Silvan

After thinking of new places to ride and seeing the information on the Cog Cafe website I elected to head out to Mt Evelyn/Silvan today. I was pleasantly surprised with the trail I found. After parking at Cog I headed out on the Aqueduct trail and hit some nice fast single track. This dumped me eventually on a dirt road that I descended into the rear of Silvan Dam. The dam is located next to the Dandenong Ranges National park which contains some epic trail, some of which mountain bikers are not welcome on.
I hit some access roads and whilst cruising down the road found that there was some single track paralleling the road. I entered the trail that looked pretty fresh and seemed to get minimal traffic. The trail was sweet twisting its way through heavy timber country with a few log roll overs. I headed along the trail system and discovered it covered both sides of the road. Once crossing the road I continued further into the park. I heard a car approaching which normally spells trouble.
It appeared to be a Ranger who promptly did a u turn and I was expecting a blasting/ or a fine, as I was not to sure about the legality of the trail I was riding. No voice was heard and I continued to ride further. The car soon disappeared. I think that the driver was more concerned to see if I was a arsonist but obviously could see that I was clad in lycra and meant no harm.
Once popping out onto another trail I headed along access tracks and just enjoyed the ride. Eventually time ran out and I had to head back to the car retracing my steps. Whilst riding up a access trail I cam across the same 4WD I had earlier. Again expecting some trouble all I got was a wave. So lady luck was on my side today.
The area is primed for riding with trail popping up everywhere. With a little local knowledge and enough supplies you could make a day of slogging around the trails right up to the top of the mountain. I will have to return and give it some more exploring.
Happy Trails!