George Town MTB Trails

Overview

George Town MTB Trails is a council-owned, purpose-built mountain bike destination at the head of the Tamar Valley in north-east Tasmania, roughly 40 minutes' drive north of Launceston. It is one of the four pillars of the North-East Tasmanian MTB story alongside Blue Derby, Maydena and St Helens, branded by its operator as "completing the North-East Tasmanian mountain biking narrative." Around 100 km of one-way, World Trail-designed singletrack is split across two distinct, complementary networks.

• Mt George Trail Network — ~16 km across 10 named trails, on Mt George immediately adjacent to the town centre. Gravity-focused with short, sharp descents (the longest is Buzzcut at −122 m elevation, the queen-stage climb is Keystone at +177 m). Sealed-road self-shuttle laps are possible (≈5-minute turnarounds).
• Tippogoree Hills Trail Network — ~57 km planned, ~31 trails listed at full build-out (lower stage ~22 km opened Dec 2022; upper stage completed by World Trail in 2023). About 5 km south of George Town; descents are longer (Slab Hunter is 5.8 km) and shuttle-only.
• George Town Pump Track — at the edge of town's main street, used as the warm-up and progression facility.

The network is the gravity / black-diamond-leaning sister to Blue Derby's flowy XC. Most Tippogoree Hills trails are black or double-black descents; greens/blues exist but are the minority. Both networks share riders' centres on Trailforks, downloadable PDF maps, and the same operator-branded website.

Location & Access

• Town: George Town, Tasmania 7253 (north-east bank of the Tamar River estuary; head of the Tamar Valley).
• Region: George Town / North-East Tasmania (DB region is correct).
• Lat/Lon (DB): -41.1031, 146.8523 (correct).
• Mt George trailhead: Mount George Road, immediately south-east of George Town town centre.
• Tippogoree Hills trailhead: Lauriston Park, ~5 km south of George Town.
• Drive times: ~50 min from Launceston Airport / Launceston CBD; ~3 hr from Hobart; ~50 min from Devonport ferry terminal (the Spirit of Tasmania).
• Public transport: No direct services to the trailheads. George Town is reached by regional bus from Launceston; from there a car or shuttle is needed.
• Parking: Sealed trailhead carparks at both networks. Overnight parking and camping in carparks are prohibited.

Best Season & Conditions

• Best months: Year-round riding, but the sweet spot is spring to autumn (Oct–Apr). Tamar Valley summers are warmer and drier than Maydena's; winter is rideable but cold and the gully trails can hold water.
• Wet-weather: George Town Council "may close trails for maintenance, unsafe conditions, extreme weather, or during adverse fire weather conditions." Check the operator website or Trailforks status before driving up.
• Fire-danger days: Trails close for High / Extreme Fire Danger periods (typically Dec–Mar).
• Surface: Purpose-built shale / loam mix with some rock features and "long rock gardens" on Mt George. Dries quickly after rain by Tasmanian standards.

Managing Body & Trail Builders

• Managing body: George Town Council — owns, manages and maintains the network. Council's MTB Trail Crew handles ongoing maintenance.
• Designed and built by: World Trail (lead builder/designer; head designer Glen Jacobs).
• Feasibility & draft design: Dirt Art (contracted by Council prior to federal funding).
• Major land contributor: Bell Bay Aluminium / Rio Tinto Group — significant portions of Tippogoree Hills trails are on company-owned land.
• Funding: $4.4 million from the Australian Government's Community Development Grants Programme (announced 2019). Project championed locally by the George Town Chamber of Commerce.
• Shuttle operator: Up Down and Around (private; bookings via Rezdy).
• Contact: info@georgetownmtbtrails.com.au; phone +61 3 6382 8800 (George Town Council switch).
• Address: Council office at 16–18 Anne St, George Town TAS 7253.

