Bike Tours

Escapegoat Adventures

Catering for beginners through to seasoned riders, Escapegoat Adventures leads guided rides through the Adelaide Hills including a trip from the summit of Mount Lofty all the way down to Adelaide, though stunning native bush, and visiting Cleland Wildlife Park along the way - it's all downhill! Or opt for self-guided e-bike itineraries featuring wine, nature or adventure. Custom private and group trips can be arranged, with bike hire also available from their base in Belair National Park just 20 minutes by car or train from Adelaide (pick-ups and drop-offs by prior arrangement). Escapegoat has a popular regular shuttle service to Fox Creek Bike Park in Cudlee Creek, with other shuttle services and MTB skills training available.

Bike About

Bike About hosts single and multi-day tours and bicycle hire across some of South Australia’s most stunning landscapes, with options to suit any age or ability. With a range of e-bike options (mountain bikes through to commuter-style), journeys traverse the rolling vineyards and backroads of the Adelaide Hills, featuring wildlife themes or gourmet highlights of Hahndorf and wine tastings en-route. E-bike hire is available for self-guided Adelaide Hills adventures with convenient pickup locations in Hahndorf, Woodside and Adelaide CBD.

E-Go Bike Hire

E-Go Bike Hire provides premium touring e-bikes for hire from the historic Uraidla Hotel, and can deliver to other locations. Hire for a half day, full day or up to a week for the ultimate cycling adventure in the Adelaide Hills. E-Go offers bespoke tours to suit your time, interests and abilities, with or without a guide. Explore cute country towns, visit world-class wineries, spot wildlife, learn about environmental projects, follow gravel or bitumen roads, or discover tracks less travelled... all while traversing countryside renowned for its bio-diversity and top food and wine production. E-Go Bike Hire has a focus on sharing the benefits of e-Bike riding as an eco-friendly and great way to commute, sightsee, have fun, get fitter, feel healthier, and enjoy the great outdoors!

Bike Hire

Bike and cycling equipment hire is available from:

• E-Go Bike Hire at the Uraidla Hotel (half-hour drive from Adelaide) - premium touring electric bikes (other locations by arrangement)... from half a day to a full week!

• Bike About in Woodside (perfect for the Amy Gillett Pathway) and the artisan German village of Hahndorf - specialising in electric bikes suitable for mountain biking and road riding

• Escapegoat Adventures in Belair National Park (20 minutes from Adelaide by car or train) for mountain bikes - both electric and conventional (pick-up and drop-off to other locations by arrangement)

TRACKS & TRAILS

Amy Gillett Pathway - Oakbank to Mount Torrens

The 17-kilometre Amy Gillett Pathway is popular with leisure cyclists and families. Designed for cyclists, walkers and horse riders, the bitumen track follows an old railway corridor running from Oakbank to Mount Torrens. Named in honour of champion Australian cyclist Amy Gillett, this family-friendly track is bitumen and mostly flat, with four loop trails taking in other points of interest.

If you're without a trusty steed of your own, Bike About offers e-bikes for hire in Woodside, ensuring a hassle-free ride for all ages. E-Go Bike Hire can also arrange drop-off to locations along the Amy Gillett Pathway.

National and Conservation Parks

Belair National Park features a series of shared use trails that are used by walkers, cyclists and horse riders. Escapegoat Adventures is based at Belair National Park - call into The Goat Shed for bike hire, along with great coffees, snacks, and day trips. Cleland National Park also has many fire tracks and shared use trails from which cyclists can enjoy spectacular views of the Adelaide Hills and surrounds.

Mount Barker Linear Trail & Laratinga Wetlands

The Mount Barker Linear Trail which runs around Laratinga Wetlands and beyond is also popular. Several trails and boardwalks wind around the peaceful wetlands near Mount Barker, through a broad range of native vegetation. Trails such as the ‘Chestnut Teal’, ‘Rosella’ and ‘Sacred Ibis’ are named after some of the local birdlife. There are also several bird-watching ‘hides’, a picnic and barbeque area, and an environmentally friendly toilet facility. The trails in the wetlands are also linked to the Mount Barker Linear Trail, an award winning seven kilometre shared trail from Laratinga Wetlands to Keith Stephenson Park, following the local creek line.

