A new beginner mountain bike trail, Mystic Park trail head, skills park and pump track will be developed in Bright this year in a major revamp of the old Mystic trail head, which will close when the area is harvested next month.
The scheduled harvest of a lower section of Mystic Park will begin on Monday 4 February, with mountain bikers now in the final weeks to farewell the popular beginner mountain bike trail, Pump Track, which will be rebuilt in a new location this year.
Alia Parker, executive officer of Alpine Community Plantation (ACP), the not-for-profit group that manages recreation in Mystic Park said the upcoming works follow the opening of the hit new Intermediate flow trail – Shred Kelly’s Last Stand – designed to funnel riders away from the harvesting work site as well as residences and out to the new trail head and parking area on Coronation Ave.
“Everyone’s been working together for the past 18 months to ensure the best outcome for both the community and HVP Plantations,” said Ms Parker.
“The opening of Shred Kelly’s Last Stand in December is just one example of how we’re planning ahead to ensure our local plantation industry and mountain bike park can continue to coexist and thrive,” she said.
Anne Partridge, HVP’s Northern Region General Manager agrees.
“HVP is committed to creating opportunities through the community partnership of ACP, and it’s been a team effort to make this happen.”
“The current crop of trees is between 24 and 30 years old and ready to be converted into sawn timber and other building and paper products. This continues the lifecycle of plantations in the area, and crews will replant the harvested area with more than 21,000 new trees this winter.”
Ms Parker said the harvest has provided the impetus to make some important changes to the layout of the mountain bike park.
“As Mystic has surged in popularity in the past two years, the location of our old trail head and the Pump Track trail has become quite disruptive for the residences on Mystic Lane. So the timing of the harvest has provided us an opportune moment to move the trail head, car park and green trail to a more suitable area,” Parker said.
ACP in conjunction with the Alpine Cycling Club were recently successful in securing a $164,000 Pick My Project grant from the State Government to build the new beginner trail and trail head on Coronation Ave between Dougherty’s Bridge and the Alpine Events Park. Construction will begin this winter with completion expected before the end of the year.
At the same time, the Alpine Cycling Club is using the funds received from an AusNet grant to build technical trail features for mountain bike skills development, and Alpine Shire Council is building the pump track under the final stage of the Alpine Events Park project, which also funded the completion of Shred Kelly’s Last Stand.
Mystic Park sits within the private pine plantations belonging to HVP Plantations, and is managed by a not-for-profit community group Alpine Community Plantation (ACP). ACP works closely with the Alpine Cycling Club and other park users such as the North East Victoria Hang Gliding Club, as well as Alpine Shire Council and the Bright & District Chamber of Commerce to ensure all users can enjoy activities in this working forest.
The harvest works will mean a few changes to the way Mystic has been operating to date:
• The current trail head and grass parking area on Mystic Lane in front of Pump Track will be permanently relocated to Coronation Ave on the south-eastern side of Pioneer Park near Dougherty’s Bridge. Temporary measures will be in place until the new trail head is complete.
• Riders can use the trail underpass at Dougherty’s Bridge and White Star Rd to enter Mystic. A new climb trail, Up And At ‘Em, located near Five Ways will assist riders cycling up the hill.
• Vehicle traffic control measures will be in place in Mystic during the harvest and haulage in February and delays should be expected.
• All the trails on the northern side of Huggins Road, including Pump Track, lower Hero Trail, The EU, Ballroom Blitz, Mineshaft Alley, Whodunnit and Twisties, will be closed in February during the harvest. Most of these trails, including Hero, will reopen once the operation is complete and the trails assessed for safety.
• All trails on the southern side of the road, such as upper Hero Trail, Shred Kelly’s Last Stand, Up and Down DJ, Elevation, Mystic DH, Buddahood, Tombstone and The Playground etc., will remain open during this period.
• For your own safety, and the safety of the work crews, it is essential that no one enters the harvesting zone at any time, and that all signage in the area is adhered to.
Posted in News