Motorcycle Rides in the Perth Hills

East into the hills

Perth's riding geography is simple: the coastal plain, then the Darling Range, then the dry country beyond it. The escarpment is low but it is the first relief for a long way in any direction, and the roads that climb it are the local classics.

John Forrest National Park sits close to the city on the escarpment, with scenic views, walk and bicycle trails, historic buildings and wildlife, and it is the easiest taste of the hills. Further out, Mundaring and the Helena Valley country give longer loops with more corner time.

The parks here acknowledge Whadjuk Traditional Owners, and the country they cover is jarrah and marri forest rather than rainforest: open, dry, and shaded in a way that keeps the roads cool in the morning and lets them heat up by afternoon.

• John Forrest National Park: close to the city, with walking trails and historic buildings.
• Mundaring and the Helena Valley: the longer loops through the hills, with good corner sequences.
• The Chittering Valley north of the range: open farmland roads after the climb.
• Kalamunda and the zig-zag: the short, steep local climb that every Perth rider knows.

South into the jarrah

South of the city the riding changes character. The jarrah forest runs from the escarpment down towards Dwellingup, Collie and the south-west, and the roads through it are long, shaded and largely empty.

This is the part of Western Australia that riders underestimate. The distances are real, the fuel stops are spaced, and the forest roads can be wet for months at a time in winter.

Dwellingup is the usual base for a weekend rather than a day, and the Bibbulmun Track crosses the country here — which tells you what kind of walking country you are riding through.

The forest country continues all the way to the south-west coast, which is where motorcycle rides in Western Australia picks the route up beyond Dwellingup.

• Dwellingup: the forest town that makes a natural overnight stop.
• The jarrah forest roads: long, shaded and quiet, wet through winter.
• Collie and the south-west approach: the link into the Margaret River country.
• The Bibbulmun Track crossings: walking country, which means wildlife on the verges at dawn.

The coast and the Coral Coast

North of Perth the coast road runs a very long way with very little on it. The Coral Coast is not a day ride from the city in any meaningful sense, but the first part of it — the Pinnacles country and the towns north of Jurien Bay — is reachable in a long day.

This is where a rider has to start thinking in outback terms: fuel spacing, heat, and the fact that help is a long way away. The northern roads are not difficult, but they are empty, and empty changes how you plan.

Exmouth and the North West Cape are a separate trip rather than an extension of a Perth day ride. The state guide covers that northern country properly.

If the plan is a family trip to the coast rather than a ride, a campervan hired in Perth handles the northern distances with more comfort, and the same road.

• The Pinnacles and Nambung: the first real stop north of the city.
• Jurien Bay and the coast towns: fuel and food on the northern run.
• Geraldton: the point at which the coast becomes a proper expedition.
• The inland Great Northern Highway: the alternative north, and a very different ride.

The riding year

Perth has a Mediterranean climate and it behaves like one: hot dry summers, mild wet winters, and a long comfortable middle. That makes the riding year the inverse of the tropics and considerably more forgiving than the Pilbara.

Summer is the constraint. The hills are rideable early and unpleasant by mid-afternoon, and the forest roads hold heat in a way the coast does not. Winter is wet but mild, and the jarrah forest is at its best then if you do not mind the rain.

The sweet spot is autumn and spring, when the days are warm, the fuel stops are open and the light is long.

• Autumn and spring: the best of the year, warm and dry.
• Winter: mild but wet, with forest roads that stay damp for weeks.
• Summer: ride early, and treat the hills as a morning-only option.
• The far north: a dry-season trip of its own, not a summer extension.

Before you leave

Perth's local riding is easy to plan; the longer trips north and south are where the preparation matters. The two things that catch riders out are the fuel spacing once you leave the wheatbelt and the heat between November and March.

If the plan runs to the north-west, read the state guide before committing. Exmouth and the Pilbara are genuinely remote and the planning is different in kind.

• Fuel before the forest roads south; the towns are spaced.
• Ride the hills in the morning in summer.
• Carry water on the northern runs, even on a day trip.
• Check park alerts for fire danger in the hills in summer.

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