Lake Leschenaultia MTB Trails

Overview

Lake Leschenaultia is a ~168 ha Shire of Mundaring recreation reserve in Chidlow, on the eastern fringe of the Perth Hills about 45 minutes east of the CBD. Built around a former 1890s railway dam, the reserve combines swimming, paddling, camping and a picnic precinct with a purpose-built mountain bike trail network laid out across the surrounding jarrah/marri bushland.

The MTB network, opened in stages around 2019, comprises a 12 km cluster of nine signposted singletrack trails ranging from 540 m to roughly 2.5 km. Each trail averages only about 50 m of climbing or descending spread over ~2 km, making it deliberately gentle — the network is pitched at families, beginners, kids progressing from the pump track, and intermediate riders chasing flow rather than gravity. The trails were laid out with dieback mitigation, low-impact tread and native fauna habitat in mind, and surfaces drain best in winter when moisture binds the granitic gravel.

A small concrete/asphalt pump track sits near the main car park alongside a café, toilet block and grassed picnic area, so the reserve functions as a single-stop day out for families: ride a lap of the MTB network, swim or paddle in the dammed lake, BBQ on the foreshore.

Location & Access

Address: 2135 Rosedale Road, Chidlow WA 6556
Region: Perth Hills
Drive times: ~45 min (50 km) east of Perth CBD via Great Eastern Highway; ~20 min from Mundaring; ~30 min from Midland
Public transport: No direct PT to the trailhead; nearest rail is Midland (~30 km west). Car or shuttle only.
Parking: Sealed main car park near the café/pump track, with overflow gravel bays on busy summer weekends. Disabled bays available.
Coords: -31.8536, 116.2427

Best Season & Conditions

Peak riding season: Autumn through spring (April–October). Cooler temps and damp soil bind the granitic gravel surface for better grip.
Wet-weather impact: Trails generally remain open in rain; the network was built with drainage and dieback mitigation in mind. Riders are asked to avoid muddy sections after heavy storms to protect tread.
Fire-danger / total-fire-ban impact: Reserve can close on extreme/catastrophic FDR days during summer. Check FDR status with Perth Hills Mundaring Visitor Centre (08 9290 6736) before driving out.
Snow / alpine season: N/A
School-holiday surge: Very busy on summer weekends and WA school holidays — swimmers, campers and families dominate the picnic precinct, but the MTB trails themselves stay relatively quiet.

Managing Body & Trail Builders

Land manager: Shire of Mundaring (the reserve is a Shire-managed recreation reserve)
Trail builder / maintainer: Trails designed and built to Shire of Mundaring specifications with input from the local MTB community; routine maintenance via Shire rangers and volunteer dig days
Volunteer / dig days: Coordinated through the Shire and local clubs (WAMBA / Perth MTB) — irregular cadence; check Shire events page or WAMBA socials
Donations / membership: Park entry is free; donations go via Shire of Mundaring or WAMBA membership

History & Background

Lake Leschenaultia originated as a railway dam built in the 1890s by the WA Government Railways to supply water to steam locomotives on the Eastern Railway line, with the lake itself reaching its current shape after dam works in 1897. The site was decommissioned as a railway water supply in the mid-20th century and progressively redeveloped into a recreation reserve under the Shire of Mundaring, with formal camping, picnic and swimming facilities added over subsequent decades.

The dedicated MTB singletrack network was opened in stages around 2019, with YouTube ride footage from September–October 2019 marking the public launch of trails such as Hula and Towies. The trails were designed to be deliberately gentle (~50 m climb per trail) to fit the family-park brief, and were routed with dieback hygiene and low-impact tread in mind given the dieback-affected jarrah forest the reserve sits within. The pump track was added alongside to give kids and beginners a skills feature near the main precinct.

Sources

Shire of Mundaring — Lake Leschenaultia Walking, Cycling and Orienteering — https://www.mundaring.wa.gov.au/leisure-lifestyle/lake-leschenaultia-home/walking-cycling-and-orienteering.aspx — accessed 2026-05-20
Shire of Mundaring — About the Lake, Location & Opening Hours — https://www.mundaring.wa.gov.au/leisure-lifestyle/lake-leschenaultia/about-the-lake-location-opening-hours.aspx — accessed 2026-05-20
Shire of Mundaring — Lake Leschenaultia MTB Trail Map PDF — https://www.mundaring.wa.gov.au/documents/482/lake-leschenaultia-mtb-map — accessed 2026-05-20
Trails WA — Lake Leschenaultia MTB Trails network — https://trailswa.com.au/trails/trail-networks/leschenaultia-mtb-trails — accessed 2026-05-20
Experience Perth Hills — Lake Leschenaultia Pump Track — https://experienceperthhills.com.au/things-to-do/lake-leschenaultia-pump-track/ — accessed 2026-05-20
Buggybuddys — Lake Leschenaultia Mountain Bike Trails, Chidlow — https://buggybuddys.com.au/lake-leschenaultia-mountain-bike-trails-chidlow/ — accessed 2026-05-20
Trailforks — Lake Leschenaultia region — https://www.trailforks.com/region/lake-leschenaultia-19636/ — accessed 2026-05-20 (URL canonical; anonymous fetch returns 403)
MTB Project — Lake Leschenaultia — https://www.mtbproject.com/directory/8025243/lake-leschenaultia — accessed 2026-05-20