Family Fun on the Narrabeen Lagoon Trail

Two years ago we left the sunny shores of South Africa, and with it our trusty mountain bikes. It was a sad day indeed. Thankfully, with our girls getting older, and quickly forming their own love for bikes, we decided it was time to bite the bullet and invest in a new set of mountain bikes for ourselves.

Amazingly, this proved to be a more difficult task than expected, as bike shops had been stripped clean of supplies by people who had suddenly developed a passion for exercise during the Covid-19 lockdown. Thankfully, after phoning around 20 bike shops, I finally managed to track down bikes for both Sharon and myself. Not wanting to risk losing them, we were the first customers in the door of My Ride Narrabeen as it opened on Saturday morning, itching to get back onto the trails.

The staff were incredible, and had soon paired Sharon up with a shiny red Avanti Montari 1W, and myself wth a Scott Aspect 930. The Scott was already built, so we loaded it into the ute and headed home, expecting to pick Sharon’s bike the following day. However, just after we finished lunch, we got a call from the shop saying her bike was ready, and so we headed back to Narrabeen to pick it up.

Since the bike shop was directly opposite the Narrabeen Lagoon Trail, we decided to pack the kids bikes and spend the afternoon exploring the trail. Not knowing the route I decided it would be best for me to push Katie, while Sharon and Emma rode the trail. This proved to be a good idea as it allowed us to complete the full 9km loop, which we may not have been able to do if Katie was riding on her own.

The trail was crowded and exceptionally busy, especially around the various parks and parking lots in Narrabeen. However, once we got around to the back end of the trail the crowds thinned out, and we got to enjoy a few short sections of dirt on our own.

The trail itself was a level, well maintained gravel road tracking the banks of the Narrabeen Lagoon. There were 3 river crossings (on bridges, not through the water), as well as an exciting section of boardwalk which travelled over the water for a few hundred meters, providing great views over the lake and into the water. There were also a lot of pristine forest sections, which the kids loved, and some links to some single track for the more advanced.

The trail was well sign posted, and is easy to navigate for all ages and abilities. The only real downside, as I mentioned earlier, were the crowds. I’m sure we’ll be back, although we’ll likely pick a less busy time of the day.

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