After finishing work in late 2024, I had grand plans to spend far more time on my bike and do some bikepacking. Until now, while I have been doing some hill training, I’ve been too busy to do any bikepacking, with more pressing commitments getting in the way, including supervising the installation of our new solar/ battery system, transitioning the vegetable patch(s) from summer to winter, trying some new home brew beer recipes and an interstate trip to help my mum with some legal paperwork and to help my brother build a food cart. The food cart was a fun project relying on welding and carpentry skills, resulting in an authentic-looking Indonesian street food cart complimenting my brother’s assortment of outdoor cooking paraphernalia.
Planning
So after initially getting tips from my brother-in-law on suitable gravel bike trails to bikepack solo, I convinced him to accompany me on my first multi-day bikepacking adventure which was to be South Australia’s Kidman Trail, approximately 270km of trail from Willunga to Kapunda, including nearly 3,540m total ascent.
We set off in late March 2025, with the Bureau of Meteorology suggesting temperatures ranging from 10 degrees overnight to 26 degrees Celsius, during the day, which promised to be perfect for our trip.
It turns out the mid-afternoon sun was blistering, so make sure you take enough water and apply plenty of sunscreen (including SPF50+ lip-gloss to avoid sunburnt lips – which is painful – I know from experience!)
My Rig
Some years ago, I built a gravel bike consisting of a Light-Carbon gravel frame and Shimano GRX components. I run 700x45c Pirelli Cinturato tan wall gravel rubber, which performed exceptionally well on this ride, resulting in no punctures. I ran the tyres at 34 psi, noting that dropping closer to 30 psi would have made the lumpy roads more comfortable. Here is a comprehensive list of what I carried on the ride for those who like detail.
Getting there
The commute to the trailhead is a simple mix of cycling and train commuting, travelling from Adelaide to Seaford by train, where you disembark and ride approximately 16km to Willunga. In my case, I rode to the Adelaide Show Grounds Train Station, which is approximately 10km from my home, or I could have quite easily boarded the Flinders/ Seaford train from Central Station. Note that you need to transfer from the Flinders train to the Seaford train at Woodlands Park.
Getting Home
Well, you could ride approximately 100km from Kapunda back to Adelaide, which I would contemplate doing another time, but in our case, we organised my wife to collect us late afternoon, after we had a chance to collect a doughnut and iced coffee from the bakery in Kapunda.
Accommodation
We stayed at the Mount Barker and the Mount Pleasant Caravan Parks, which cost $30 and $28 per night, respectively, for our two little tents on unpowered sites. Pretty good value in my opinion as both had excellent amenities.
Just a tip – tent camping is getting harder to book due to various housing issues in Australia, so you’ll need to ring and explain that you are bikepacking, and they will take your booking over the phone. You are not able to book tent sites online. Follow the links above for contact details.
Day One – Willunga to Mount Barker
We disembarked the train at Seaford, after which we rode 14.7km to Willunga, via the Coast to Vines Rail Trail via McLaren Vale. We stopped for a croissant and coffee at The Cottage Bakery in McLaren Vale, and while the croissant was edible, it was too “bready”, for my taste, so in hindsight we should have opted for the Adelaide cycling tradition of carb-loading on doughnuts over the more European option. From previous experience, the doughnuts are great at the Cottage Bakery! I think there’s a saying… “When in Rome”…
If you’re after a scenic, off-road ride packed with variety and the charm of regional South Australia, the Kidman Trail from Willunga to Mount Barker delivers in spades. Spanning around 91 km, with approximately 1800 vertical meters of climbing, this leg of the trail offers a rewarding mix of bitumen, gravel, vineyards, forested hills, paddock bashing, and historic towns.
Starting in Willunga, the first section climbs steadily through the foothills of the Fleurieu Peninsula. The trail surface varies—expect everything from well-packed dirt to rocky inclines, so a gravel or mountain bike with good tyres is essential.
While riding the trail in March provided spectacular sunburnt views, this section does include some amazing shaded forest tracks and narrow fire trails through the Kuitpo Forest section, which in my view is one of the highlights of the ride.
A well-earned break awaits in Macclesfield, a charming town with a rustic feel. We were in a hurry so refuelled on premade ham and cheese croissants (see a trend emerging) and a couple of Cokes at The Macclesfield General Store. The attendant was a little distracted so unfortunately our French delicacies arrived a little burnt!
The stretch to Mount Barker offers more elevation gain, with some climbs through farmland and bushland. Navigation can be tricky in parts—signage isn’t always obvious, so having a GPS or trail map is wise. There are a couple of paddock-bashing adventures around Macclesfield and before Mount Barker, so be ready for a rough ride, and perhaps some bushwalking!
Overall, this section took in the order of eight hours, including the quick lunch stop, and was hard work at times, due mostly to the paddock-bashing over rough ground.
Day 2 – Mount Barker to Mount Pleasant
We had a later-than-perfect start from Mount Barker as we had to wait for the Caravan Park office to open to fix up our account and to return the keys that we were provided the night before for toilet and shower facilities. We left Mount Barker without breakfast with a plan to stop to refuel in Nairne which is a short deviation from the trail. Once in Nairne, we stopped at the Little Birdy Bakery for both breakfast and to buy lunch to go, as food options on this section of the trail are limited. Noting that the temperature was hotter than we anticipated, mostly due to this section of the trail having less tree cover and therefore less shade, I should have refilled my water at this point. Fortunately, we were able to refill bidons at the Tungkilo Community Postal Agent / Public Toilets just as my water supply was running out.
This section of the trail also included its share of paddock-bashing balanced by spectacular sunburnt views.
Of note, was the excellent pub meal from the Mt Pleasant Hotel Motel. The Chicken Schnitzel, chips and salad were a traditional pub-size portion and the meal cost in the order of $30. Excellent value and very tasty.
Day 3 – Mount Barker to Kapunda
Another great day for a ride, kicked off with a bacon and egg muffin from the Mt Pleasant Bakery and Cafe. The day included a few climbs, great scenery in the Mount Pleasant Forestry Reserve, lots of great decent, a little bit of paddock bashing, a little bit of sand, some holy water, a lunch of champions (Coke and Salt and Vinegar Chips) at the Stockwell Hotel and all wrapped up, arriving just in time, for bakery treats and an iced coffee from Litl Mo’s Bakery & Cafe in Kapunda.