mount Mitchell, Mount Warning, Mount Double Top, and Flinders Peak, which were all familiar to him from earlier explorations of the Moreton Bay region.

Contact Information

Stanthorpe Information 07 4681 2057
Warwick Information 07 4661 3122
Email us: visitor@sdrc.qld.gov.au