What we’re about
Welcome to bicycle touring!
It’s all about what the great Australian outdoors has to offer, the only thing missing is you! This is the Meetup page for Melbourne Bicycle Touring Club.
There’s nothing quite like the ‘spirit of place’ and freedom you will experience when riding a bicycle on an isolated back road through farmland, along a bush track, over a mountain range, or across a desert. The satisfaction and sense of independence is incomparable.
The Melbourne Bicycle Touring Club has been running recreational rides and tours continuously since 1973. Check out our rides program and see what’s coming up this weekend.
At MBTC we aim to give you a large variety of rides that cater for a broad variety of people, from simple sightseeing metro rides all the way up to multi week expedition touring and everything in between. Many of our rides are suitable for many different types of bikes as we often ride along bike paths and rail trails. We run social get together rides that start in the CBD and take us along a beach or river path to have either breakfast, lunch, or dinner at a nice place with some amazing people.
Our most common rides are one day urban or country tours which may start in Melbourne or at a country location. These rides may be either car or train based.
We regularly run overnight tours that will cater for people who prefer to travel light and stay in accommodation, but we also cater for the hard core tourers who prefer to load up their bikes, carry everything out to a great spot in the bush and tell stories around the campfire. We also run regular social nights at various venues near the CBD, as well as special club meetings throughout the year.
Meetup Riders are not automatically financial MBTC Club Members, but are welcome to take up full club membership by visiting www.mbtc.org.au/membership. Our club policy is that visitors may participate on three rides before making the decision to join our club for an annual fee of $25. Benefits include other club rides and activities not listed on Meetup, member-only rides, weekly club emails, social events, club meetings, Ride With GPS club subscription with premium navigation features & offline maps, etc.
For more information about MBTC please feel free to take a ride through our website www.mbtc.org.au and follow us at:
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instagram
facebook page
Understandably COVID-19 is affecting how we do our rides. Our COVID-19 page ((https://www.mbtc.org.au/covid-19/) describes what you must do when riding with us.
Everyone is riding at their own risk and the club does not take responsibility for any injuries or accidents you may have on any of our rides. It is now a requirement of this group that you use a recognizable profile photo of yourself.
Upcoming events (4+)
See all- Gold & Grain Grampians Tour - 166 km, Grade: intermediate-experiencedHalls Gap, Halls Gap, VI
A 'Spring Classic' of bush cycle-touring, this is the very BEST time of year to explore the backcountry of the Grampians, with firm-packed sand and gravel tracks and good gravel roads. To top it all off the wildflowers are an absolute delight, colouring the bushland with sprays of yellow, white, red and orange. The route will include sections of track that get too steep to ride in a couple of locations, but they are happily short (2-3 km along The Goat Track). Graded intermediate-hard because of road surfaces and bush-camping required. A touring bike, gravel-bike or MTB with pannier racks is required. It is recommended you have a tyre width of at least 37mm; 50mm will be more comfortable on sandy gravel. Distances generally are low.
We will travel up by car or train (train would require an extra day at each end) to meet at Halls Gap on the Friday of Grand Final Eve. The tour will be away from all supply points for the duration so you will need to carry all meals and snacks (3 breakfasts, 4 lunches and 3 dinners). There is a good bakery, cafe and small supermarket at Halls Gap and we shall probably do a quick coffee before we ride out. A waterbag of some sort and toileting items (digging trowel, paper) will be a handy thing to carry as well. Our campsites will be at Boreang (toilets & water), probably Red Rock Picnic Area (bush camp), and Mt Stapylton Campground (toilets & water). There are some great short walks to do each day:
Day 1 - Wonderland Range to The Pinnacle or Lakeview Lookout
Day 2 - Climbers' Cavern & Billimina Shelter rock art
Day 3 - McKenzie Falls & Mt Stapylton
Day 4 - Hollow Mountain
The route planned is here.
RIDE REGISTRATION FORM
This will be available within a day of the ride being announced. Preferably it is to be completed when you RSVP, but no later than the day before the ride. It can be found at
https://www.mbtc.org.au/registration-forms-rider.
ESSENTIAL ITEMS
Functioning headlight & tail light
Spare tube and a puncture kit
MYKI card, ATM card/cash, basic tools, rain gear, food/snacks (All meals for 4 days), tent, sleeping bag, stove, fuel.
