MTB Trails - Old Town Common

Overview

Old Town Common (also called the Town Common) is a small, family-friendly mountain-bike trail network on council land at the edge of the historic Snowy-Valleys gold-rush town of Tumbarumba, NSW. It functions as the beginner / entry-level hub of the wider Tumbarumba MTB network — riders typically warm up here, then link out-and-back along the connector to Mason's Hill, or further afield to the new Mt Tumbarumba gravity park (opened 31 March 2025) at the old Tumbarumba ski-hill site.

The network is compact (roughly 2.5 km of stacked-loop XC plus a single blue descent and short family laps) but punches above its weight: an easy green climb ("As Common as Muck") tops the hill, with three separate descent options ("For Pete's Sake", "Basalt Flow", "Jo's Shuttle") of progressively more difficulty branching back down. A flat 600 m kids' loop ("Brumbies Run") sits beside the trailhead. The granite-and-basalt soils on the volcanic plug above town drain well and give the trails a fast, grippy feel.

Everything here was built and is maintained by volunteers from Cycle Tumbarumba — the local club president Peter Marshall and partner Ria — under a Memorandum of Understanding with Snowy Valleys Council, which manages the underlying Crown reserve. Trails are free to ride.

Location & Access

Address: Old Town Common, Tumbarumba NSW 2653
Lat/long: -35.7632, 147.9961
Trailhead parking: Roadside at the gate on Hume Street, Tumbarumba
Tumbarumba township: ~10 minutes' easy ride / 2 km from the trailhead — riders often roll out from town
Drive times: Wagga Wagga ~1 h 40 min (130 km); Albury ~1 h 45 min (130 km); Canberra ~3 h (250 km); Sydney ~6 h (500 km)
Public transport: Limited — Tumbarumba is served by NSW TrainLink coach connections from Wagga
Closest fuel / food: Tumbarumba township (bakery, pub, IGA, cafes, Tumbarumba Hotel)

Best Season & Conditions

Best months: Spring through autumn. Trailforks ride-log data flags March as the most popular ride month [search result]
Winter: Tumbarumba sits at ~640 m elevation in the foothills of the Snowy Mountains and gets frosts, snow flurries and persistent cold. The trails on the Common are at low elevation relative to Mt Tumbarumba and remain rideable through winter on dry days, but expect mud after rain
Important note: The winter closure (1 July – early spring) applies specifically to the Mt Tumbarumba gravity park, not to Old Town Common. The Common is open year-round but riders are asked to stay off when wet to protect the volcanic soils
Fire season: Tumbarumba is in fire-prone country and was hit hard by the 2019/20 Black Summer bushfires; check NSW RFS for total-fire-ban days and avoid riding on Catastrophic days

Managing Body & Trail Builders

Land manager: Snowy Valleys Council (Crown reserve / Town Common land)
Trail builder & maintenance: Cycle Tumbarumba (incorporated club, est. ~2016) under Memorandum of Understanding with Snowy Valleys Council and (for other parts of the network) Forestry NSW Softwoods
Key people: Peter Marshall (president) and Ria, who built most of the network largely by hand using grant funding, fundraising and volunteer labour
Club / shop: Ride Tumba (ridetumba.com.au) — Peter & Ria's MTB shop in town, also functions as the club's public face. Phone 0409 833 504 (open 10am–5pm Tue–Fri, 10am–2pm Sat)

History & Background

2016: Cycle Tumbarumba formed; secured initial trail-build access across three parcels — Police Paddock, the Town Common and Mason's Hill — via separate landholder agreements with Forestry NSW Softwoods and Snowy Valleys Council
2016–2024: Trails built progressively by volunteers, grant by grant. Old Town Common emerged as the family-friendly entry network — short, easy gradient, multiple descent choices off one shared climb
2019/20: Black Summer bushfires devastated the Tumbarumba area; the broader trail-building project pivoted into a community recovery vehicle, supported by a $3.4 million Australian Government grant for the wider region
31 March 2025: Mt Tumbarumba gravity bike park opened on the old Tumbarumba ski-hill site — separate park, paid access, but the Town Common remains the free / family side of the network