Location	Footscray Station
Route	35km one-way route to Southern Cross Station Footscray, Maidstone, Maribyrnong, Essendon, Parkville, Brunswick East, Carlton North, Carlton and Melbourne.
Food Stop	Gordon Street Bakery 142 Gordon St, Footscray VIC 3011 Keeper Brewing 122 Weston St, Brunswick East VIC 3057 Madeleine du Proust 253 Lygon St, Carlton VIC 3053
Make a day of it	Nearby recommendations Pipemakers Park Melbourne Zoo Take a deviation up the Upfield Line Brompton Junction Royal Exhibition Building Hill of Content Bookshop
Helen’s Rating	⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️🥑
GPX/Strava	https://www.strava.com/routes/3397720026295237112
Date ridden	6 September 2025 If you have ridden these route and have any updates that need to be made, then leave a comment on this post.

Helen and Diane were joining us for the this Saturday ride. Helen had flown in the night before. Diane was going to meet us at Footscray Station on Saturday morning and return home from Southern Cross Station on Saturday night. It’s only a 6km ride between the to. But that’s way too direct for an Adelaide Bromptoneering Ride. Instead, we opted for a 34km route.

We took the train to Footscray Station – our meeting point. Helen was in desperate need for a fresh pastry. Our first stop was designed to meet that desire. Gordon Street Bakery had two shop fronts with nearly all of its space dedicated as a kitchen. It had a limited but very high quality range of options. My chocolate and almond croissant was still warm. It was irresistible.

Shortly after Gordon Street Bakery we came across a memorial to the Korean War and some fine views of the city. I just hope that by the time you arrive the temporary fencing is removed.

We rejoined the Maribynong River Trail for a few kilometres. I had plotted a route on the side of the river that I hadn’t ridden before. Unfortunately, it was a very busy Saturday morning with a bonus rowing regatta and sausage sizzle. Fortunately for you, I have adjusted the route to the quieter side of the river taking advantage of the cycling bridge instead of the road bridge.

To get to where we needed to be, we had to leave the river trail and climb up out of the valley. This is done on Afton Street. I am pretty sure you’ll be hiking the bike. At its maximum the gradient is 16%! After that, there is a pleasant ride through the suburbs of Aberfeldie and Essendon.

We then joined the Moonee Ponds Trail. It certainly gives a different perspective of the Melbourne entry statements that most Adelaideans see when they drive into Melbourne. It was a lot of fun!

At the intersection of the Capital City Trail and the Moonee Ponds Trail we took the Capital City Trail towards Brompton Junction. Just before Brompton Junction we took a few Brunswick back streets to get to our lunch destination, Keeper Brewing. They had a flatbread special on Saturday. We took them up on their offer.

We travelled through the delightful cycling streets of Carlton North to our desert stop. I first discovered Madeleine du Proust on my 2024 pastry tour. I go back whenever I can.

We had some spare time. So, we didn’t take the direct route back via Little Collins Street. Instead we hiked our bikes through the Botanic Gardens. While the Strava route doesn’t show it, it is pretty easy to get there by following the continuation of Exhibition Street. We said farewell to Diane and her Brompton at Southern Cross Station. She took the V-Line back to Castlemaine where her car was waiting. A truly multi modal day.

The route taken is shown below.