WATER (including a folding bucket or waterbag)
Wet weather clothing
It's your responsibility to check the temperature and distance for the day and carry an appropriate amount of water. When riding outside suburbia remember that carrying too much water is better than not enough as the distances between water availability may vary greatly from the planned route due to road closures or other unforeseen circumstances.
Check Meetup for any changes the day before the ride, as the ride may be cancelled in the event of extreme weather or other unforeseen circumstances.
If you cannot make it to the ride please change your RSVP to 'NO' at least one day before the ride day.
This ride is for MBTC club members only. If you have ridden with me on a camping tour before but are not yet a member you should message me and take out membership. To join our club check out https://www.mbtc.org.au/membership
When I RSVP for this event/activity I acknowledge that the activity of bicycle riding can be dangerous and that I may suffer loss or injury or death and I agree that in consideration of my participation in any event conducted by the MBTC that I will absolve from liability the MBTC, its officers, and any event organiser from all claims, demands, or suits whether for personal injury or property loss suffered whether by negligence or breach of contract or otherwise, save for any right I may have pursuant to the Australian Consumer law. I acknowledge that photos may be taken of me during MBTC rides and social events, and that it is club practice that these photos will be published on Meetup, Facebook, and the club website. I will notify the ride leader and other riders if I wish to not be photographed. MBTC cannot guarantee that my photo will not be published and will promptly honour requests to be removed from MBTC controlled sites.
- Diamond Creek-Mooroolbark (via Sugarloaf reservoir), 52 ks, IntermedDiamond Creek Station Shopping Centre, Diamond Creek
Everybody's welcome!
A ride on Melbourne North-East mainly on bike paths/trails visiting Sugarloaf reservoir on the edge of suburbia.
Trains to Diamond Creek (Hurstbridge line) runs every 40 minutes. Trains from Mooroolbark back to Melbourne run every 20 minutes
Both journeys require Myki card.
Food wise, carry yours to have a little picnic at the reservoir.
Ride end time is a guesstimate only, so plan your day activities accordingly.
Check route here: https://ridewithgps.com/routes/43345941
The terrain is mostly sealed (60 %) or good compacted gravel and the route undulates a bit, enough to warm you up and keep those lungs pumping, there're a couple of pinches on the way, we may hike-a-bike on these sections.
So bring your in good condition bike, NOT SUITABLE for road bikes with thin tires, we suggest 30+ mm tires.
We'll keep a steady pace, stopping often to regroup.
No one left behind policy applies.RIDE REGISTRATION FORM
This is to be completed when you RSVP and can be found at:
www.mbtc.org.au/registration-forms-rider.ESSENTIAL ITEMS
Functioning front & tail light, spare tube and a puncture kit
MYKI card, ATM card/cash, basic tools, rain gear, food/snacks, etc.
Suncream; sunglasses; lip balm; hat brim; etc.Carry an appropriate amount of water and fill your bidons often, it's also important to fuel yourself regularly.
Check your app for any changes the day before a the ride, as the ride may be cancelled in the event of extreme weather or other unforeseen circumstances.
If you can not make it to the ride, please change your RSVP to 'NO' at your earliest opportunity.
When I RSVP for this event/activity I acknowledge that the activity of bicycle riding can be dangerous and that I may suffer loss or injury or death and I agree that in consideration of my participation in any event conducted by the MBTC that I will absolve from liability the MBTC, its officers, and any event organiser from all claims, demands, or suits whether for personal injury or property loss suffered whether by negligence or breach of contract or otherwise, save for any right I may have pursuant to the Australian Consumer law. I acknowledge that photos may be taken of me during MBTC rides and social events, and that it is club practice that these photos will be published on Meetup, Facebook, and the club website. I will notify the ride leader and other riders if I wish to not be photographed. MBTC cannot guarantee that my photo will not be published and will promptly honour requests to be removed from MBTC controlled sites.
- The GAME Beginners 15KMTooronga, Malvern
This ride is for beginners and football fans . We will be be riding the Gardiners Creek trail to the M C G from Tooronga Railway Station.
We will get to the M C G at around 2.30 pm. Where most of the crowd will be in the Stadium. My cunning plan is to be outside the stadium , where there is lots of big screens . There is ample lawn and heaps of atmosphere. Bring some picnic food , a blanket or camp chair and enjoy the vibe. We will leave well before the final siren and the maddening crowd.
