Sunday 12 May
116km ride
The first day of riding will see you cover over 100km on the bike but with a rewarding outback experience at your destination.
Activities & highlights
Following breakfast at Mercure Resort you’ll kick off the day with a tour of Historic Hemannsburg precinct, followed by coffee/tea and strudel on the deck overlooking the West MacDonnell Ranges.
The day’s riding will take in quiet roads, rolling hills and the possibility of spotting wild horses and dingoes.
In the evening you’ll soak up a quintessentially outback experience dining and sleeping under the stars just a few steps from Glen Helen Gorge – we’ll set up your tent, start a fire and provide the marshmallows!
Key times
6:00AM: Breakfast at Mecure Resort
6:59AM: Sunrise
7:00AM: Depart on bus to Hemannsburg
8:45AM: Hermannsburg tour followed by morning tea
10:00AM: Riders depart from Hermannsburg to Glen Helen (route opened 9:30AM – 5:00PM)
6:00PM: BBQ dinner, sunset
Route details
Distance: 116km | Climbing: 272m
Starting in historic Hermansburg, riders will travel via the recently sealed Inner Mereenie Loop on Namitjira Dve through to Glen Helen.
Expect to see wild horses, and lots of them! After lunch you’ll tackle undulating terrain with brief roller-coaster like sections. A relaxing evening at Glen Helen Gorge is the perfect way to wrap up the first day of riding.
Accommodation
Tonight, we’ll stay at Glen Helen Homestead, the only accommodation located with the Tjoritja – West MacDonnell Ranges National Park, 130km west of Alice Springs.
Depending on your ticket experience, you’ll either camp under the stars with modern amenities and a tent pitched by the Bicycle Network team, or settle in a room at the homestead.
This extraordinary landscape is 800 million years old and has been home to the Western Aranda Aboriginal people for tens of thousands of years.
What's included?
Premium
- Welcome pack
- Breakfast, morning tea, lunch and dinner
- Tour of the Historic Hermannsburg precinct
- Lunch with 360 degree views of the West MacDonnell Ranges
- Dinner is a classic bushmans bbq dinner
- Tent at Glen Helen Homestead camping area
Lux
- Premium welcome pack
- Breakfast, morning tea, lunch and dinner
- Tour of the Historic Hermannsburg precinct
- Lunch with 360 degree views of the West MacDonnell Ranges
- Dinner is a classic bushmans bbq dinner
- Room at Glen Helen Homestead camping area
Optional extras
- An evening camp fire
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