Kidman Trail

The Kidman Trail is a multi-use horse riding, cycling and walking trail that traverses 225 kilometres of roadsides, quiet farm routes, forest tracks and unmade road reserves from Willunga on the Fleurieu Peninsula to Kapunda in the Clare Valley. It winds its way through the Adelaide Hills from Kuitpo Forest in the south through Echunga, Macclesfield, Balhannah, Woodside, Charleston and Mount Torrens where it meets the Barossa. The Kidman Trail provides a sustainable, safe and scenic trail that highlights the natural beauty, cultural history and major points of interest along the Mount Lofty Ranges. It utilises existing tracks and trails through Forest Reserves and other accessible public land, quiet roads and unmade road reserves with trail markers indicating the route. The trail is proudly named after Sir Sidney Kidman, a prominent local pastoralist and horse breeder.

Tom Roberts Trail

The Tom Roberts Horse Trail Network is designed designed for horse riding and can be utilised by walkers and cyclists.This natural terrain multi-use trail network broadly spans from Cherry Gardens in the north, to Kangarilla in the south and Woodcroft in the west. Established through on-road linkages, road verges and unmade road reserves the network of trails features Adelaide Hills locations such as Cherry Gardens, Coromandel East, Clarendon, Scott Creek and Kangarilla.

Mountain Biking Highlights

Fox Creek / Cudlee Creek Trails

The Fox Creek Bike Park at Cudlee Creek provides a diverse range of high quality off-road riding experiences. The network of trails hosts a range of national and local mountain bike, cross country, downhill and endurance races, and has developed a reputation as having some of the best trails in Australia. This thriving mountain biking hub has more than 50km of downhill, cross country and all terrain single track trails, multiple kilometres of gravel tracks, a jumps park and skills area. The park is free and open to riders of all ages and skill levels.

National, Conservation & Recreation Parks

South Australian National, Conservation and Recreation Parks offer fantastic mountain biking opportunities - for more information click here. Highlights include Belair National Park, Cleland National Park, Shepherds Hill Recreation Park and Sturt Gorge Recreation Park (including the Craigburn Trails) with lots of options for families and novices. See the blog on riding in National, Conservation & Recreation Parks and some additional tips.

Eagle Park Mountain Bike Park

The Eagle Park Mountain Bike Park, just 15 minutes from the Adelaide city centre, features a 21-kilometre network of cross country trails that cater for a variety of mountain bike disciplines and abilities. Riders will discover a specifically designed downhill trail, skills development park, jumps park and trials area.

Forest Reserves

The state's forest network also offers some excellent mountain bike trails, including Kuitpo Forest in the southern Adelaide Hills and Mount Crawford Forest in the northern Adelaide Hills, with challenging options as well as open forest trails suitable for families.

Mawson Trail

Starting just north of Adelaide and travelling to the Outback town of Blinman in the Flinders Ranges, the Mawson Trail is designed for mountain bike or sturdy touring bike use. Close to nine hundred kilometres long, the trail includes little-used country roads, State forest and national park fire trails, farm access tracks and unmade or unused road reserves. The trail takes riders through the Adelaide Hills, traversing forests, farmland and historic towns such as Lobethal and Birdwood before passing through the Barossa and Clare Valley on its way to the Flinders Ranges.

cycling event - Tour Down Under

The challenging terrain of the Adelaide Hills features heavily in the Santos Tour Down Under bike race held annually in January. This UCI World Tour event, the largest cycling event in the Southern Hemisphere, brings the world's best road cycling teams to South Australia and is immensely popular with cycling enthusiasts who line the route as spectators, and take part in the public participation ride. 

Tips & More Information

More information is available from Bike SA and the South Australian Trails website.

Remember that the hilly terrain can be demanding so you'll need to carry plenty of water, sunscreen and a repair kit.

Please consider your impact on the environment and ensure the safety of all riders and shared trail users. Key points include only riding on established tracks and trails, planning your ride, complying with signs and respecting the rights of others.