Ride route https://ridewithgps.com/routes/44537089
RIDE REGISTRATION FORM
This will be available within a day of the ride being announced. Preferably it is to be completed when you RSVP, but no later than the day before the ride. It can be found at
https://www.mbtc.org.au/registration-forms-rider.ESSENTIAL ITEMS
Spare tube and a puncture kit
MYKI card, ATM card/cash, basic tools, rain gear, food/snacks, etcWATER
It's your responsibility to check the temperature and distance for the day and carry an appropriate amount of water. When riding outside suburbia remember that carrying too much water is better than not enough as the distances between water availability may vary greatly from the planned route due to road closures or other unforeseen circumstances.Check Meetup for any changes the day before the ride, as the ride may be cancelled in the event of extreme weather or other unforeseen circumstances.
If you cannot make it to the ride please change your RSVP to 'NO' at least one day before the ride day.
This ride is for MBTC club members, or those who have not yet done 3 days riding with us. To join our club check out https://www.mbtc.org.au/membership
When I RSVP for this event/activity I acknowledge that the activity of bicycle riding can be dangerous and that I may suffer loss or injury or death and I agree that in consideration of my participation in any event conducted by the MBTC that I will absolve from liability the MBTC, its officers, and any event organiser from all claims, demands, or suits whether for personal injury or property loss suffered whether by negligence or breach of contract or otherwise, save for any right I may have pursuant to the Australian Consumer law. I acknowledge that photos may be taken of me during MBTC rides and social events, and that it is club practice that these photos will be published on Meetup, Facebook, and the club website. I will notify the ride leader and other riders if I wish to not be photographed. MBTC cannot guarantee that my photo will not be published and will promptly honour requests to be removed from MBTC
- Waurn Ponds-Lorne-Colac, 120 kms, Intermediate OvernighterWaurn Ponds Station (Waurn Ponds), Waurn Ponds, VI
M B T C members only!!
After the caravans are gone it's time to reclaim the Great Ocean Road!
It's been a while since we'd ventured on this internationally renown stretch of road, with its many attractions there's something for every one.
Train departs Southern Cross at 7.50 am arriving at Waurn Ponds at 9.09 am (Miky).
For coffee lovers there is a small deviation, at the 5 k mark, to Freshwater Creek coffee shops.
1st day: Waurn Ponds-Lorne (60 k's ); pub dinner. Accommodation is your choice, you can pitch your tent or staying in a cabin.
Please let me know if you want to share a cabin to book well in advance.
Personally I'll stay in a cabin at Lorne Foreshore Caravan Park.
2nd day: Lorne-Colac (60 k's). The second day we'll be riding in the beautiful Otways Range National Park among majestic trees and water features where we'll have ample time to look around as the train from Colac departs 18.50 (paper ticket) arriving at Southern Cross at 21.09
Check the route: https://ridewithgps.com/routes/44141557
There is a lot to see on this overnighter from bluffs to water falls and, of course, the soothing effect of the ocean.
The route is mostly sealed (60%), and the terrain undulates a bit, not suitable for road bikes with thin tires, you need a bike in a good mechanical condition with 30+ mm tires.
On the first day we'll have lunch at Anglesea (30 k mark).
On the second day we'll have lunch en-route, so carry yours, as shops are non-existing along the way
RIDE REGISTRATION FORM
This is to be completed by the day before the ride and can be found at:
www.mbtc.org.au/registration-forms-rider.
preferably when you RSVP.
ESSENTIAL ITEMS
Functioning front & tail lights, spare tube and a puncture kit
MYKI card, ATM card/cash, basic tools, rain gear, food/snacks, etc.
Suncream; sunglasses; lip balm; hat brim; etc.
Check your app for any changes the day before a the ride, as the ride may be cancelled in the event of extreme weather or other unforeseen circumstances.
If you cannot make it to the ride please change your RSVP to 'NO' at least one day before the ride day.
When I RSVP for this event/activity I acknowledge that the activity of bicycle riding can be dangerous and that I may suffer loss or injury or death and I agree that in consideration of my participation in any event conducted by the MBTC that I will absolve from liability the MBTC, its officers, and any event organiser from all claims, demands, or suits whether for personal injury or property loss suffered whether by negligence or breach of contract or otherwise, save for any right I may have pursuant to the Australian Consumer law. I acknowledge that photos may be taken of me during MBTC rides and social events, and that it is club practice that these photos will be published on Meetup, Facebook, and the club website. I will notify the ride leader and other riders if I wish to not be photographed. MBTC cannot guarantee that my photo will not be published and will promptly honour requests to be removed from MBTC controlled sites.
