Fassifern Rail Trail is a 6km, grade 2 hike located in the South East Queensland, Queensland. The hike should take around 2.25 hrs to complete.
Hike summary
The Fassifern Rail Trail was one of the trails to be constructed under the South East Queensland Active Trails Stategy. It was to be part of 76 km Boonah to Ipswich Trail. Work on the the long distance trail was suspended in 2012.
Commencing at the carpark of the Boonah Visitor Information Centre the rail trails starts with a climb to the "Hollywood" style sign that overlooks the town and the VIC. From the town lookout the trail is to the west via a simple walking track. This section is signposted and has direction markers but the Rail trail is not evident. The Boonah Lookout can be access by local roads and there is ample parking in this locality, if the climb from the VIC to Athol Terrace is too hard.
The walking track leads to the rail trail proper the junction being about 150 m north of the Boonah-Fassifern Road.
The rail trail proper is easy to follow and traverse and extends for about 2km until the gate on Pocock Road. The small historic cemetery adjacent to the rail trail records the resting place for a number of the pioneers of the area. The cemetery can be accessed from Re Bridge Road and is an alternative parking area for easy access to the rail trail.
The trail is located on the southern boundary of Pocock Road, this is a gravel surface along the fence line. At the top of the hill, about 300m from the gate, is asmall clump of trees where are some great views of the Scenic Rim including Mount French to the south west.
The loop trail continues down the slope and south east about 400m along the unformed section of Hoya Road then follows the formed section of Hoya Road (on the eastern footpath) for about 1.4km to Springleigh Park, the site of the weekly Boonah markets.
The trail route then follows the footpath on the southern side of the Ipswich-Boonah Road crossing back to the northern side of the road at the main roundabout (all up about 700m) back to the carpark.
Many people, after reaching the lookout or the gate in Pocock Road reurn to the Tourist Information Centre along the old rail formation.
There are sections of the old railway line still visible in the town proper. A section of the rail trail appears near Yeates Avenue (at Lions park) and is pedestrian friendly for about 600m to Mount French Road on the western side of Dugandan Park. This was the site of a mjor timber mill in the past. The "terminus" today is not far from the popular Dugandan Pub.
The Fassifern Rail Trail utises a section of the disused railway line on the outskirts of the Boonah township. The Fassifern Rail Trail is being developed in partnership with Scenic Rim Regional Council and local community groups of the Fassifern Valley.
Today, Boonah is an attractive and busy town of about 2 500 people. It promotes itself as being "The Heart of the Scenic Rim". The Scenic Rim being the arc of spectacular mountains that stretch north west from the New South Wales border ttowards Toowoomba.
Route and GPX file
This hike is missing a route map and GPX file. If you have one for this hike, please upload your .gpx or .kml file here.
Tips
Boonah Visitor Information Centre to Boonah in South East Queensland
Boonah South East of Brisbane
Coarse gravel
Undulating
For more information and a location map please visit RailTrails Australia.
Gear you might need
As well as including the Ten Essentials, my planning, food and packing checklists provide an summary of things to consider on your day, overnight and multi-day hikes. Every person and every hike is different, so customise your kit according to your needs. Download your free checklists here >>
Location
Sorry, no records were found. Please adjust your search criteria and try again.
Sorry, unable to load the Maps API.
Let someone know before you go
It’s a good idea to let someone know where you’re going. Fill in a trip intention form to send important details about your trip to your emergency contact. If you are lost or require help and have phone reception, call 000 and ask for police. The international standard emergency number is 112, if you dial this number in Australia you will be treated exactly the same as a 000 call. If you believe your life is at risk, activate your personal locator beacon (PLB), then make your position visible to rescue teams and keep warm and dry.
Gallery
If you have any great photos from this hike and are happy to share them, please upload your .jpg files here.
Please note: Uploading photos does not transfer ownership of copyright away from you. If requested, you will be credited for any photos you provide and can ask they be deleted at any time.
Let someone know before you go. Register your trip intentions here. Your trip intentions will be emailed to your emergency contact.
Does this hike info need updating? maybe the route, features or access conditions have changed? Suggest an edit here.
Acknowledgement of Country
Trail Hiking Australia acknowledges the Traditional Owners of the lands on which we hike and pay respects to their Elders, past and present, and we acknowledge the First Nations people of other communities who may be here today.