The interrupted upper section is located in Burnside and Deer Park, the uninterrupted middle section starts in Ardeer and proceeds to Brooklyn, while the lower section is located in Altona.
The trail starts as a concrete path in Caroline Springs, where Caroline Springs Boulevarde crosses the creek. Some 2 km later use the road section from Westwood Drive to Bilungah Place. This leads to a gravel section and a ford to access the east side of the creek. A 1 km concrete path leads to a small footbridge near the Deer Park Secondary College at Deer Park. If the ford is flooded, a nearby road route can be used to access this footbridge instead.
Navigation is then straightforward with sealed concrete paths on both sides of the creek arriving at Station Road (approx 800 m).
After an easy road crossing at Station Road the path continues on the south bank along Gurnung Drv and crosses to the north bank, then through Cairnlea to Cairnlea Drive (approx 700m). From here pedestrians cross the Western Highway and then proceed east to Moore Park in Ardeer (approx 400 m) to the Western Ring Road Trail.
Middle section (uninterrupted)
The trail then runs directly and uninterrupted from Moore Park, Ardeer to Albion, then Sunshine and onto Brooklyn (approx 4 km). The trail passes close to both Albion and Sunshine stations and also has easy access to the Western Ring Road Trail at Moore Park and onwards to the Federation Trail in Brooklyn. As of 2013[update] the trail ends at this intersection with the Federation Trail.
Lower section
In July 2017 a new section of the Trail, connecting Grieve Parade to Barnes Road, was opened. This section is augmented along its length with sculptures created by Geoffrey Ricardo: "A strange trail of beasts, spirits and guardians". The one kilometre link from Grieve Parade to the Federation Trail was opened in April 2024 as part of the West Gate Tunnel works.
At Millers Rd cross the road to the serenity of Cherry Lake. A 3.7 km path circumnavigates the lake. On the way bird life including pelicans can be seen. It makes for stark contrast in this heavily industrialised area.
Future expansion
The section from Barnes Road to Cherry Lake is still incomplete as at May 2024. Once the upper and lower paths are joined, there will be an uninterrupted walking and cycling path all the way from Ardeer to Port Phillip Bay. Cycling and walking options exist along Millers Road northwards from Cherry Lake, up to the junction with Cabot Road and through Miller's Junction Shopping Complex to Barnes Road.