Who doesn’t love a Sydney Beach? We kick this Ride off right at the coast, because starting by the water is just so much more spectacular. Ride 21 takes us through the Maroubra, starting at the north end of the beach and heading towards Pagewood, where you can connect up with trails that head towards the city and the airport.
First up, we start at Mahon Pool, a famous rock pool nestled in the cliffs of Maroubra. It’s a fantastic place to swim and relax, with lots of places to park your bike in the rocks. Bring some togs (check the pools page), or maybe just take in the view at the moment as it can be cold in winter.
Exploring the Esplanade
Cruising out from the pool, we ride along Marine Parade. At the roundabout, you’ll see a way to get onto the footpath so you can ride along the beach towards the pavilion.
Make sure to go slowly here—there are lots of people and cycling is sometimes frowned upon. But once you’ve soaked up the salt and spotted the giant concrete rubix sitting on the sands, it’s the perfect spot to stop and take a photo or 2!
Fitzgerald Avenue & The Road to Heffron Park
From the Pavilion, we head west past the kids skate park until we reach Fitzgerald Avenue. You will eventually end up having to go on-road. Don’t worry, there is a path there, but it is one of those green-painted lanes on both sides of a very big road.
It’s actually not too bad! Follow that green lane all the way up Fitzgerald Avenue, crossing Anzac Parade, and you will arrive at Heffron Park. This is where you can happily get off the big road and ride through the park.
Heffron Park & The Criterium Track
Once inside Heffron Park, you can stay off the main road and find yourself amongst the gardens and sports parks. We’ll be riding on the north end of the park, right next to Fitzgerald Avenue.
After passing a couple of rugby parks, you’ll spot a dedicated racetrack for cyclists. It’s rather old, but it remains popular on the weekends, hosting grade-one racing every now and again. Just past the racetrack, you’ll see an enormous number of netball courts, followed by soccer field after soccer field after soccer field! If you have the time, you can ride all the way around Heffron Park (see photos).
Weaving through Pagewood to Wentworth Avenue
At the north western end of Heffron Park, we go on-road for about 250 metres on Bunnerong Road, then make a turn into Smith Street.
We follow Smith Street all the way around to the roundabout on Denison Street. The final road on this stretch is Corish Circuit where you will spot the giant Westfield Eastgardens Shopping Centre on your right. But we’re going to head up Wentworth Avenue to the left, where Botany Council has built a dedicated cycleway. We follow this cycleway for about 800 metres, crossing Baker Street. At the moment, they are currently building a bit more cycleway on Wentworth but for now head down Baker Street and go across behind the shops to Daly Avenue and head right up to Bay Street. Here we join Ride 18 - Botany to Zetland
Lets check the full Ride 21 3D video starting at the beach.
For our paying supporters, let’s look closer at the family-friendly highlights of this Ride plus a not so obvious wildlife park nearby! For free subscribers, head to the Eastern Suburbs page
