Munda Biddi Trail (WA) - Manjimup to Quinninup

Day 17 of the Munda Biddi Trail, this section takes cyclists between the town of Manjimup and the small settlement of Quinninup. Leaving Manjimup though the back streets, the Munda Biddi heads along a mix of vehicle tracks and rail trails towards the Warren River. Following the river and passing through pine plantations, the trail rises through Karri forest to Quinninup. A good day of cycling through Jarrah-dominated forest

Distance: 43.78 km (one way)

Gradient: Mostly gentle with some moderate climbs and descents

Quality of Path: Mix of vehicle tracks, single track and roads

Quality of Signage: Mostly well signed at all trail junctions

Experience Required: Mountain Biking experience recommended

Time: 4 Hours

Steps: None, this is a bike trail

Best Time to Visit: All Year; but the South West of WA is always best from August-October
Date(s) Completed: 12th September, 2020
Entry Fee: No
Getting There: The Manjimup trailhead can be accessed from Manjimup off South Western Hwy, while the Quinninup trailhead can be accessed from Wheatley Coast Rd. 

Two weeks after the weekend doing Donnelly River Village to Manjimup, Alissa and I returned to where I'd left off to complete the ride into Pemberton. This weekend was a major milestone in my Munda Biddi End to End;  having completed the trail from Pemberton through to Denmark earlier, it would mean finally linking up everything from Mundaring right through to Denmark, with only Denmark to Albany left to complete! 

From the trailhead outside the old railway station, the Munda Biddi heads through the Manjin Rec Plaza to then cross South West Highway. 

Spoiler warning - Manjimup to Quinninup is (for the most part) a fairly easy day that I can imagine could be combined for a longer day all the way into Pemberton. While this is definitely something that would appeal to people with a thru-hiking/cycling mentality, for those who are more drawn to the touring appeal of travelling from town to town and then checking out the local attractions, there is a fairly worthy side trip that adds about eight kilometres to the day, and that is to check out the King Jarrah located nearby.

While Alissa and I checked out the King Jarrah by car, it is actually really easy to reach by bike as there is a sealed path all the way from town to the King Jarrah car park, and with sealed paths all the way to the tree itself. 

The walk from the car park to the tree is only a few hundred metres long, so can be completed fairly easily. 

With a boardwalk encircling it and with the area not having been badly burnt by bushfire, this King Jarrah is in far better condition than the one in Lane Poole Reserve near Bidjar Ngoulin. There is another forest attraction that is a bit less convenient to reach nearby of four ancient Karris growing in a row called the Four Aces, but with the King Jarrah in Lane Poole, the King Karri near Donnelly River Village, this King Jarrah near Manjimup and the King Karri near Quinninup, cyclists can collect all four kings just by taking short side trips from the main trail. 

Back on the actual Munda Biddi, the trail crosses through a pocket of remnant forest before emerging on the outer suburban streets east of South West Hwy, with the Munda Biddi heading south towards the Forest Products Commission office. Turning left onto Muir Hwy, the Munda Biddi follows along the highway for just over a kilometre. 

Passing the Kurandra Arboretum (which was not super exciting or distinctive), the Munda Biddi continues through regrowth Jarrah forest, initially along Kurandra Rd.

While this was initially not super exciting, the wildflowers in the understory made up for the scrappiness of the Jarrah. Yellow wattle, flame peas and particularly tree hovea provided a wealth of colour and interest. This is one of the reasons why August through to October really is the best time to be out on the trails in the South West, as the combination of winter rains making flowing creeks and the spring bloom can make otherwise dull forest look a lot more interesting. 

Leaving Kurandra Rd, the Munda Biddi follows some quality single track which included some nice fun darting between the trees to make my way through.

While the trail did return to what looked like vehicle tracks, it was obvious that I was following an old rail form for an extended stretch of the ride through here. With a denser understory and relatively flat riding thanks to the nature or a rail form, this made for pleasant, easy rolling riding. 

Unfortunately, given the excellent Karri forest from Nannup through the Manjimup, I spent the entire day in expectation for the transition of the Jarrah forest to sustained stretches of Karri as it is one of my favourite trees. Seeing a stand of Karri got me really excited, as I thought to myself 'and now, we will reenter Karri country'.

I was greatly mistaken. The Karri was just a small pocket in what was a seemingly endless corridor of Jarrah that would remain my primary companion for most of the day. 

A second teasing of transition to Karri forest happened at the corner of Peppermint Grove and Sherman Rds with the Munda Biddi facing what looked like a major transition to Karri, only to cruelly turn left and away from the Karri forest's magnificence. 

Heading along some Karri-lined roads, the Munda Biddi then skirts around some farmland before entering even more Jarrah forest. 

At least I can say that the Jarrah forest on offer through here was quite lush and enjoyable, with quite an extended section of quality single track through the forest. 

The only downside of the single track was that a massive tree had collapsed right across it, with debris making it almost indiscernible as to which way to go. Thankfully the area to the right of the collapsed tree was clear enough to pick my way through as I rejoined the trail on the other side. 

More excellent single track ensued, with some nice weaving between the more mature trees making for riding that was engaging while still being quite easy.  

