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Ringwood - Belgrave Rail Trail Overview Map

The Ringwood - Belgrave Rail Trail is a shared use path for

cyclists Cycling, also, when on a two-wheeled bicycle, called bicycling or biking, is the use of Bicycle, cycles for transport, recreation, Physical exercise, exercise or sport. People engaged in cycling are referred to as "cyclists", "bicyclists", ...

and

pedestrian A pedestrian is a person traveling on foot, whether walking or running. In modern times, the term usually refers to someone walking on a road or pavement, but this was not the case historically. The meaning of pedestrian is displayed with ...

s, which follows the Belgrave railway line from the

Mullum Mullum Creek Trail __NOTOC__ The Mullum Mullum Creek Trail is a shared use path for cycling, cyclists and pedestrians, which follows Mullum Mullum Creek in the outer eastern suburbs in Melbourne, Victoria (Australia), Victoria, Australia. The path was previously s ...

in Ringwood to

Belgrave railway station Belgrave railway station is the terminus of the suburban electrified Belgrave line in Victoria, Australia. It serves the eastern Melbourne suburb of Belgrave, and opened on 18 December 1900 as Monbulk. It was renamed Belgrave on 21 November ...

in Belgrave, in the outer eastern suburbs of

Melbourne Melbourne ( ; Boonwurrung/Woiwurrung: ''Narrm'' or ''Naarm'') is the capital and most populous city of the Australian state of Victoria, and the second-most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Its name generally refers to a met ...

, Victoria,

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a Sovereign state, sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous List of islands of Australia, sma ...

. This trail connects with various other cycling and walking routes in the area as well as being directly serviced by eight railway stations on the Belgrave railway line along its 19.2 km route. A new section of path at its western end in Ringwood is scheduled for completion in 2025 as part of the

Level Crossing Removal Project The Level Crossing Removal Project (LXRP) is a program of the Government of Victoria, Australia, to remove 110 level crossings and rebuild 51 railway stations in Melbourne. After pledging the removal of 50 level crossings at the 2014 Victoria ...

at Bedford Road.

Following the trail

Despite the trail being marked in several publications and on cycle route websites, the trail has minimal directional signage. The following sections describe the route of the trail:

Ringwood - Bayswater

Starting in Ringwood and ending in Belgrave, the trail begins as a turn-off from the

near the

Ringwood Bypass The Ringwood Bypass is a short stretch of road extending from EastLink to Maroondah Highway in Melbourne, Australia. It allows the Maroondah Highway to bypass Eastland Shopping Centre, in the eastern Melbourne suburb of Ringwood. Route The b ...

underpass in Ringwood, before the trail travels on a short 250 m section of local streets before a short path goes to the Maroondah Highway /

/ Mount Dandenong Road intersection. The trail resumes at the south-east corner of this intersection before travelling through Ringwood Lake and crossing the

Lilydale railway line The Lilydale railway line is a commuter railway line operating between Flinders Street in the Melbourne central business district and Lilydale through Melbourne's eastern suburbs including Richmond, Cremorne, Burnley, Hawthorn, Hawthorn Ea ...

before travelling through Bedford Reserve on a sealed access road. The trail now follows Bedford Road east for 170 m, which can be traversed either on-road or via the roadside footpaths and the pedestrian

traffic lights Traffic lights, traffic signals, or stoplights – known also as robots in South Africa are signalling devices positioned at road intersections, pedestrian crossings, and other locations in order to control flows of traffic. Traffic light ...

outside

Ringwood Secondary College Ringwood Secondary College is a co-educational public secondary school located in the eastern suburb of Ringwood in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia. Ringwood Secondary College opened as Ringwood High School in 1954 and was one of the first hig ...

. The trail takes a right and runs south down Lena Grove for 360 m before the off-road shared path resumes at the

cul-de-sac A dead end, also known as a cul-de-sac (, from French for 'bag-bottom'), no through road or no exit road, is a street with only one inlet or outlet. The term "dead end" is understood in all varieties of English, but the official terminology ...

