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Big Hill Bike Park in Mount Beauty is steeped in heritage, and has welcomed mountain bikers to the Victorian High Country for decades. As times have changed, the trails here have stayed true to their roots, and the only machine-built trail in the network is a climbing trail — everything else is hand-cut, rough and rowdy.
The map of Big Hill Bike Park can look a bit like a bowl of spaghetti, with a veritable labyrinth of trails traversing its slopes. If you’ve never ridden here before, don’t be intimidated by the busy trail board, because Team Mount Beauty has created a variety of coloured loops, linking up some of the best trails in the bike park.
Back in the day, riding Beauty felt a bit like orienteering, but nowadays, everything is well signposted, and if you do get lost, all the trails filter back into the trailhead.
The bike park is totally volunteer-run, and Team Mountain Beauty is responsible for all of the trail maintenance, new singletrack and upgrades to the trailhead.
In the shadow of the bike park, the town is a delightful mountain village, situated along the edge of the Kiewa River. The Crank Handle Brewery (formerly known as Sweetwater Brewing) isn’t far from the trailhead, and has a lovely patio for some aprés re-hydration. The Mount Beauty Bakery is ideal for staving off the dreaded hunger flat — both for its location near the bike park, and the delectable baked goods it sells.
Beauty is only about 30-min down the road from Falls Creek and offers an entirely different riding experience. If you’re making the trip, why not ride both?
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There’s something refreshing about the old school hand cut trails of Mt. Beauty, with hardly a jump or manicured berm in sight. This place definitely improves your riding (presuming you keep the rubber side down), with plenty of steep, technical & chunky trails to keep you on your toes. A personal favourite is the Darkside descent, which is quite tight & technical in some places, & steep & fast in others.