The O'Keefe Rail Trail is a

rail trail A rail trail is a shared-use path on railway right of way. Rail trails are typically constructed after a railway has been abandoned and the track has been removed, but may also share the right of way with active railways, light rail, or streetcar ...

connecting

Bendigo Bendigo ( ) is a city in Victoria, Australia, located in the Bendigo Valley near the geographical centre of the state and approximately north-west of Melbourne, the state capital. As of 2019, Bendigo had an urban population of 100,991, makin ...

with

Heathcote Heathcote may refer to: Places in Australia *Heathcote, New South Wales, a suburb of Sydney **Electoral district of Heathcote, a seat in the New South Wales Legislative Assembly **Heathcote National Park ** Parish of Heathcote a parish of Cumberla ...

. The sandy gravel trail runs along a former branch line on the Melbourne-Sydney rail line. It previously ran from Bendigo to

Axedale Axedale is a small town in Victoria, Australia. It is located on the McIvor Highway, in the City of Greater Bendigo, east of Bendigo. It was surveyed and proclaimed in 1861. At the 2016 census, Axedale had a population of 802. The town is nest ...

but works completed in 2015 extended the route to Heathcote O'Keefe Rail Trail - Trail Description
Rail Trails Australia The trail includes a number of bridges, including the $50,000 Axe Creek Suspension Bridge, which was built in 1993. In early 2014 a pedestrian/cycle bridge was built over the

Campaspe River The Campaspe River, an inland intermittent river of the northcentral catchment, part of the Murray-Darling basin, is located in the lower Riverina bioregion and Central Highlands and Wimmera regions of the Australian state of Victoria. The he ...

. The trail also includes a tunnel that crosses under the

McIvor Highway McIvor Highway is a short Victorian highway (44 km) linking Bendigo and Heathcote. Together with Hume Freeway (until Wallan) and Northern Highway (until Heathcote), it provides an alternative route between Melbourne and Bendigo. The nam ...

. This was constructed as part of the

crossing project in 2014. The trail is named after

Andrew O'Keefe Andrew Patrick O'Keefe AM (born 1 October 1971) is an Australian former television presenter and lawyer. He is best known for being the host of the game shows ''Deal or No Deal'' and ''The Chase Australia''. He was also the co-host of ''Weeke ...

, an early railway pioneer. O'Keefe Rail Trail in Junortoun

History

The Heathcote to North Bendigo line was built by O'Keefe in 1888 after successfully tendering 88,409 pounds to build the of track and 50 bridges. It formed part of the Wandong to Bendigo line, and was commissioned as part of the Railway Construction Act 821, which authorised large amounts of railway infrastructure to be built. At the time, Heathcote had a population of 1500, and was part of the supply chain for the gold rush. From 1888 for several decades, the railway was kept busy supplying timber for mine shafts, and as fuel. At its peak, two trainloads of timber was transported each day. However, by 1958, this had dwindled to less than a trainload of freight per week, and the service was suspended. The track was finally dismantled in the 1970s.

References

External links

Sources

O'Keefe Rail Trail – UpdatesO'Keefe Rail Trail
*"O'Keefe Rail Trail", City of Greater Bendigo, 2000.
Friends of the Bendigo-Kilmore Rail Trail
Rail trails in Victoria (Australia) {{VictoriaAU-geo-stub