History & Background

• Pre-2019: George Town Chamber of Commerce identified the economic case for mountain biking after observing the Derby effect. Council commissioned Dirt Art for a feasibility study and draft trail concept.
• 2019: $4.4 m federal grant secured under the Community Development Grants Programme.
• 20 May 2020: Media release announcing World Trail as builder; project scoped at "80 km of purpose-built MTB trails across two networks."
• Jul 2020: Detailed design completed.
• Oct 2020: Construction start.
• Oct 2021: Mt George Trail Network officially opens — gravity-focused ~16 km.
• 17 Dec 2022: Lower Tippogoree Hills stage opens (~22 km / 21+ trails).
• 2023: World Trail completes the upper Tippogoree Hills stage; total network now ~100 km of riding across the two networks.
• 2024: Tas Gravity Enduro Series Round 1 hosted at George Town (16–17 Nov 2024).
• 2025: Rider survey opened in May; Tas Gravity Enduro Series scheduled to return Sat 6 Dec 2025 in a new "Jam" format.

Recent News & Updates (last ~12 months)

• 6 Dec 2025: Tas Gravity Enduro Series rolling back through George Town in the new Jam format.
• May 2025: Council and trail crew opened a public survey to gather rider feedback.
• Nov 2024: Hosted Round 1 of the 2024/25 Tas Gravity Enduro Series.

(Set against today's date 2026-05-19 — all within freshness window.)

SQL — applied below

UPDATE public.parks
SET phone = '+61 3 6382 8800',
    address = 'Mount George Road, George Town TAS 7253',
    features = ARRAY['Gravity','Shuttle service','Pump track','Purpose-built','World Trail designed','One-way trails','Bring your own water','Black/double-black focus'],
    updated_at = now()
WHERE slug = 'george-town-mtb-trails';

UPDATE public.park_facilities
SET present = false
WHERE park_id = (SELECT id FROM parks WHERE slug = 'george-town-mtb-trails')
  AND facility = 'toilets';

Sources

1. George Town MTB Trails — home — https://georgetownmtbtrails.com.au/ (accessed 2026-05-19)
2. George Town MTB Trails — Mt George Trails — https://georgetownmtbtrails.com.au/mt-george-trails (2026-05-19)
3. George Town MTB Trails — Tippogoree Hills Trails — https://georgetownmtbtrails.com.au/tippogoree-hills-trails (2026-05-19)
4. George Town MTB Trails — Know Before You Go — https://georgetownmtbtrails.com.au/know-before-you-go (2026-05-19)
5. George Town MTB Trails — About Us — https://georgetownmtbtrails.com.au/about-us (2026-05-19)
6. George Town MTB Trails — Media Release: World Trail to Build George Town MTB Trails (20 May 2020) — https://georgetownmtbtrails.com.au/news/media-release-world-trail-to-build-george-town-mtb-trails (2026-05-19)
7. Discover Tasmania — George Town MTB Trails — https://www.discovertasmania.com.au/things-to-do/outdoor-and-adventure/george-town-mtb-trails/ (2026-05-19)
8. Visit Northern Tasmania — George Town MTB Trails — https://visitnortherntasmania.com.au/see-and-do/george-town-mtb-trails (2026-05-19)
9. Flow Mountain Bike — Gravity trails on Mount George now open — https://flowmountainbike.com/post-all/gravity-trails-mount-george-now-open-george-town-tas/ (2026-05-19)
10. Flow Mountain Bike — Two Times The Trails, Two Times The Fun — https://flowmountainbike.com/features/mountain-biking-george-town-tasmania/ (2026-05-19)
11. Flow Mountain Bike — Tippogoree Hills opens December 17 — https://flowmountainbike.com/post-all/george-town-tippogoree-hills-opening-december-17/ (2026-05-19)
12. Trailforks — George Town region (and Mt George sub-region) — https://www.trailforks.com/region/george-town/ — 403 to scrapers but URL confirmed (2026-05-19)
13. George Town Council — Tas Gravity Enduro Series — https://georgetown.tas.gov.au/news/tas-gravity-enduro-series (2026-05-19)
14. AusCycling — 2024/25 Tas Gravity Enduro Round 1 — https://auscycling.org.au/events/2024-25-tas-gravity-enduro-round-1 (2026-05-19)
15. Tamar Valley News — Lower Tippogoree Hills MTB Trails ready to ride — https://tamarvalleynews.com.au/lower-tippogoree-hills-mountain-bike-trails-ready-to-ride/ (2026-05-19)