Garry and Carols Van Trip: Beechworth to Mudgee

We were advised by several people to visit the Beechworth/Rutherglen/Bright region and they were all correct. Even if we did head south again into the cold(er) weather, it was well worth the stay. The area has a rich gold rush history and of course plenty of attractions glorifying the Kelly Gang and their exploits. Apart from the old stuff the region is a beautiful wine and cheese region and is on the doorstep of the ski fields. We were looking forward to a quiet sample of a wine or two but had unknowingly coincided our visit with the annual Rutherglen ‘Wine Walkabout’ at which coach loads of visitors buy a commemorative wine glass for $25 and proceed to tour the Wineries on provided coaches. It is a great tourist idea but suits the 25 year olds much better than us ‘olders’. We still had a nice drive around several wineries and loved the gardens and buildings of All Saints. There was also a great Cheese Factory at Millawa with a nice log fire coffee shop/café attached. It was also very popular on the long weekend. Brown Brothers also had a very nice area in the King Valley. Between Beechworth and Rutherglen is a great set of waterfalls which a not signposted all that well but provide a good viewing platform and nice scenery. It would be good area for a picnic and swim with kids on a summer’s day.

Woolshed Falls

All Saints Winery front garden

All Saints driveway in autumn

The drive south through Myrtleford, Bright, Mt Beauty and back around through Yackandah was beautiful. There are lush valleys through to Myrtleford and Bright and then a steep road with great lookouts over the mountain range to Mt Beauty. Bright is a beautiful town that caters for tourists very well and also offers all the snow gear you could ever need. The shops were a great wander and the Brewery looked very inviting. We settled for a cuppa in one of the parks alongside the bubbling river that runs through town. Two rivers join in the middle of town and it is so peaceful sitting beside the streams listening to the water running over the rocks. The range between Bright and Mt Beauty is covered in rain forest and snow gums and the two lookouts over the valley and then over the town of Mt Beauty across to the Snowy Mountains and the Mount Hotham Snow Fields was spectacular. It is very popular with cyclists as Carol counted more bike riders on the trip over the mountain than fellow motorists. We watched a glider being towed up from the Mt Beauty airstrip and it seemed to be in the air but still thousands of feet below us at the lookout. Mt Beauty is very much a town to service the snow fields and we were wondering if they ever got to use the outdoor Town Swimming Pool even in summer?? The drive back along the valley full of dairy cows to Yackandah was peaceful and very green after the good rain over the past few weeks. Yackandah is a quaint little town with a main street full of antique and book shops and a good bakery and plenty of coffee shops. Afternoon tea was very pleasant before the drive back up the hill to Beechworth.

Happy cows

Bright town centre

bright riverside parks

footbridge at the junction of the two rivers

valley between Bright & Mt Beauty

Mt Beauty township with Mt Hotham in the background

Beechworth has one of the best Bakeries we have seen and it is good to see a small business idea succeeding. The bakery / coffee shop has some of the finest pastry, cakes, and biscuits on offer and is located in an old sandstone and timber two storey building in the middle of town. Every time we passed it there were customers everywhere. The Bakery has been so successful that we had noticed several other similar bakeries that have been established throughout regional Victoria. The first one we saw was in Echuca. Good luck to them. Being very busy on the long weekend we noticed another cute café along the same street that served high teas. We went in for lunch and thoroughly enjoyed eating off a white linen tablecloth on fine antique furniture with old fashioned tea pots/tea strainers and linen serviettes. We had a choice of about 30 tea flavours and enjoyed the tea and the lunch.

Swish tea cafe

Beechworth's latest RACV assistance vehicle

Courthouse where Ned, Dan Mother Kelly were tried and snetenced

Ned stood in the box at the door on the left

The handcuffs/leg irons used were not light duty..

Including the Information Centre, Beechworth has some very well preserved heritage buildings from the gold rush days. The street opposite the Info Centre is lined with the Court House, Police Station, Telegraph Station, Gold Administrators building, etc. They were all constructed in the Gold Rush days of the 1850-60’s and are in excellent original condition. The Court House where Ned, Dan and co were tried offer a great display including many stories of the trials and prisoners held within its walls. The Judges Chambers and still intact from the 1800’s with hundreds of Law Books still lining the walls on floor to ceiling shelves. The Courtroom is filled with really nice furniture made from local hardwoods and standing the test of time. Behind the Info Centre is a modest looking Museum that hides one of the best displays we have seen in a regional museum. There are many artefacts from the Kelly Gang including the suits of armour worn by all four gang members. The old powder pistol used by Dan Kelly is on display but the best feature was at the back of the building where an 1800’s street scene has been setup with shopfronts, streetlights, penny farthing bikes and goods from the time all on display as they would have appeared. Each of the shops including a blacksmiths, embroidery shop, barber, and ladies fashion shop were filled with goods and tools used back then. It was a very impressive display. There is also one of the largest displays of stuffed Australian Birds we have seen with everything from Wedge Tailed Eagles to tiny Finches. There is also a pretty good mineral display with gems, and minerals from the local area and far and wide on display. The Van Park we stayed at in Beechworth was run by very friendly people who gave us very good advice on how to plan our trips during the busy long weekend and made us feel very welcome. It was cheap and had a great location close to the middle of town on the shores of Lake Sellwyn.

Streetscape in Beechworth Museum

Line up of Bikes

suits of armour worn by Ned & Dan Kelly, Joe Byrnes, and Steve Hart

outside the well constructed 1850's Theatre

Main Street today

Beechworth Powder Magazine complete with 1852 lightning arrestors

waterfall and gorge in the middle of town

Trestle Bridge built in early 1850's with granite blocks and no mortar. Designed to last 200 years and well on its way

Lake Sellwyn

Leaving Beechworth we returned to our northwards aim and travelled up through some back roads through to Wodonga, Albury, and Wagga Wagga. We overnighted in Wagga and Cowra and had a catch up with Emily’s Mum Carmel for a relaxing afternoon tea. The weather was a bit ordinary so were elected to push on the next day after not much sightseeing and stopped the next night in Cowra. This is a great town with WW2 history of the POW breakout by Japanese soldiers in 1942. The Museum has a very good display on the breakout with a hologram telling the yarn. The Japanese Peace Gardens are beautiful and well worth a wander through. On another wet day we headed toward the dry weather and camped at Orange. Several people had questioned that decision and suggested that it would be cold. They were right but just forgot to mention the continual drizzle and wind. It was bitterly uncomfortable so we elected to wander among the warm shops and take in a movie in the heated cinema. Orange is a nice area and I would like to return and spend some more time between Wagga Wagga and Orange districts. We will wait for different season though.