The NSW Government has today announced $207,000 to complete the construction of the Duck Creek Mountain Bike Park at Alstonville.
The new park will include eight kilometres of world-class cross country and all mountain-style trails, and a skills park.
Northern Rivers Dirty Wheels Mountain Bike Club secretary Sheryn Da-Re said once the park was completed it would cater to the 180 members of the club, as well as the general public.
The park, which is five kilometres east of Alstonville on the northern side of the Bruxner Highway, with the access driveway approximately 500m west of Gap Road.
Today, NSW Minister for Racing Paul Toole and Parliamentary Secretary for Northern NSW Ben Franklin MLC announced the $207,000.
‘I’m delighted the NSW Government has partnered with Ballina Shire Council and the Northern Rivers Dirty Wheels Mountain Bike Club to deliver this great new sport and recreation facility,’ Mr Franklin said.
‘Once completed, the park will be available to local riders who want to practise their skills and boost their fitness. It will also be a drawcard for mountain bike enthusiasts and competitors from further afield, boosting tourism opportunities.’
Today’s funding announcement followed a visit by Greens MP Tamara Smith to park this week to see progress from an $8,000 grant she facilitated. Those funds have been used to construct stage two of the park, which is one kilometre long.
‘This recreational park will be open to the public later this year and will be a much-needed place for mountain bikers to come, as there are few other mountain bike trails like this around.’
The trail goes through bushland and is hilly in parts so it is different from the NRDW’s other facility at New Italy which is reasonably flat.
Once completed, the park will contain approximately 8 kilometres of mountain bike specific cross country and all mountain style trails and a skills park.
The trail network will include easy and very difficult trails. We expect the facility to be open in mid 2018.
An earlier grant announced by Page MP Kevin Hogan in 2016 was used to construct an onsite carpark and an upgrade of about 35 metres of the existing driveway to an all-weather gravel access.
