Spring Gully loop [16km]

This trails is a nice side trip off the Riesling Trail.

This loop heads west along Wendouree Road following the scenic tourist drive through the Skilly Hills, south to Spring Gully Conservation Park. The return section joins Spring Gully Road finishing at Sevenhill Hotel.

Located 130kms north of Adelaide in the Clare Valley, the Riesling Trail was once part of the railway line from Adelaide to Spalding. Built in stages between 1860 and 1918, the railway’s purpose was to ease mining transport and open up valuable agricultural land. In August 1983 the wavering future of the line was finally decided; after major sections of the track at Clare were destroyed in the Ash Wednesday fires the line was closed. In 1994 the section from Auburn to Clare became the Riesling Trail – the first South Australian conversion of a railway line into a recreational trail for walking and cycling. The trail was instigated by the Clare Valley Winemakers with funding support from the South Australian Government through the Office for Recreation and Sport. The section from Clare to Barinia was opened in 2009.