This route links together five hill reps, with each lap starting and finishing at a water fountain, so you can run light. The route is entirely on shared use 4WD roads, however, this is an MTB area and there are multiple downhill bike tracks criss-crossing the 4WD roads so take care.
Park near the 19th Memorial or anywhere else in Victoria Park and make your way to the trailhead at the Upper Eastside Bush entrance gate. There is a short warmup along the gravel road before you arrive at the water fountain in the MTB hub.
Your first lap starts directly east of the water fountain - the trail is slightly hidden but it's right between the power pylon and a big fir tree. This track is undulating, providing a nice warm up before the hills to come. Carry on down until you reach the intersection with the Eastside Bush Track steps on your left. Turn around here and head back up the way you came.
The second lap is a beast. Start at the sign labelled "Bowenvale Avenue (via 4WD track)" and multiple MTB trails. Head down the steep, straight gravel road. Keep going in a straight line, ignoring the other 4WD roads intersecting the road you're on, until you reach a fallen pine tree where the road turns into an MTB singletrack heading round a berm. Turn around and head back up to the water fountain.
Third lap - a few zig zags in this one. Start at the same place as lap 2 but veer off to the right down the gentler gradient 4WD road. At the first junction take a hard left, followed by a hard right at the second junction. You'll cross a small drainage gully just before a little uphill section where the track joins another 4WD road. This is the turn-around point - go back up the way you came.
Fourth lap - this one is a gentler gradient - enjoy a bit of active recovery before the final climb. From the same start point, take the flatter road signposted "Access to Rad/Cool Runnings/Flow Rider". Follow the road, taking the left fork at the junction, until it turns into an MTB track at the drainage gully. Turn around here.
Fifth and final lap - here we're mixing it up and doing the climb first. Head up the 4WD road between the Latters Spur Track and the MTB jumps. Take the right fork at the top of the first hill and keep going up to the grassy field with amazing views of the Southern Alps on a clear day. Turn left and carry on up to Summit Road following the climb trail/4WD road. Give yourself a pat on the back - you've now done over 350m of elevation gain. Cruise back down the way you came and back to the finish.