. The trail now follows the Belgrave railway line on the eastern side until

Heathmont railway station Heathmont railway station is located on the Belgrave line in Victoria, Australia. It serves the eastern Melbourne suburb of Heathmont, and opened on 1 May 1926. History Heathmont station opened on 1 May 1926 and, like the suburb itself, was n ...

, before the trail swaps to the western side of the railway at Canterbury Road. The trail now goes downhill to H.E. Parker reserve in

Heathmont Heathmont is a suburb of Melbourne, Victoria (Australia), Victoria, Australia, 24 km east of Melbourne's Melbourne City Centre, Central Business District, located within the City of Maroondah Local government areas of Victoria, local govern ...

. Using the reserve access road heading south, a left turn at the footbridge over the

Dandenong Creek The Dandenong Creek ( Aboriginal Bunwurrung: ''Narra Narrawong'' or ''Dandinnong'') is an urban creek of the Port Phillip catchment, located in the eastern and south-eastern Greater Melbourne region of the Australian east coast state of Vic ...

takes you to the

Dandenong Creek Trail __NOTOC__ The Dandenong Creek Trail is a shared use path for cyclists and pedestrians, which follows Dandenong Creek through the outer eastern and south-eastern suburbs of Melbourne, Victoria, Australia. Route The trail can be divided int ...

. At this point, the Ringwood - Belgrave Rail Trail and the Dandenong Creek Trail share the same path for 835 m east before the trails branch off from each other. A right turn immediately after the tunnel under the railway then takes you south along the eastern side of the railway line towards Mountain Highway and Bayswater railway station.

Bayswater - Upper Ferntree Gully

Around Bayswater railway station, the trail runs past the bus stops and the station car park, which usually creates a congested environment with many pedestrian and vehicular movements, so care needs to be taken when traversing this section. The trail then continues on the western side of the railway until Bayswater Road, where the trail then switches back to the eastern side. The trail then travels uninterrupted to

Boronia railway station Boronia railway station is located on the Belgrave line in Victoria, Australia. It serves the eastern Melbourne suburb of Boronia, and it opened on 19 June 1920. History Boronia station opened on 19 June 1920 and, like the suburb itself, wa ...

where the user has to cautiously navigate through the Boronia Junction Shopping Centre car park to reach the Boronia Road / Dorset road intersection. The trail resumes on the south-east corner of the intersection, where it once again follows the railway on the eastern side. The turn-off for the

Blind Creek Trail The Blind Creek Trail, in the outer eastern suburbs of Melbourne, in the Australian state of Victoria, is a shared-use path for cyclists and pedestrians, which follows the Blind Creek from the Dandenong Creek Trail in Wantirna South to the Ringw ...

is encountered halfway between Boronia and

Ferntree Gully Ferntree Gully is a suburb in Melbourne, Victoria (Australia), Victoria, Australia, at the foothills of the Dandenong Ranges, 30 km south-east of Melbourne's Melbourne City Centre, Central Business District, located within the City of Kn ...

. Once reaching

Ferntree Gully railway station Ferntree Gully railway station is located on the Belgrave line in Victoria, Australia. It serves the eastern Melbourne suburb of Ferntree Gully, and opened on 5 December 1889 as Lower Ferntree Gully. It was renamed Ferntree Gully on 1 Octobe ...

, the trail travels through the station car park to the level crossing, where the trail resumes. After crossing at the Alpine Street / Station Street / The Avenue intersection, the trail continues south on the western side of the railway, with a scenic footbridge over Forest Road before the trail arrives at pedestrian traffic lights at Burwood Highway in

Upper Ferntree Gully Upper Ferntree Gully is a suburb of Melbourne, Victoria (Australia), Victoria, Australia, 32 km east of Melbourne's Melbourne central business district, Central Business District, located within the City of Knox and Shire of Yarra Ranges L ...