With all of the day's first 22 kilometres having been green rated easy trail, the first moderately 'challenging' section was a descent that included some blue graded trail. There is about three kilometres of almost continuous fast descending, making for some fun riding through the relatively mature Jarrah forest. 

With much of the scenery being fairly indistinct Jarrah forest, the major landmark of this day is the Warren River. Having walked the Warren River Loop and having crossed the old rail bridge over the Warren on both the Bibbulmun Track and Munda Biddi, I'm quite familiar with its Karri-lined appearance further downstream however these upper reaches are home to Jarrah-dominated forest.

While I prefer Karri forest, there was no denying that it was really lovely to be travelling along the river and to be able to take in all it had to offer. While initially riding fairly high up from the river and with views initially limited to glimpses through the trees, the trail does run closer to the water at points and provides walkable access via ad hoc side trails to the water's edge. 

Even better, the terrain opens up as it continues along, providing clear, unobstructed views of the tranquil river. 

Heading upstream and then following a smaller tributary, the Munda Biddi crosses over a bridge as it heads along the other side of the Warren.

Having followed vehicle tracks along the river up this point, the Munda Biddi along the other side features more of the quality single track that provided pleasant riding earlier in the day. 

Rising up and away, the trail nevertheless features more river views from this side of the Warren as it makes it way to Wheatley Coast Rd. 

Joining onto Wheatley Coast Rd, the Munda Biddi follows the sealed road to utilise the road bridge over the Warren River before taking a sharp turn left onto Cutting Rd. 

The remains of an old rail bridge can be seen from the trail just east of the road bridge that would have been an awesome option for a cycle crossing were it not for its sad state of disrepair. With so much of it rotted out and with trees literally growing through it, it is probably too far gone for renewal. However, if it were possible to refurbish, it would be a good developmental opportunity for the trail. 

From the old rail bridge, the Munda Biddi heads through some very mature pine plantations to avoid another kilometre along Wheatley Coast Rd. 

Eventually returning to Wheatley Coast Rd, the Munda Biddi crosses over the western side of the road. Before heading into more plantations, the trail offers some lovely farmland views. With fluffy clouds and otherwise clear blue skies, the scenery was rather lovely. 

Entering the pine plantations west of the road, the Munda Biddi heads sharply downhill as it passes by younger and less interesting plantations than had been seen east of Wheatley Coast Rd. 

A cool feature of this otherwise ordinary section of the trail is the remains of an old homestead located within the plantation. There was a distinct lack of historical information, and it would again be an interesting developmental opportunity for some kind of signage to be added as I'm not the first Munda Biddi cyclist to stop and check the derelict house out. 

Leaving the plantation behind, the trail heads along vehicle tracks through more Jarrah forest. With more mature, larger trees on display, I'd really hoped that the home stretch from here to Quinninup would finally see the transition to Karri forest. 

Finally, my dreams became reality. Continuing along Langley Rd, the forest finally made the transition to sustained Karri forest, basically all the way into Quinninup. 

As the trail gods giveth, the trail gods taketh away; while the scenery showed a marked improvement as it transitioned to Karri forest, it also marked a shift towards an uphill gradient. While not overly long, it was nevertheless very tiring cycling with its proximity so close to the end of the day's kilometres only exacerbating the situation. 

I was relieved then when the Munda Biddi returned to Wheatley Coast Rd which then takes a steep plunge down the bitumen towards Quinninup. 

Another old milling town like Donnelly River Village and Deanmill, Quinninup features many of the quaint worker's cottages that are common to these milling towns. Quinninup is a town that was brought to my attention by my podcasting partner Mark Pybus who wrote up a few of the walks in the area. While I've not done any of the walks here, they are trails I'd love to check out in the future. While waiting for me, Alissa did the Karri Lake Trail and was raving about it when I arrived. 

Interestingly, Quinninup did not appear to have full trail town status until very recently, with the official Munda Biddi map and the online version offered by the Munda Biddi Foundation not giving Quinninup the same status as even Jarrahwood! This seems to have been rectified now, with a trailhead located in the middle near the site of the old school. Also a cause for celebration is the reopening of the Quinninup Pub. The original building was destroyed by a fire in 2017 but a new purpose built structure has been open since 2019. The outside deck literally overlooks the Munda Biddi as it continues south and is a perfect spot for lunch and a beer - whether as a celebratory meal for the end of a day on the trail or a midday stopover before continuing on the trail to Pemberton. 

At the time I rode Manjimup to Quinninup, I have to admit being a bit underwhelmed by this day of cycling, however when looking back at the photos I realised how much better this day was in reality. As with how I was disappointed by the trail because I was anticipating the descent to the Collie River in Wellington National Park coming along faster than it did, I realised I'd spent so much of the day anticipating the arrival of the Karri forest, to the point where I didn't allow myself to really enjoy the large amount of time spent on rail trails and the otherwise good quality Jarrah forest the predominates. Give or take a bit of expedient road riding and some less than stellar pine plantations, this was a good day of the trail if taken on its own terms, with the Warren River and the potential for a side trip to the King Jarrah being highlights.