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A Sport Bike Rider's Guide to Perth's Best Roads
If you think Perth is all straight roads, highways and long stretches of nothing, you're probably just riding in the wrong direction.
Head east and south from the city and the landscape changes quickly. The Perth Hills, Darling Scarp and surrounding country roads offer plenty of elevation changes, flowing corners and technical sections that can turn an ordinary Sunday ride into a seriously good day on a sport bike.
And you don't need to ride hundreds of kilometres to find them.
Here's where we'd start.
1. Mundaring Weir Road
One of the Perth Hills classics.
Mundaring Weir Road runs between Kalamunda and Mundaring and is one of the area's most popular roads for recreational driving and motorcycle riding.
It's roughly 24 km from Kalamunda to Mundaring and winds through the forest around Mundaring Weir.
For a sport bike, it's less about outright speed and more about flow. The road constantly changes direction, with a mix of tighter corners, sweepers and elevation changes.
It's also close enough to Perth to make a great early-morning ride without committing to an entire day.
Drifter tip: Don't treat it like a racetrack. There are plenty of other road users, cyclists and changing conditions. Ride it clean and enjoy the corners.
2. Kalamunda and the Zig Zag
If you're starting in the eastern suburbs, Kalamunda is one of the easiest gateways into the Perth Hills.
The famous Zig Zag area provides some of the tighter, more technical riding near the city, while the surrounding roads allow you to build a much longer loop.
The Zig Zag itself is best treated as a short section of a larger ride rather than the destination. Link it with the roads around Gooseberry Hill, Darlington and Mundaring and suddenly you've got a proper morning ride.
There are established motorcycle routes around Kalamunda and Mundaring, with local riding guides regularly highlighting the area for its winding roads and scenery.
3. Toodyay Road & the Avon Valley
Want something longer?
Point the bike towards Toodyay.
Toodyay is officially recognised as part of the Avon Valley Motorcycle Friendly Region, with the local tourism authority specifically promoting the area's winding roads and motorcycle-friendly businesses.
The ride from Perth towards Toodyay takes you progressively further into the hills before opening into the Avon Valley.
And Toodyay is more than just somewhere to turn around. From there you can build longer loops through the surrounding countryside, including routes towards Julimar, Chittering and the Wheatbelt.
This is where the sport bike starts to make sense as a day-trip machine rather than just something for a quick blast through the hills.
4. O'Brien Road and the northern hills
If you're looking for something a little more out of the way, the roads around Gidgegannup and the northern Perth Hills are worth exploring.
O'Brien Road regularly comes up in local rider recommendations, along with Mayo Road and the surrounding roads towards Toodyay.
The big attraction here is variety.
You can find sections that open up into long sweepers before suddenly tightening into more technical corners.
Just keep an eye out for wildlife, gravel and changing road conditions, particularly as you get further away from the metropolitan area.
5. Jarrahdale and the southern hills
Head south and you've got another completely different riding area.
The roads around Jarrahdale and Serpentine combine forest scenery with flowing hills roads and make an excellent longer ride from Perth.
If you've got most of the day, you can build a large loop through the southern hills rather than simply riding to one destination and turning around.
This is also where the ride starts feeling like you're properly getting away from Perth.
So, is Perth actually good for sport bikes?
Absolutely.
Perth probably isn't the first Australian city people think of when they picture twisty motorcycle roads.
But that's part of the appeal.
Within a relatively short ride from the CBD, you can go from city streets to:
🏙️ Perth → 🌳 Perth Hills → 🏍️ twisty roads → 🌲 jarrah forest → 🥧 country town → 🏙️ back home
And you can tailor the ride to the bike.
A smaller bike can be incredibly entertaining on the tighter roads, while something like an S1000RR gives you the performance to enjoy the faster flowing sections and longer rides.
The key isn't finding the road where you can ride the fastest.
It's finding the road where you enjoy riding the most.
Want to experience Perth on a sport bike?
That's exactly why we created Drifter Motorcycle Tours.
Our Perth fleet ranges from approachable smaller motorcycles through to serious performance machines like the BMW S1000RR, giving riders the opportunity to experience some of WA's best roads without needing to own the bike.
Pick a bike. Pick a direction. Go ride.
Drifter Motorcycle Tours — Perth & Melbourne.