Cows with Guns, Pine Creek MTB Park

Overview

Pine Creek MTB Park — universally known as "Cows with Guns" after its signature trail — is a hand-built, club-run network in Pine Creek State Forest at Bonville, about 15–20 minutes south of Coffs Harbour CBD. Officially opened in July 2010, the network is maintained by volunteers from the Coffs Harbour Mountain Bike Club under a Forest Permit with Forestry Corporation NSW. It is one of the Mid North Coast's most family-friendly XC venues and the regular venue for the Coffs Harbour MTB Club's racing and social rides.

The ~14 km of trail (riders sometimes quote 14–18 km depending on how loops are stitched together) is largely flat, flowing single and double track hugging the banks of Pine Creek through dense subtropical forest. There are minimal rocks, but lots of roots and loamy soil that gets tacky in the wet and slick when shaded — the tight canopy gives an illusion of speed that's higher than your actual velocity. Most trails are two-directional and all start/finish at the Hunters Road trailhead car park, which has a trail map board.

Beyond the green-rated singletrack, Cows with Guns is notable for its connection to the adjacent Sawmill trail network across the creek; a bridge linkage allows riders to combine the two into a longer, more varied loop. The signature "Cows with Guns" trail itself is short (≈0.28 km) but emblematic — "a great introductory track where the faster you go the harder it gets." Sidewinder (downhill berms with pump rollers and tabletops) and the blue-rated Back O Bourke (≈0.88 km) are the most-mentioned standout trails.

Location & Access

Address: Hunters Road trailhead, off Pacific Highway at Repton/Bonville, Coffs Harbour NSW 2450 (1.8 km from Sid Burke Forest Park rest area on Pine Creek Way)
Region: Coffs Coast / Mid North Coast
Drive times: ~20 min from Coffs Harbour CBD; ~5.5 hr from Sydney; ~4.5 hr from Brisbane
Public transport: No PT — car only. Nearest train station is Sawtell (NSW TrainLink North Coast line), but then no transfer to the trailhead.
Parking: Free gravel car park at the Hunters Road trailhead; overflow on the forestry road. All trails start and end here.
Coords: -30.3736, 153.0362 (verified against Google Maps and Trailforks)

Best Season & Conditions

Peak riding season: Year-round. Autumn–winter (May–August) is generally driest and best in subtropical Coffs.
Wet-weather impact: Loamy/rooty soil holds water and gets slick. Avoid during and immediately after heavy rain — both for grip and for trail surface protection. Check Trailforks status reports.
Fire-danger / total-fire-ban impact: Forestry Corporation may close the State Forest on catastrophic fire-danger days; check NSW RFS and Forestry NSW alerts in summer.
Snow / alpine season: N/A — subtropical, low elevation (peaks ~115 m elevation gain on the longest loops).
School-holiday surge: Weekends busy when CHMTBC events are scheduled; otherwise quiet by Coffs/Sydney standards.

Managing Body & Trail Builders

Land manager: Forestry Corporation NSW (Pine Creek State Forest)
Trail builder / maintainer: Coffs Harbour Mountain Bike Club (operates under a Forest Permit; all trails are hand-built by club volunteers)
Volunteer / dig days: Organised through CHMTBC; see coffscoastmtb.com.au
Donations / membership: Club membership via the CHMTBC site; donations support trail upkeep

History & Background

2010: Park officially established in July 2010 after several years of informal trail building and volunteer effort. "Cows with Guns" is taken from the lead trail's name.
The network has hosted the Coffs Harbour MTB Club's regular race series and social rides for over a decade.
Located on Gumbaynggirr Country.
The site demonstrates Forestry Corporation NSW's "multiple use" model — recreational MTB co-exists with sustainable timber production in the broader Pine Creek State Forest.

Sources

Coffs Coast MTB — Trails page (operator/club) — http://www.coffscoastmtb.com.au/trails/ — accessed 2026-05-19
Trailforks — Cows with Guns region — https://www.trailforks.com/region/cows-with-guns/ — accessed 2026-05-19 (page returned via WebFetch; trails index confirms region)
NSW Government — Pine Creek State Forest Mountain Bike Trails — https://www.nsw.gov.au/visiting-and-exploring-nsw/locations-and-attractions/pine-creek-state-forest-mountain-bike-trails — accessed 2026-05-19
Coffs Coast tourism — Cows with Guns trail page — https://www.coffscoast.com/trail/cows-with-guns/ — accessed 2026-05-19
Coffs Coast tourism — Pine Creek State Forest operator — https://www.coffscoast.com.au/operator/pine-creek-state-forest/ — accessed 2026-05-19
Coffs Harbour Cycle Club — Cows with Guns venue — https://coffsharbourcycleclub.org.au/venue/cows-with-guns-mtb-track/ — accessed 2026-05-19
AllTrails — Cows with Guns, Barking Spiders, Double Cross & Creek Line loop — https://www.alltrails.com/trail/australia/new-south-wales/cows-with-guns-barking-spiders-double-cross-and-creek-line-mtb-loop — accessed 2026-05-19