The Perth Hills is an absolute hub for outdoor trails whether for hiking, biking, or horse riding. And there’s nothing better after a day of adventure than quenching your thirst with a cold ale in a classic character filled pub.

 

We acknowledge that this adventure is located on Noongar Nation, the traditional lands for thousands of years. We pay our respects to them as the Traditional Custodians and recognise that sovereignty was never ceded.

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The Perth Hills is a colloquial term for the Darling Range that runs parallel to the coastline, approximately 20km east of the city. Trails crisscross the ranges through Jarrah forest, gullies, creeks, and waterfalls in winter.

Read more: 5 of the Best Day Trips From Perth

Hotels were built up in the hills for holidaymakers and staging posts enroute to locations further east. Here are my six favourite trail and pub combos in Perth’s Hills (some are even on the trail itself).

Read more: Remember to leave no trace

 

Enjoy the Parkerville Tavern if you’re doing the Railway Reserve Heritage Trail

1. Munda Biddi + Mundaring Hotel

Trail distance: 38km to 1067km
Trail duration: Full day to 3 weeks
Distance from trail to pub: 100m
Trail type: Bike

At over 1000km in length, the Munda Biddi is Western Australia’s premier mountain bike trail and the name means ‘a path through the forest’ in the local Noongar language. It kicks off in Mundaring, an eastern suburb in the Perth Hills and ends in the south coastal port of Albany.

Read more: The Munda Biddi Trail – Pedal 1000km From Perth to Albany

The trailhead is at Sculpture Park, across the road from the Mundaring Hotel.

Regularly spaced blue and yellow trail markers make the Munda Biddi easy to follow. As for the distance, that’s up to you. If your aim is to start and finish a day ride at Sculpture Park, you can mountain bike downhill to the Mundaring Weir then go uphill to The Dell.

 

If you’re on the Munda Biddi in Mundaring, the hotel in town is a great place for a feed

 

It’s around a 38km return cycle trip, finishing at the Mundaring Hotel.

The historic and atmospheric Mundaring Hotel was built in 1899 and placed on the WA Heritage Register in 2016. The pub food and drinks with fellow mountain bikers is a great way to end a challenging and fun day out on the Munda Biddi.

Pub to Pub

Mundaring Hotel to Jarrahdale Tavern is 100km on the Munda Biddi Trail. 

2. Kep Track + Mundaring Weir Hotel

Trail distance: up to 75km
Trail duration: Full day to multi-day
Distance from trail to pub: 100m
Trail type: Hike, bike, horse

The 75km Kep Track traces the CY O’Connor’s historic pipeline to the wheatbelt town of Northam. It’s an easy multi-day mountain biking, hiking, and horse-riding trail passing through forest, farmland, and several small communities.

 

Follow the historic rail formation on the Kep Track

 

Trail users get to follow part of the 560km long pipeline that takes water from Mundaring Weir to Kalgoorlie. The Kep, meaning water in local Noongar language, starts across the road from the classic Mundaring Weir Hotel.

The hotel was built in 1898 to accommodate thirsty dam workers and tourists attracted to the most ambitious engineering project of its time.

 

The beautiful Mundaring Weir Hotel (which is different from the Mundaring Hotel)

 

Now its old-world charm and expansive shady beer garden is a popular haunt for hikers and bikers of all kinds.

The hotel also hosts regular live bands. The Mundaring Weir Hotel is also a famous lunch spot on day two on the Bibbulmun Track for walkers leaving from its northern terminus.

Nearby Accommodation

3. Railway Reserve Heritage Trail + Parkerville Tavern

Trail distance: 41km
Trail duration: Full day for cyclists
Distance from trail to pub: 100m
Trail type: Hike, bike, horse

The Railway Reserve Heritage Trail crosses paths with the Bibbulmun, Munda Biddi, and Kep Tracks and is a great trail in its own right. The 40km multi-use rail trail is a loop around the Perth Hills. It passes a few pubs, but the grandest is the Parkerville Tavern on the other side of Jane Brook.

Read more: Cheap, Solo and Minimalist Hiking on The Bibbulmun Track

The ‘Parky’ was built in 1902 and has fallen into near ruin a few times due to de-licenseing and fire, but now is heritage listed and a busy weekend destination.

 

Yep, this one is trot-friendly!