. A short 400 m shared use path takes the user to the entrance to

Upper Ferntree Gully railway station Upper Ferntree Gully railway station is located on the Belgrave line in Victoria, Australia. It serves the eastern Melbourne suburb of Upper Ferntree Gully, and opened on 4 December 1889. A few services each day originate and terminate at Up ...

while crossing at the traffic lights takes you further along the trail.

Upper Ferntree Gully - Belgrave

The trail now travels south on a shared use path alongside Forest Oak Drive before arriving at the turn-off for the

Ferny Creek Trail __NOTOC__ The Ferny Creek Trail is a shared use path for cyclists and pedestrians, which follows Ferny and Corhanwarrabul Creeks through the suburbs of Knoxfield and Ferntree Gully in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia. Bicycle Victoria is campaign ...

. A left turn then takes you east through the area immediately south of

. Most of this section runs along shared-use paths alongside local streets. Upon reaching the railway bridge over Burwood Highway, the trail runs east alongside native trees and shrubs between the northern side of the railway and the southern side of Burwood Highway. This takes the user to Upwey and Upwey railway station. Staying on the northern side of the railway, the trail continues to run alongside Burwood Highway until Glenfern Road, where the trail leaves the highway and follows the railway once again until arriving at the end of Campbell street in

Tecoma ''Tecoma'' is a genus of 14 species of shrubs or small trees in the trumpet vine family, Bignoniaceae. Twelve species are from the Americas, while the other two species are African. The American species range from the extreme southern United St ...

. A 130 m trip along Campbell Street and a right turn down McNicol Road leads to an immediate right turn to

Tecoma railway station Tecoma railway station is located on the Belgrave railway line, Belgrave line in Victoria (Australia), Victoria, Australia. It serves the eastern Melbourne suburb of Tecoma, Victoria, Tecoma, and opened on 1 February 1924. History Tecoma stati ...

while an immediate left turn is where the trail continues. A short trip down this final section of shared use path leads to the back of the Belgrave strip shops where a short 220 m on-road trip down Blacksmiths Way east leads to the entrance to

, where the trail finishes.

Connections

Travelling downhill, from south to north, the

is encountered first, then the

, then the

and finally the upper

. The start of the Birds Land Reserve to Lysterfield Park Trail starts near the Belgrave Rail Trail. Leave the trail at Tecoma railway station and head south down McNicol Road, arriving at the reserve 2.5 km later. Alternatively leave from Belgrave railway station and head south, down the Belgrave-Hallam Road. Turn right (west) at Kaola Street 600 m later cross the very small reserve to Apsley Rd. Continue down Apsley Rd and turn left at McNicol Road, cross the bridge and arrive at Birds Land reserve, 3 km all up. The south end of the Birds Land Reserve to Lysterfield Park Trail starts at the very south end of Lysterfield Park, just 4.5 km by quiet roads from the

Hallam Bypass Trail __NOTOC__ The Hallam Bypass Trail is a shared use path for cycling, cyclists and pedestrians running along the Monash Freeway#Hallam bypass, Hallam Bypass between Doveton, Victoria, Doveton and Berwick, Victoria, Berwick in the outer eastern subu ...

. Leave the Hallam Bypass Trail using the freeway underpass 400 m west of Ernst Wanke Road. Follow the shared path, than travel along Drysdale Road and Heathdale Road. At the small roundabout turn left (north) up Glenwood Road. Cross Belgrave-Hallam Road and continue north up Jacques Road. Turn left (west) at Heatherton Road and then right (north) up Reservoir Road. The north and south ends of the trail are at and , respectively.

References

*''Bike rides around Melbourne'' 3rd edition, 2009, Julia Blunden, Open Spaces Publishing, *

External links

* An interactive map of the trail as well as others in the Melbourne area is available here
Walking and Cycling in Melbourne
{{DEFAULTSORT:Ringwood-Belgrave Rail Trail Bike paths in Melbourne Rail trails in Victoria (state)