At 134km, the Great Victorian Rail Trail is Australia's longest rail trail. It follows the route of an old train line from Tallarook on the Hume Highway about 100km north of Melbourne to Mansfield in the Victorian High Country. It is designed for cyclists, walkers and horse riders and due to the route passing through numerous townships, accommodation, food and supplies are readily available along the way.There are numerous rail trails throughout Australia, being shared-use paths recycled from abandoned railway corridors. The numerous access points make it easy to plan day trips, or the journey can be done as a multi-day trip without the need to be fully self-sufficient.For the purpose of providing ease of navigation and planning, we have split the Tallarook to Mansfield route into 6 smaller Treks.
This one covers a branch off the main Trek, from Cathkin to Alexandra, a distance of 15km.
This part of the trek passes through hilly farmland. The Cathkin Station platform still
stands and the Alexandra Timber Tramway and Museum operates at the old Alexandra Station. Coming out of Alexandra you’ll head up to Eglinton Cutting, which can be a challenge. From the top enjoy the stunning view of Cathedral Range.
How to Use this Trek Note
If you'd like to download this Trek there are two options:
- Purchase our app ExplorOz Traveller. This Australian-made GPS & Navigation app will allow you to download all the ExplorOz Treks to your GPS enabled smartphone/tablet/iPad or laptop and enable active route guidance along the route as per the Directions shown on this page. The app enables offline navigation and mapping and will show where you are as you travel along the route. The app also allows you to edit/customise the route. Viewing the Trek in the Traveller app also includes all the words, images and POIs exactly as on the website (excludes Wildflowers). For more info see the ExplorOz Traveller webpage.
- Alternatively, if you already have another raster mapping software program (or an HN7 device) you can try downloading the route line data files via the Download Trek button shown below the map on this page (OR purchase EOTreks Route Files). Be aware that this doesn't include maps or text just the route line.
TIP | To purchase our maps for offline use, you will need to purchase an EOTopo map licence (available either in App Version, or Raster Version). |
History
Indigenous History
Scar trees, rock shelters, rock art and place names all indicate that the Taungurung people (Daung wurrung) have been in this part of Victoria for thousands of years. Many Taungurung people still live on their country and participate widely in the community as cultural
heritage advisors, land management officers, artists and educationalist.
European History
In 1824
Hamilton Hume and William Hovell were commission to lead an expedition to find new grazing land and attempt to discover where New South Wales's western rivers flowed.
Yea was established in May 1837 as the first service centre for the early squatters and settlers of the district and in the gold rush era of the 1850s it became a stopping place for gold prospectors.
In the 1860 the first section of railway line from
Melbourne to the North East reached Essendon and then extended to reach
Tallarook in 1872. By 1883 it had been extended further to Wodonga however a
junction was built at
Tallarook and a branch line built from
Tallarook heading east into mountainous territory. This became the
Mansfield line. The branch railway line to
Alexandra was long in coming. In the 1880s,
Alexandra had lobbied long and hard for the line to
Mansfield to be routed directly through their town. They were beaten by nature and the engineering realities of the hilly terrain and the steep gradients that surround the township, so that the direct line to
Mansfield was built to the north. In September 1890, a short compromise branch line was constructed (7.1km) from Cathkin to Koriella in the direction of
Alexandra. In August 1908 work began on the
Alexandra Township Railway Extension. This was through rough, steep, 1 in 30 grade country and was costly to construct.
Cathkin had a school (1905-46) and was the point where the spur line to
Alexandra joined the railway line from
Tallarook to
Mansfield. Cathkin was the name of a property and derives from Cathkin Braces, Scotland. Koriella, between Cathkin and
Alexandra. is thought to be Aboriginal for Cockatoo, and the place's previous names were
Alexandra Road and Rhodes.
Until 1866
Alexandra and the surrounding district was occupied by squatting runs. In June of that year two employees of the Mount Pleasant Run found a quartz reef about two kilometres south-east of the future site of
Alexandra. Other gold-bearing locations were discovered soon afterwards, a notable one being along the UT (Ultima Thule) Creek, a tributary of the Goulburn River. There was also a track to other diggings along which supplies were brought, and the track passed through a red
gate in the boundary between squatting runs, the boundary more or less following the UT Creek. Red
Gate became a small township on UT Creek until named
Alexandra in about 1867 after the Princess of Wales or the given name (Alexander) of the discoverers of gold in 1866.
The entire railway line was closed and dismantled in 1978 but after the 2009 Victorian bushfires, the Victorian Government announced a project to utilise the railway corridor to build a 134km cycle trail as an economic stimulus. AU$14Million was spent to repair and build bridges, road crossings, car parking, rest stops and amenities. The Great Victorian Rail Trail was opened in June 2012.
TrekID: 13422