4. Kitty’s Gorge Walk Trail + Jarrahdale Tavern

Trail distance: 17km
Trail duration: 4-6 hours
Distance from trail to pub: 700m
Trail type: Hike

Perth is a dry city, but in winter some waterfalls start flowing and Kitty’s Gorge highlights a few of them. In Serpentine National Park, Gooralong Brook bubbles downstream into Serpentine River, ending at Serpentine Falls.

Read more: The Dreamy Serpentine Falls is a Must-Visit Near Perth

The Kitty’s Gorge Walk Trail starts opposite the Jarrahdale Cemetery and is 700m from Jarrahdale Tavern.

 

Great to get some babbling brook audio in

 

Walk downhill for 8.5km and back up again before congratulating yourself with a cold beverage at the tavern, built in 1886.

Back at the Jarrahdale Tavern, the car park might be full of motorbikes as it’s a popular Sunday motorbike run. Jarrahdale is also a hub for horse trails.

5. Bibbulmun Track + Kalamunda Hotel

Trail distance: 22km but up to 1000km
Trail duration: Full day to 8 weeks
Distance from trail to pub: 150m
Trail type: Hike

Western Australia’s flagship long distance hiking trail, the Bibbulmun Track, starts across the road from the supposedly ‘haunted’ Kalamunda Hotel. The trailhead is both exciting and daunting when taking the first tentative steps on the 1000km end to end hike to Albany.

Read more: Hiking the Bibbulmun Track: A Thousand Emotions in 1000km

 

Walk past ancient grass trees on the Bibbulmun Track

 

If 1000km is many steps too far, a day walk to the first Bibb shelter, Hewitts Hill, is 22km return to the pub for a well-earned beer. The trail to Hewitts Hill is, well hilly, through Jorgenson Park, Kalamunda National Park, jarrah forest, and some pine plantation.

The Kalamunda Hotel was built in 1902. It was and still is the hub of the Kalamunda community. The stories of ghosts in the hotel float around and clairvoyants have felt the presence of spirits.

 

Time for a spooky sip

 

Pub to Pub

If you prefer a pub to pub walk, from Kalamunda Hotel to Mundaring Weir Hotel is 17.2km including a walk over the dam wall.

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6. Nyingarn Bidi + Dwellingup Hotel

Trail distance: 49.5km
Trail duration: Full day to multi-day
Distance from trail to pub: 50m
Trail type: Hike

Dwellingup is a small logging town, 108km southwest of Perth. Beautifully situated in hilly forest around 300m above sea-level, Dwellingup has reinvented itself as an adventure-junkie hub with the catchphrase, ‘Where Trails Meet’, as it’s where the Bibbulmun and Munda Biddi trails converge and cross over. There’s now a new hiking trail linking a section of the Bibbulmun Track to create a loop.

Starting and finishing in Dwellingup, the 49km Nyingarn Bidi Trail includes two Bibbulmun Track shelters, Chadoora and Swamp Oak. Nyingarn is the Noongar word for echidna and Bidi means trail.

 

Stopped at the Swamp Oak shelter

 

Dwellingup is also the gateway to Lane Poole Reserve that hugs the spectacular Murray River (yes, WA has its own Murray River). There are lots of trails to be found there as well.

Walking back into town, you can’t miss the Dwellingup Hotel, AKA the Dwelly, smack bang in the middle of town. The Dwelly is a favourite watering hole for post-trail refreshments. Built in 1911, the pub is a single-story building with a red roof and is one of the few buildings that survived the terrible bushfires of 1961. It’s a community hotel and heritage-listed.

The Perth Hills are full of trails and classic pubs to enjoy, but remember to organise a designated driver or keep the beverages to a sensible amount for the drive home.

Perth Hills Trails and Pubs FAQs

How far are the Perth Hills from Perth CBD?

The Darling Ranges are about 40km from the CBD, which takes about 40 minutes to drive.

What is the main town in the Perth Hills?

There isn’t a main town in the Perth Hills. There are many village-like suburbs such as Kalamunda and Mundaring. Parkerville is a suburb with a pub. Jarrahdale and Dwellingup were past logging towns now embracing trails and adventure.

When is the best time to visit the Perth Hills?

Autumn, winter, and spring are the best times to visit the Perth Hills. Summer can be too hot and there’s a risk of bushfire. Spring is a great time for seeing all the wildflowers and in autumn, there’s some colour in the trees.

Go on More Perth Adventures

 

Header image by Kate Gibson

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