The romance of rail is finding new relevance on tracks long abandoned by trains, putting country towns on the map as popular holiday destinations.
Used by walkers, cyclists, and horse riders, Australia’s 100 active rail trails attract hundreds of thousands of people every year, injecting money and life into regional communities.
Now the nation’s rail trail enthusiasts are one step closer to an exciting new nature experience in the Mary Valley, around a two-hour drive north of Brisbane.
A leafy 4.7-kilometre track already connects Brooloo to the bustling community of Imbil, travelling through a bellbird colony.
Detailed design work will begin in February on a $19 million plan to extend the Mary Valley Rail Trail to 22 kilometres over historic bridges, through country towns, and rolling hills.
A resounding 92 per cent of 548 survey respondents supported extending the trail through Kandanga to Amamoor where it would meet up with the Mary Valley Rattler steam train.
“This is definitely, unequivocally wanted by the community,” Gympie Mayor Glen Hartwig said.
“We can’t wait for the detailed design, and hopefully some funding to roll some things out and move it forward.”
Queensland Hydro, the state-owned company driving the ambitious Borumba pumped hydro-electricity proposal, could be a major source of funding.
“We’re working with them on legacy projects, and the rail trail is one of them,” Cr Hartwig said.
Pending funding, the feasibility study estimated the rail trail extension to Amamoor could be completed by June 2028 and attract 46,000 users each year.
A committed group of volunteers couldn’t be more excited.
“People could put their bikes on the train at [Brisbane’s] Roma Street, travel to Gympie, ride down to the Rattler, and catch the train out to Amamoor,” Mary Valley Rail Trail (MVRT) association volunteer Graeme Staley said.
“They could spend a couple of days in the valley, riding around, staying at B&Bs or hotels, and then go back on the train.
“And that opens up a dimension that a lot of rail trails don’t have — we still have a steam train.”
A historic railway
Powered by volunteers, The Mary Valley Rattler runs pet-friendly steam and heritage diesel passenger trains four days a week between Gympie and Amamoor.
Work commenced on the Mary Valley branch from Gympie in June 1911 and reached Brooloo in 1915.
It led to the establishment of Kandanga in 1912, Imbil and Amamoor in 1914, and Dagun in 1917.
Trains carried people and agricultural products including cream, pineapples, timber, and livestock.
Since rail travel to Brooloo ended in the early 1990s, a 16km stretch of track has become overgrown and abandoned.
The proposal would conserve heritage assets including bridges, the Melawondi tunnel containing glow worms, timber train stations, and cream sheds.
Facilities including car parks and amenities would need to be built.
Rail trail tourism
There are rail trails in every state and territory in Australia.
At 161km, the Brisbane Valley trail in south-east Queensland is the longest one, linking Ipswich to Yarraman.
Since it opened in March 2023, the Northern Rivers Rail Trail in New South Wales has exceeded expectations, attracting 197,117 trail users.
“They’re a fantastic asset for the local people, anecdotally the biggest users are the local people,” Rail Trails Australia president Damian McCrohan said.
“In a lot of regional towns, there are not many places where you can ride safely off-road.”
He welcomed the support for the Mary Valley Rail Trail extension.
“It’s terrific, it’s just such a beautiful spot and it ticks all the boxes, you’ve got great little towns that will be linked up by the rail trail,” Mr McCrohan said.
“People plan their holidays around rail trails; on the longer rail trails they base themselves in an area and ride for three and four days and get transported back.
“Even international visitors come over to ride the trails.”
Connecting communities
MVRT association president Craig Thomson said the proposal had enormous potential.
“It’s a great nature-based place to do physical exercise, socialise, immerse yourself in nature essentially, and create a healthy community,” Mr Thomson said.
“And the second part of the benefit is really an economic one. We’d see that through an increase in cycle tourism, adventure tourism, ecotourism.”
Volunteers including Jo Lockwood are thrilled at the prospect of an extension and have already put in 3,500 plants for shade and wildlife.
“I can’t explain how excited I’d be, I think it’s a great opportunity to have a walking trail but also a wildlife corridor right through to Amamoor. It would be fantastic,” she said.
“They call cyclists ‘wallets on wheels’ in the Brisbane Valley and it’s brought such prosperity to those small towns.”
